Hope--- is my favorite word. This story is heartfelt and will touch your soul. It did mine.

Initially set in the early 1980's, in Brooklyn, N.Y., this is a very deliberately paced yet powerful dramatic portrayal of the wrongful conviction of 18-year-old Colin Warner (Lakeith Stanfield). At that time crime was soaring throughout the nation, and police, prosecutors, and politicians were looking for convictions, not caring much how they got them.In this true story case, Warner was convicted when the police pressured witnesses enough to give false testimony and seal his fate. Languishing in a maximum security prison, Warner received tireless aid from his close friend KC (Nnamdi Asomugha) and later from his wife-to-be (Natalie Paul) and a dedicated attorney (Bill Camp)These type of movies always make me angry because I don't understand how people in powerful positions can allow others to rot in jail for long periods of time while knowing that they're innocent. How do these folks live with themselves?All in all, this film, written and directed by Matt Ruskin, is not for those looking for an action flick, but if you like quiet yet powerful movies then you might very well like this one.

"Crown Heights" (2017 release; 103 min) brings the story of Colin Warner. "Based on a true story" we are informed as the movie opens, it is "April 10,1980" and we her a gun shot, as people as running away. We get to know Colin, an immigrant from Trinidad, Colin is a petty thief, easily getting into trouble as he hangs out in Crown Heights (Brooklyn).. That evening, he is picked up by the cops and at the precinct, he is urges to confess to a murder he didn't commit. So why are the cops after Colin then? Colin is denied jail, and before we know it, his trial starts... At this point we are less than 15 min. into the movie but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: this movie is written and directed by Matt Ruskin, best known for his documentary "The Hip Hop Project", While "Crown Heights" is not a documentary, it might as well have been one. "Crown Heights" focuses on the grave injustice that befell Colin Warner, convicted of a crime he didn't commit when cops and the DA's office manipulate (if not worse) various witnesses and bystanders. Just when it seems it can't get any worse, it does. But the movie tries to make a bigger point and at that, it succeeds only in part. As the years roll on, we see various politicians (G.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, etc.) speak out harshly against crime (culminating with Clinton's "three strikes you're out" crime bill). You may agree or disagree with such an approach, but that of course has in se nothing to do with locking up an innocent man as a result of police and DA misconduct. Social injustice is a very important topic, but is "Crown Heights" actually a good movie? I'm happy to say that it is. Even though you get a sense midway through as to how it will all play out, it was riveting watching from start to end. The no-names cast is mostly excellent, in particular Keith Stanfield as Colin (he portrayed Snoop Dogg in "Straight Outta Compton" a few years back."Crown Heights" premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival to positive buzz. It finally opened at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Thursday early evening screening turned out to be a private screening, as I was literally the only person in the theater. No matter, "Crown Heights" is a good movie, with an even more important social cause, and I would readily suggest you seek this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.

In 1980 Colin Warner (played by Lakeith Stanfield) was charged with a crime he did not commit. He was convicted and spent 21 years in prison, including four years in solitary confinement. All the while he was in prison his friend Carl King (Nnamdi Asomugha) never gave up on correcting this injustice. This is the true story of the movie Crown Heights.Crooked cops, an injustice justice system and the politics of the day (Ronald Reagan's "Get Touch on Crime Policies") all steam rolled Warner's efforts to prove his innocence. His friend, Carl King, soon discovered that without money for adequate legal counsel a poor man had no access to the justice system. But he never gave up.While the movie portrays a jaw dropping look at our judicial system for poor people and minorities it is also a hopeful movie about faith, hope and friendship. Carl King almost lost his family to his commitment to prove his friend innocent, but still he never quits trying. He's convinced that the injustice of his friend could easily be him. He never stops trying to right the wrong.Marsha Stephanie Blake plays Briana his childhood sweetheart who is also convinced of his innocence and she makes him a promise that one day she will be there to drive him home from prison. They develop a romantic relationship while he's in prison and she waits for him during his entire 21 years of incarceration. Crown Heights won the Audience Award at this year's Sundance Film Festival with good reason. Lakeith Stanfield as Collin is amazing in his portrayal of a man wrongly imprisoned. The actor has to cover a full range of emotions of a man who loses hope, finds love, and discovers the true meaning of friendship. Stanfield does a masterful job. The movie is rated "R" for violence and sexual situations and it has a run time of 94 minutes. While gut wrenching to watch, I enjoyed Crown Heights very much. At the very end of the movie it's closing credits make the point that there are about 2.4 million people currently in prison in the United States. It's estimated that over 120,000 are innocent. On my "Hollywood Popcorn Scale" this movie gets my highest rating, A JUMB0 (with extra butter).Hollywood Hernandez