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Chiwetel Ejiofor has long been one of the most underrated actors of his generation, as he emerged from low-key character dramas like Dirty Pretty Things and Children of Men to deliver an Academy Award-nominated performance in 12 Years a Slave as Solomon Northup.
While he still managed to pop up in franchises like Venom and Doctor Strange, Ejiofor has also proved to be a talented director in his own right following the release of his theatrical feature film debut The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind in 2019. Ejiofors second directed film, Rob Peace, is a powerful twist on the typical coming-of-age story that speaks to important themes about paternal relationships and racial dynamics in the United States.
What Is ‘Rob Peace’ About?
Rob Peace is based on the heartbreaking true story of a young Yale University graduate who spent years trying to free his father from imprisonment. Rob (Jay Will) may have grown up in a tough community in New Jersey, but his mother, Jackie (Mary J. Blige), strongly believed that he had the potential to succeed academically due to his advanced intelligence and strong work ethic. Although Rob is able to enter the prestigious St. Benedict’s Preparatory School as an adolescent, his mother warns him to mask his connection to his father (played by Ejiofor himself), a belligerent drug dealer who commits physical and emotional abuse. After his father is imprisoned, yet swears that he is innocent, Rob begins to start working to free him by any legal means necessary. Unfortunately, being dragged into his fathers world means entering an environment of crime, as Rob begins to start selling drugs for profit.
Rob Peace is uniquely structured, as Ejiofor includes many flashback sequences featuring the actors Jelani Dacres and Chance K. Smith as younger versions of Rob. Although these segments do provide some contextual information on the environment in which Rob was raised, they also serve a more important role in examining the complex dynamic that he has with his father. Robs father is clearly frustrated by his lack of success, and impresses upon Rob that he needs to work hard to succeed. Despite what initially appears to be an inspirational thought, Robs father often subjects him to laborious tasks in an attempt to make him experience the same level of suffering that he did as an adolescent. Rob is clearly in fear of his father, but hes also come to respect him as an authority figure; this makes their relationship more interesting when Robs father is arrested, forcing him to hand over his fate to a son who is clearly dealing with intense mental strain.
‘Rob Peace’ Is a Complex Father-Son Story
Rob Peace keeps the viewer in the dark regarding the innocence of Robs father, allowing the audience to experience the same manipulation and unease that Rob does as he tries to collect evidence. Despite Robs skills in a wide variety of academic fields, it is always underlined that his father is his weakness, as he cant help but feel a debt of loyalty to the man who raised him. While Ejiofor delivers what is easily the most terrifying performance of his career, the films strengths lie in Will, who should immediately get more work based on the excellence of his performance in Rob Peace. Will captures the unique dichotomy of Rob; although he has learned to be independent ever since he was young, he is emotionally stunted based on the lack of compassion that he was granted by his father.
Rob Peace deals with some very weighty themes, as Ejiofor touches on the racial biases that make advancing in academics difficult for black students, and examines why the cycle of violence continues in low-income communities. However, these more ambitious qualities never take control of the narrative at hand, as Rob Peace tells a classical rise and fall story about a promising young man who was forced to let go of the opportunities that were granted to him. Rob Peace is certainly not an easy film to watch, but it signifies Ejiofor as a talented auteur interested in exploring the complexities of familial relationships.
Rob Peace is now streaming on Netflix in the United States.
The story of an inner-city Newark kid who attends Yale yet ultimately succumbs to harsh economic realities and the demons of his past.
Release Date January 22, 2024
Director Chiwetel Ejiofor
Cast Camila Cabello, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Kelly, Mare Winningham
Runtime 119 minutes
Genres Biography, Drama
