TIFF 2018 Exclusive: John David Washington, Kelvin Harrison Jr. Talk Monsters And MenPosted by Wilson Morales
September 18, 2018
While at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival, Blackfilm.com caught up with John David Washington and Kelvin Harrison Jr., cast members to director-writer Reinaldo Marcus Green‘s award winning film ‘Monsters and Men.’
The film. which had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in the U.S. Dramatic Competition section, stars John David Washington, Anthony Ramos, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Chanté Adams, Nicole Beharie, Rob Morgan, and Jasmine Cephas Jones. The film won the Special Jury Award for Outstanding First Feature at the festival.
One night, in front of a bodega in Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy neighborhood, Manny Ortega witnesses a white police officer wrongfully gun down a neighborhood street hustler, and Manny films the incident on his phone. Now he’s faced with a dilemma: release the video and bring unwanted exposure to himself and his family, or keep the video private and be complicit in the injustice?
Green tells the story of how the footage affects the lives of three upstanding men in Bed-Stuy- a young father striving to support his new family, an African American cop dealing with the fallout of his colleague’s mistake, and a star high school athlete who becomes politicized by the incident. Each man is very different, but they equally feel the urgency of the question they must all face: should I take moral action or remain safely on the sidelines? Green provokes viewers to ask themselves the same question?
What was the attraction to doing this movie?
John David Washington: Yeah, being able to explore these issues, current issues, cinematically, artistically, being able to be a part of something that uh, a topic or an issue, that at least on one side of it I was unaware of. I didn’t have a lot of information of one side of it, I had a lot of information on the other side, the resistance side, but not the police departments side, the law enforcement side. So it was a great opportunity for me to explore that, and once I got that information, once was, became, more knowledgeable of it, I was able to make better decision going forward and not generalize as much which is what I hope people will do and see once they see this film.
Kelvin Harrison Jr.: For me it was about, um, removing the shame I had for not knowing how to participate and be a black man and do something about how I was feeling about things because I felt there was a very like cut, clean box of like this is what you need to do, and this what’s going to help our community and dadada and kinda talking to Ray and kind of going you know, I can participate and I can help and I can use my voice by just making movies, or just like if I want to protest I can protest and having a better understanding of what it means to be an activist and what it means um, to empower your people and yourself.
Did you guys go over what kind of research Reinaldo would want you to do in regard to your characters?
Kelvin Harrison Jr.: For me it was a lot of baseball (laughter), and understanding what it means. I understood the drive because I came from a musical family and how to focus on like, I need to get this scholarship man, this scholarship is going to pay for all of this tuition that my parent’s need for high school. I felt this burden of necessity to like do something for this family and not making my black dad feel like I wasted all my time for nothings, and so I felt that I needed to understand what it means to be an athlete, and that’s a completely different thing to have your dad be a baseball player and you be an athlete and then what sport culture is. That’s very unfamiliar to me
John, you’re playing a cop for a second time (after BlacKkKlansman). Different story, but did you do any research as well?
John David Washington: Absolutely, thanks to Ray he put me in touch with an officer named Dana, who works with the Brooklyn team north, and shout out to them Chief Margery and all those guys, I think it was super informative and really helped me navigate through this character and through this story. It was life changing, it was really eye opening for me. I did about a month of ride along’s and working with some kids as well, and I just realized how much how one sided I was on this issue. And how I didn’t have all the information. Now I feel more confident about how to, basically know what to look for and how to feel and how to express that, now I know both sides.
This is a character driven piece, and you’re dealing with different aspects of the police department. You’ve got the home life and the sports life Even though there are separate story lines, what was it like during the table read and getting along with the rest of the cast?
John David Washington: For me, that’s what was inspiring. I think that’s how you get your best work to come out of you. Is when you’re pushed by not good actors but great actors and I felt like I was surrounded by them. The women in this film were truly, truly represented. I think that their voices were heard and it was inspiring to be around these people.
Each of you have a t.v show, and now your faces are on the big screen with slew of projects coming up. What’s the sort of work that you’re saying yes to?
Kelvin Harrison Jr.: Things that continue to open up that scope and push these boundaries of what it means to be a young black guy. I’m just looking for something that’s just different. I just worked on a movie with my friend who did It Comes At Night, Trey, but he wrote the script for me, envisioned himself but cast me and he continues to do stuff like that and I think that’s so beautiful because now that gives me an opportunity. Our lives are so similar and our experiences are so similar and I think that its beautiful that people get to see that, to see that my young goofy black self could just be envisioned.
John David Washington: I’ve got so much to learn man and I’m very young in this thing and the experiences I got, I know they don’t really happen that way. I mean I got to work with Reinaldo Marcus Green, I got to wok with Spike Lee, I get to work with cinema enthusiasts that just seem to have this youthful exuberance about what they do and this approach to the work starts from a place of humility that can serve us in the film. I haven’t been able to get that experience in that kind of environment to work with these artists, that just want to service the film, that’s why they came. Best idea in the room wins, I mean that’s like a drug I mean I got high off of that and that’s what I’m chasing right now. The projects obviously if it ain’t on the page it ain’t on the stage sure but who am I getting to work with that’s what’s important for me right now, in this stint of my career.
Each of you also other films at this festival. John, could you talk about your role in The Old Man and a Gun?.
John David Washington: I play Another cop, surprise surprise (laughter) it’s the year of the cop. Yeah It was cool working with David Lowery, and in an environment that was so comfortable to work in in the space of just humility and in servicing the film in just the best way we could. And the sense of community and inclusion which is like again, I’m not used to in my past experiences
Did you get to meet Robert Redford?
John David Washington: I definitely did and on my off days I would go and see him work and it was interesting seeing this man again, like Spike, at like at where he is in his career, he still seems to love it and the ego was left at the door. This man accomplished everything and he still loves what he does and it was a great lesson for me to know no matter where I am, hopefully I can still be doing what he’s doing at that age. He still loves it, he still loves what we do and it’s the best job in the world and that’s what I really got from it.
Kelvin, you got Jeremiah Terminator Leroy coming up and it’s going to be the closing night film. What’s you’re role in the film?
Kelvin Harrison Jr.: I basically play Savannah Knoops’ boyfriend, so Kristen’s boyfriend in the movie. He goes to design school and he is kind of a free spirit and he’s just kind of vibing and they’re just really in love.
How was working with Kristen Stewart?
Kelvin Harrison Jr.: I was so scared of her the first time I met her. I was so intimated. I was like, she’s Kristen and she was the sweetest person I met. We really built beautiful this friendship and relationship for that movie, and it was special and unique and surprising. She’s captivating that girl.
What’s a good reason for folks to see Monsters and Men when it comes out?
Kelvin Harrison Jr.: To gain perspective and to check in to where we actually are in this country. And the work that needs to get done, and discussions that need to be had. It seems like we fell asleep for like at least the last seven years. I think now it’s time I wouldn’t say wake up but to, to start raising the awareness again and to find out whatever the language is, to come together.
John David Washington: For me it offers this. It makes me feel like my insecurities and my placement in this world is valid, and I think a lot of people sometimes feel like I don’t know what to do and I don’t know what to say and so I’m just going to not say anything at all and I’m not going to do anything at all and with the film that gives a voice to everybody so that you’re okay, you can speak, you can do what you feel is right, and I think that is going to empower more people to stand up and to speak.
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