The most powerful stories are those that relate personal experience in all its detail and emotion.  This particular story is based on writer-director Elegance Bratton’s own homelessness and difficulties he experienced after joining the Marine Corps.  How one reacts to the movie will largely depend upon one’s reaction to Bratton’s very personal story, since they are so closely intertwined.

Elegance Bratton’s film introduces a young man, Ellis French (Jeremy Pope), who has made the decision to join the Marines, and so needs to retrieve his birth certificate from his mother Inez (Gabrielle Union).  They have a tense encounter, and Ellis heads off to boot camp.  It is there that he is ostracized for being gay, threatened and discriminated against, but also where he learns how to work through struggle and persevere.  When he graduates Ellis and his mother reevaluate their troubled history.

Two separate elements clash in this rugged, sometimes brutal drama.  The familial drama between Ellis and his mother bookends the story and provides its emotional framework.  It is too nebulous at first, but gradually comes into focus, and their final meeting is quite rewarding, if not completely satisfying.  The other element is boot camp, and the physical and emotional demands that are put on Marine recruits.  Movies like this convince me that I could never have succeeded in the military, honorable profession though it is.  But in Ellis’ place, I know I would not have survived.

One person’s experience is not another’s, but that is why these stories are important.  Sharing a story such as Ellis’ makes one think about his situation and how one would react under those circumstances.  This story underlines the need for respect for everyone, and for their lifestyles.  Discrimination (and worse, as Ellis experiences) is unacceptable in every instance.  This movie is a valuable reminder of how bad things can become, as well as the rewards of perseverance.  ☆ ☆ ☆.  24 January 2026.