17/29
Elwood Curtis’ college dreams are shattered on a Florida two-lane highway. After bearing the brunt of an innocent misstep, he’s sentenced to the hell of Nickel Academy, a brutal reform school nestled deep in the Jim Crow South. He meets a fellow pupil, Turner, who sees it all. The two black teenagers form an alliance: Turner dispenses crucial survival advice, Elwood clings to his optimistic worldview. Against the backdrop of the burgeoning civil rights movement, Elwood and Turner’s existence seems light years away from the polished oratory of the Reverend Martin Luther King. Despite Nickel’s brutality, Elwood struggles to maintain his humanity, awakening a new vision for Turner.