Nickel Boys

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2:24

Nickel Boys

PG-13

2025

2h 20m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

213 Reviews

75%

Popcornmeter

250+ Verified Ratings

Elwood Curtis's college dream shatters alongside a two-lane Florida highway. Bearing the brunt of an innocent misstep, he's sentenced to the netherworld of Nickel Academy, a brutal reformatory sunk deep in the Jim Crow South. He encounters another ward, the seen-it-all Turner. The two Black teens strike up an alliance: Turner dispensing fundamental tips for survival, Elwood, clinging to his optimistic worldview. Backdropped by the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement, Elwood and Turner’s existence appear worlds away from Rev. Martin Luther King's burnished oratory. Despite Nickel's brutality, Elwood strives to hold onto his humanity, awakening a new vision for Turner.

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Critics Consensus

Director RaMell Ross' stylistically radical approach to adapting Colson Whitehead's searing novel will be jarring for some, but Nickel Boys' sense of immersion achieves the jaw-dropping effect of walking in another's shoes.

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Audience Says

A cinematic breakthrough, Nickel Boys may not appeal to those seeking a conventional approach to storytelling but will reward those in need of an experimental narrative that’s undeniably profound.

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Chan

Mar 4

good movie style movie made to fully get into but still good

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shm

Mar 3

I think it was a great story, but unfortunately filming from the first person perspective was distracting and made the film difficult to follow.

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sanjay m

Mar 3

Weird camera angles, disjointed flow.

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Morgan R

Mar 2

Unfollwable. I don’t know who had the idea of creating a movie that used so many oddball cinematic devices so poorly. I get that it’s a huge subject, incredibly sad, but they chose an alienating way to tell it

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Sam

Mar 2

A special, special movie that will be remembered and discussed decades from now. Hoping more people can check it out.

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Patricia R

Mar 1

really well done. I read the book which let me imagine some of the occurrences. Watching the movie was almost as good and a little more frightening. A story that needed to be told!

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RaMell Ross

Director

Ethan Herisse

Elwood

Brandon Wilson

Turner

Hamish Linklater

Spencer

Fred Hechinger

Harper

Daveed Diggs

Adult Elwood

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Nickel Boys: Trailer 2

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Nickel Boys: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Elwood Curtis's college dream shatters alongside a two-lane Florida highway. Bearing the brunt of an innocent misstep, he's sentenced to the netherworld of Nickel Academy, a brutal reformatory sunk deep in the Jim Crow South. He encounters another ward, the seen-it-all Turner. The two Black teens strike up an alliance: Turner dispensing fundamental tips for survival, Elwood, clinging to his optimistic worldview. Backdropped by the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement, Elwood and Turner’s existence appear worlds away from Rev. Martin Luther King's burnished oratory. Despite Nickel's brutality, Elwood strives to hold onto his humanity, awakening a new vision for Turner.

Director: RaMell Ross
Producer: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, David Levine, Joslyn Barnes
Screenwriter: RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes
Distributor: Amazon MGM Studios
Production Co: Anonymous Content, Louverture Films, Plan B Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Racism|Racial Slurs|Violent Content|Smoking|Some Strong Language|Thematic Material)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 24, 2025, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 11, 2025
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.8M
Runtime: 2h 20m
Aspect Ratio: Academy (1.33:1)

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