892 Review
892 (2022) Film Review from the 44th Annual Sundance Film Festival, a movie directed by Abi Damaris Corbin and starring John Boyega, Nicole Beharie, Selenis Leyva, Michael Kenneth Williams, Connie Britton, Jeffrey Donovan, Olivia Washington, London Covington, Robb Derringer, Carmine Giovinazzo, Kate Burton, Albert Kong, Elise Neal, Kelli Dawn Hancock, Mel Fair, Keith Ewell, Miriam Silverman and Shannon Walsh.
Director Abi Damaris Corbin’s new film, 892, is a certainly a well-meaning film that plays out more realistically than many similarly themed films, but this storyline has been well treaded on if one looks back at the history of cinema. The star of 892, John Boyega, however, delivers a leading performance that makes the new picture stand out from many other bank robbery movies.
Perhaps the two movies that 892 reminded me of most are The Hughes Brothers’ Dead Presidents and Costa-Gavras’ Mad City. Granted, both of those films are more than 20 years-old but the themes found in the new picture were thoroughly explored in the aforementioned movies. 892 features the theme of a man who has served his country being shunned by “the system” which was the overall premise of Dead Presidents. 892 also showcases the story of a down-on-his-luck man who holds people hostage in an attempt to make a statement about how “the system” ignores the little guy. That’s the story of Mad City. Nevertheless, I’m giving 892 a pass and recommending it due to the quality of the acting.
John Boyega is featured in 892 as Brian Brown-Easley, a former marine whose money was taken from him through Veterans Affairs to settle a debt. We don’t know much about Brian as the picture opens. He walks into a Wells Fargo bank and asks the teller, Rosa Diaz (Selenis Leyva), who is also a bank manager, to call the authorities. Brian is robbing the bank but he’s not looking to get out of the bank in a hurry. He’s more concerned with making an important point regarding what has happened in his life. Brian is the father of a young girl (London Covington) and has every reason to live but he is struggling to make ends meet despite having served his country in the past.
Nicole Beharie, in a truly compelling performance, plays the main bank manager who, alongside Rosa, works with Brian to meet his demands. Brian has very peculiar demands that are unusual for the situation. He is not looking to get rich. He just wants the money that was rightfully his. It becomes difficult for the authorities to know how to handle the situation and a hostage negotiator named Eli Bernard (the late, great Michael Kenneth Williams) is brought in. Eli is the strongest supporting character in the movie thanks to a terrific turn by Williams. Eli is in a serious dilemma throughout the film. Eli knows he wants to help Brian get out of the bank in order to help him get the help he so desperately needs but his job requires him to make sure that he talks Brian right into the hands of the authorities who may not be so kind in helping Brian out. Although they aren’t physically in a scene together, Boyega and Williams’ conversations are strong, realistic and powerful and give the film some authenticity that truly makes 892 stand out from other similarly themed films.
While the meaning of the title 892 has probably been revealed by other critics, I’ve decided not to unveil it. There’s genuine heartbreak to be found within the film when the significance of the film’s title is finally unveiled. It makes viewers think about how people need to appreciate what they have because there’s always someone who has much less and is in a much worse predicament than we are.
Also featured in the supporting cast of the new film is Connie Britton who is excellent (as usual) playing Lisa Larson, the television producer who Brian contacts to share his story. Larson informs Brian that she and her station do not want to exploit his story, but Brian feels his story needs to be told at any cost in order for him to feel justice could be served for what has happened to him.
Director Corbin has assembled a fine cast to efficiently tell a familiar, but sadly all too often true-to-life, story. This film, itself, is based on real life events. Boyega has never been better and is electrifying in every scene he’s in. Brian is a man who has been pushed over the edge and is determined to let people know how “the system” has wronged him. Williams is perfectly cast as the negotiator who wants to help Brian despite what his job description tells him he must do. Beharie and Leyva capture the fear of their bank manager characters who do what they have to do to stay alive as they don’t know the true nature of Brian’s demands especially considering the fact that he has told the managers he has a bomb on him that he says he may use if they don’t cooperate. As Brian’s daughter, Covington is also well-cast, and her character doesn’t understand the gravity of the situation her father is in.
While the story of 892 has been told at least several times before, it is a powerfully rendered tale of desperation and the cost that Brian must truly pay for telling the world the truth. It is plausible in most respects though some scenes feel heightened for dramatic effect. Nevertheless, I do recommend the picture.
Rating: 7/10
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