For the love of Denzel Washington

I have a movie crush on Denzel Washington. It's a long-running affliction that I can pinpoint to Spike Lee's Mo Better Blues. So, I was extremely pleased this year to see he was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar. Plus, I'm on a quest to see all of the Best Picture Oscar movies, so I watched Fences.

Going in, I knew it was a drama and it was based on a play written by August Wilson. I did not know Denzel Washington & Viola Davis have a long history with this story and previously played these roles on Broadway (and won Tony Awards)! Prepare yourself. It's both a heartbreaking story and a beautiful, well-done story.

This movie got lots of good reviews too! Roger Ebert gave it 4 stars and The Guardian called it an "intelligent and brilliantly cast adaptation." Slate called it "stagey" to which I questioned if that was actually a compliment. As I watched, it crossed my mind that this movie did indeed feel like a play - and I liked it! August Wilson fans will also be happy to hear that Washington has a contract to produce all 10 plays - check out this NPR interview.

And this my friends, is the latest reason why I love Denzel movies!