Sing Sing (United States, 2023)

Over the years, viewers have developed certain expectations about stories set behind prison bars. Those tropes, developed and exploited by the likes of the critically acclaimed TV series “Oz” and the less serious “Orange Is the New Black,” are rooted in reality but they don’t always tell the whole story. Sing Sing, from director Greg Kwedar, looks at a different aspect of the incarceration experience – one free of inmate-on-inmate violence and focused instead on the members of the prison society who seek to remake themselves behind bars with the goal of one day again breathing the air as free men. The film has a dramatic arc but is more about the experience of being part of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) program than it is about a straightforward narrative. Blending factual background and story elements with fictional details, Sing Sing proves to be a different sort of prison story that offers hope and redemption without schmaltz.

Three professional actors – Colman Domingo (playing the lead character, John “Divine G” Whitfield), Sean San Jose (playing inmate Mike Mike), and Paul Raci (playing artistic director Brent Buell) – are paired with actual previous participants of the Sing Sing RTA program, including Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who incorporates his personal story into the screenplay. This gives Sing Sing an almost-documentary quality the blurs lines (especially evident at the end when actual clips of the actors’ past performances are shown).

Divine G is one of the founding members of the RTA and, in many ways, its heart and soul. Wrongfully convicted of second-degree murder, he approaches an upcoming parole hearing with great optimism while working with Buell on a version of the latter’s play, “Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code,” for the RTA’s next performance. Divine G comes into conflict with a new member of the group, the disgruntled and uncommunicative Divine Eye. The two have dramatically different perspectives on acting. Divine G sees it as a process that can provide insight and openness. Divine E is generally dismissive. The men eventually work through their differences and form a bond but Divine G’s generally positive and optimistic attitude crumbles when he is affected by two blows to the cornerstones of his existence.

Prison dramas are often described as “searing” and “gritty,” but neither applies here. This is a quieter, less ostentatious presentation. It focuses on a program the existence of which many viewers may be unaware. The characters are powerfully portrayed but grounded. Although not filmed at the actual Sing Sing prison (a couple of other locales acted as stand-ins), the sense of verisimilitude is strong.

Colman Domingo came to Sing Sing amidst a shower of critical praise for his work in Rustin and The Color Purple. Taken as a trio, these films show the breadth and depth of the actor’s capabilities. In Sing Sing, his performance runs the gamut from positivity to depression and anger to humility. His interpretation of Divine G results in a character the audience can understand and believe in. (The real-life Divine G has a cameo.) Although Domingo’s acting is the movie’s centerpiece, if ever there was an argument for an “Ensemble” award, this is it.

Although it’s likely true that the movie’s subject matter has proven difficult for distributor A24 to market, their bizarre release strategy has done the movie few favors. After premiering at the 2023 Toronto Film Festival, the movie languished for nearly a year with A24 electing to position it as a 2025 Oscar contender. To that end, it received a very limited release in July 2024 (mainly NY and LA theaters) followed by a wider opening in August. But the “wider” opening never reached many locations and the movie swiftly disappeared from those theaters where it took a bow, disallowing an opportunity for a positive word-of-mouth to build. Rather than opting for streaming, A24 put the movie on ice with plans for a January 17, 2025 re-release (likely hoping a possible Domingo nomination would draw some attention). It remains unclear whether this approach will prove beneficial.

Sing Sing deserves to be seen, whether on the big screen or the small one, and it should not be pigeonholed into the genre suggested by its title or setting. This is a character study filled with small details and little moments and a perspective of imprisonment as being an opportunity for rehabilitation. It features a great performance by Domingo but, in some ways the less showy contributions of the former real-life inmates represent the best Sing Sing has to offer. The movie is touching and uplifting in often unexpected ways.

Sing Sing (United States, 2023)