Frantic with worry, Kendra Ellis-Connor (Kerry Washington) paces the waiting area of a Miami police station. Her 18-year-old son Jamal, a top student about to enter West Point, went out with friends early in the evening and, uncharacteristically, has neither returned nor contacted her. As she waits for her estranged husband Scott (Steven Pasquale), Kendra is interviewed by Officer Paul Larkin (Jeremy Jordan), who assures her that his questions about whether Jamal has priors, ... (Full plot summary below)
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Frantic with worry, Kendra Ellis-Connor (Kerry Washington) paces the waiting area of a Miami police station. Her 18-year-old son Jamal, a top student about to enter West Point, went out with friends early in the evening and, uncharacteristically, has neither returned nor contacted her. As she waits for her estranged husband Scott (Steven Pasquale), Kendra is interviewed by Officer Paul Larkin (Jeremy Jordan), who assures her that his questions about whether Jamal has priors, a street name, or gold teeth are strictly protocol and not racist. Larkin suddenly discloses new details regarding Jamal's whereabouts when Scott arrives, not initially realizing that this white FBI agent is Jamal's father. As the three hash it out in the otherwise deserted waiting area, urgent questions arise concerning the degree to which race, gender, and class play into police procedure.
Leave your thoughts about American Son.
| The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeAny failure to expand into cinema's possibilities is overshadowed by the uniformly strong performances in a four-person cast led by an excellent Kerry Washington. |
| Movie NationRoger MooreAmerican Son never quite lapses into terrible, but as with a play that needs another week of out of town tryouts, it “never gets on its feet,” either. |
| VarietyDennis HarveyThe overly finished language and theatrical intensity levels that might be potently effective onstage lose any pretense of naturalism under the camera’s unblinking gaze. |
| RogerEbert.comGlenn KennyAll these “what incredible irony!” moments are designed to…well, I’m not quite sure. The movie’s final line, an appropriation of the dying words of a black man killed by police, is an exploitative and cheap reversal that legitimately addresses precisely nothing. |
| The New York TimesChris VognarAt some point you’re tempted to stop following the narrative and start keeping score between husband and wife. It’s a good debate. It just isn’t much of a movie. |
| IndieWireTambay ObensonPerhaps writer Demos-Brown and director Kenny Leon hope to tap into our collective consciences, but it’s difficult to be moved by such hackneyed, all-too convenient storytelling and overwrought sentimentality. |
| The GuardianPeter BradshawIt’s a deafening misfire, like the most unbearable, unwatchable daytime TV soap filled with the most awful self-conscious hamminess, parodic emoting and pointless shouting-at-each-other acting. |
| User ReviewdudacarvalhoIt’s a very needed movie this days... Incredible and heartbreaking story... |
| User ReviewFootballgirl416I looked at the other reviews and I don't know what movie they watched but it wasn't American Son. This movie took my breath away. It was engrossing and pulls you into the story and backstory. It is intense so you must pay attention to the dialogue. The movie is definitely a repeat of things you have heard and talked about but the pacing and excellent acting made me think about it from both sides. I will recommend this movie to everyone. |
| User ReviewPedroyanThe movie taps into the core racial issues in modern USA and does that masterfully. |
