Clemency
Directed by Chinonye Chukwu
With: Alfre Woodard, Aldis Hodge, Wendell Pierce
USA | 2019 | Fiction | 113 min
Film Source: Neon
Awards/premier festivals: Sundance - U.S. Grand Jury Prize for Drama
Sponsors: Jake Perkinson and Cate MacLachlan
* Followed by a reception sponsored by Champlain College. Clemency is one of three films selected by the Film and Media Culture Department at Middlebury College in partnership with VTIFF to screen in the Hirschfield International Film Series.
Writer–director Chinonye Chukwu uses calibrated artistry across the board to tell a sensitive story about a prison warden’s very challenging position of power. In a stunning opening scene, we see a lethal injection go wrong while the camera focuses on the immobile face of the warden (Alfre Woodard). The scene sets the tone for the dual concerns of this drama — the impact of the death penalty on the accused, as well as its impact on the civil servants whose job it is to ensure the state execution is carried out according to the rule of law. While the script and direction deserve much of the credit for the film’s success, this would not be the same movie without the towering screen presence of Alfre Woodard. ~OY