Fences

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Fences

Introduction

Theater and cinema are two important components of the media industry that are used to entertain the audience and convey a message to them as well. Both the mediums are appropriately used by the producers and directors to either give the audience a light time or to instill an idea or a concept into their minds. However, there exists a great difference in both the medium, i.e., the theater and the film (Stam).

Discussion

As described earlier, that theater and film project an entirely different image over the minds of the audience due to the nature of the medium. The same happened with Fences; but before the similarities and differences between both the mediums can be analyzed, a little summary or plot of the story needs to be understood.

Plot:

“Fences” is Pulitzer Prize-winning play with the same name that was written by August Wilson in1983. It is a tale about a black man, Troy, who is in his 50s. The story is also based in the era of 1950. Troy is married to Rose, his high school love, and they both have two sons. Troy resents almost everything about his life (Wilson). He thinks that he could be an excellent baseball player but was robbed of this opportunity as he became a victim of racial discrimination. In his burning, he lashes out on everybody and life is only about duty and obligation for him. The story spans over a period of 6 to 7 years, showing Troy making selfish choices about his relationships and family. The title “Fences” is also in accordance with the nature of the main character of the story, Troy, who keeps building fences inside him and attempts to push away everything from him, even death.

The story was adapted as a theater play in 2010 by the Pioneer Theater Company, whereas the movie with the same name “Fences” came out in 2016 under the direction of Denzel Washington. The storyline, the script, even the dialogues are the same in both the versions.

Fences as a Theater Play:

The role of Troy has been played by Denzel Washington himself whereas the character of Rose has been portrayed by Gayle Samuels. Both have played the role excellently and shown the intensity of the roles in their own capacity. The background shows a house with a yard and a tree, and the story seems to be going on in front of that house. It looked pretty realistic. Moreover, some of the scenes were pretty intense but gave an impression of funny ones.

Fences as a Movie:

Fences was adapted as a movie in 2016. The role of Troy was played by the same actor and director, Denzel Washington, but the role of Rose has been played by Viola Davis. The performances are intense and powerful and the impact of the story becomes larger than life due to the presence of music and background score. The other difference is lies between the setup of the story. Although, most of the parts of the movie have been short around a house, but the characters do seem to move around and inside the house, which makes the story more understandable and interesting.

Conclusion

Hence, it can be seen that although the storyline, script, characters, and even the dialogues are same in both the mediums, the execution of emotions and the perception of situations in both the mediums are entirely different. Where a situation may sound hilarious in the theater or play version of the story, it may sound very serious and grave in the movie version due to the inclusion of changing scenes and dramatic music.

Works Cited

Stam, Robert. Film theory: an introduction. John Wiley & Sons, 2017.

Wilson, August, and Viola Davis. Fences. Paramount, 2017.