Based on a true story, “American Violet” documents a compelling story about an unbalanced justice system in Melody, Texas where a powerful, white district attorney Calvin Beckett (played by Michael O’Keefe) routinely targets poor, Black
Based on a true story, “American Violet” documents a compelling story about an unbalanced justice system in Melody, Texas where a powerful, white district attorney Calvin Beckett (played by Michael O’Keefe) routinely targets poor, Black neighborhoods for drug raids. His motivation is to arrest as many people as he can, threaten them with long prison sentences if they do not accept a plea deal and rack up convictions to secure more federal funding to combat drugs. Only this time his regular drug raids nab Dee Roberts (played by Nicole Beharie), a single, 24-year-old Black mother of four, who is determined not to become a status quo and plead guilty to a felony charge just so she can get out of jail and go home. After her arrest, Dee is locked up with three other women and is shocked to learn that she was being charged with possession of an illegal substance with the intent to distribute. And even though she was not caught carrying drugs and none were found in her home, the prosecution claims to have a witness, a mentally disturbed ex-con. Dee’s court-appointed lawyer urges her to take a plea bargain to avoid a 16- to 25-year prison term. And despite Dee’s mother, Alma Roberts, (played by Alfre Woodard) urging her to accept the plea deal so she can be free to raise her children, she decides to put a stop to all the illegal arrests after meeting an American Civil Liberties Union attorney, David Cohen (played by Tim Blake Nelson) and a police officer, Sam Conroy (played by Will Patton), who team up to sue the county for racial discrimination. Dee’s pastor, Reverend Sanders (played by Charles S. Dutton), sent the ACLU attorney to help her with her case.
The movie’s indictment of injustice and racial profiling in a small Texas town leaves no doubt about who are the good guys and the bad. Dee’s defiance is heroic, as is her concern for the welfare of her children. It is almost impossible for Dee to control her anger throughout this ordeal, especially since she is in a bitter custody battle with Darrell Hughes (played by Xzibit), the father of her two youngest children.
As Cohen and his legal assistant, Byron Hill (played by Malcolm Barrett), build their case against Beckett, more tension builds up leading to a surprising end. Director Tim Disney perfectly captures the frustration by Blacks living in this small town and just how powerful the law can be when it is bent the wrong way.
The movie opened nationwide April 17, and I give it two thumbs way up! ______ Copyright 2009 Chicago Defender. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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