The idea of making movies based on plays is very common in Hollywood, great plays been successfully adapted to the screen. A Streetcar Named Desire, Amadeus, Glengarry Glen Ross, Hamlet are among them. But when a filmmaker take the risk of literally turn a film into a play on film. The director needs to bring a good cast to attract the audience and help them justify this risk.

Denzel Washington embarks in the director’s chair making the film “Fences” The story takes place in a neighborhood in Pittsburg in the 50’s Troy Marxon (Washington) lives with his wife Rose (Viola Davis) and his son Cory (Jovan Adepo). Troy works as a waste collector his life is surrounded by constant reminders of mistakes from the past. His brother Gabe Maxson (Mykelti Williamson) suffered from a head injury in World War II wich generates 3000 dollars in payout from the government used by Troy to buy a house also, his son from a previous relationship Lyons Maxson (Russell Hornsby) frequently stop by the house to ask for money. Troy is hunted by a major task which is install a fence around the house, Rose always remind him about it and Troy needs Cory to help him.

The film takes place close locations where the actors develop for long scenes of almost 20 min, kind of like the experience of been in a play, is a nice experiment, but for some audience member could be a very tedious. Fences it’s a metaphor of how in life we surround ourselves with the idea of keep everyone around us and not letting anyone set free, it constitute our mental and emotional cage. We are blind enough of stop everyone for been successful, because we know that we fail as a human being. The fact that Troy builds the fence as a task that never ends, is an act of procrastination that always has excuses.

Your lack of success cannot be justify by limit others to succeed. Your failure is your own responsibility and you are the only one who can do something about it.