Exhibiting Forgiveness

Families are most people’s backbone, providing support during both good and bad times. However, that’s not always the case, as families can also cause trauma that follows you throughout life, resurfacing when you least need it. We’ve all seen or heard those stories—or in some cases, lived them—but no matter how many times I’ve encountered one, some stories just leave you in a knot of emotions. Titus Kaphar’s film Exhibiting Forgiveness did that to me. The story is deep, and André Holland elevates the emotional stakes to an eleven.

Tarrell (André Holland) is a successful painter who seems to be living the perfect life. He’s married to Aisha (Andra Day), a singer, and they have an energetic son he adores. Life seems like it can’t get any better. One thing Tarrell is trying to do, though, is convince his mother Joyce (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) to leave her home and move closer to him so he can take care of her. Things, however, aren’t progressing as quickly as he’d like, so Tarrell and his family travel back to his hometown to help his mother pack. But the situation gets even more complicated when they arrive. Joyce wants to reconnect Tarrell with his estranged father, La’Ron (John Earl Jelks), something Tarrell is not up for, due to their painful past. Of course, emotions boil over as Tarrell has not let go of the pain, but in order for him to secure his future, he will have to wrestle with forgiveness.

Written and directed by Kaphar, Exhibiting Forgiveness tells a story that beautifully grapples with forgiveness in a genuine and unique way. Kaphar, who draws from his own troubled relationship with his father, delivers a film that is often tough to watch, but so is forgiving the people who have hurt you. Movies rarely understand how something this real can work, as “Hollywood endings” don’t really allow for it, but Kaphar gets it. He knows that this process can get messy and needs to be earned in order to be absolute. This is one of the film’s strongest aspects—Kaphar captures how complicated forgiveness truly is and explores that trauma between father and son. The father-son moments provide an unflinching, intense look at the struggle between two men, which is the heart of the movie.

Exhibiting Forgiveness may be painful to watch, but it is also deeply rewarding—complex, honest, and true. To me, it almost felt like Kaphar was expressing his own fury through Tarrell, with a lack of polish and a raw potency that makes everything feel deeply personal. This is all brought to life by Holland, who brilliantly communicates Tarrell’s torment, delivering one of the best performances I’ve seen all year. Holland is spellbinding, powerful in his emotional outbursts, but it’s in his quieter moments that he’s most captivating. Kaphar avoids telling this story in black-and-white terms, instead sticking to the grey areas, never vilifying anyone. By doing this, he creates a film as powerful as it sounds.