The Hurricane (1999) * * *

 

Directed by:  Norman Jewison

Starring:  Denzel Washington, Liev Schreiber, Debra Kara Unger, Vicellous Reon Shannon, John Hannah, Dan Hedaya, Rod Steiger, David Paymer, Harris Yulin, Clancy Brown

The Hurricane is a heavily fictionalized movie based on the overturned murder conviction of middleweight boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter (Washington).   Whatever plot points are discussed may not have occurred in real life and that's just fine.   The Hurricane works on its intended emotional level with a stirring Denzel Washington performance which hits all of the intended notes and then some more at its center.   

Rubin Carter was convicted of a ghastly triple murder in 1966 and spent nearly twenty years in prison.  Carter maintained his innocence throughout, as did another man named John Artis, who if you believe the movie, had the misfortune of offering Carter a ride home on the wrong night and wound up being convicted as a co-conspirator.   Rubin's past up to the night of the murders was checkered to be sure, having spent time in prison previously and a dishonorable discharge from the military.   The movie would have you believe he returned a hero, so there you are.   Carter even challenged for the middleweight crown and, if you believe The Hurricane, he was robbed of the title in a heavily disputed decision.   My understanding is the fight didn't turn out that way, but the movie is setting up the idea of how racism destroyed Carter's life and how he had to fight through it to clear his name.

To that end, Rubin Carter is shown as a sympathetic figure who soon befriends a fifteen-year-old boy named Lesra (Shannon), who bought Carter's book which he wrote while in prison.   Lesra provides Rubin with hope after years of hopelessness involving rejected appeals and a second trial resulting in a conviction.  Lesra, a Brooklyn-born young man who lives in Canada with three caring, almost saintly people named Sam, Terry, and Lisa (Schreiber, Hannah, Unger) who soon assist in investigating Rubin's case.   Rubin asks Lesra at their first meeting what is going with these three.   Is it a commune?  Are they just friends and roommates?   An unusual love triangle?   The movie sidesteps this, since their mission is to help Rubin prove his innocence when he appeals his case to a federal judge.   

Lurking around throughout Rubin's life is the racist and crooked cop Vincent Della Pesca (Hedaya), who hates Rubin with a particular passion and frames him for the murders.   Della Pesca wasn't a real person, but based on a composite of various cops who represent an entire racist system which put Rubin behind bars.   "Hate put me in prison, but love is gonna bust me out," Rubin tells Lesra while awaiting the judge's decision in the federal appeal.   The use of the word "bust" is a strong one and Washington delivers it expertly.   

The final courtroom scenes wield a certain power because by now we're invested in Rubin's fate.   His case became a cause-celebre among celebrities like Bob Dylan (who wrote the song which is featured prominently here), but in at least this version of events we want to see justice finally, while belatedly served.   Is this what really happened?   Probably not, but biopics rarely follow the real story because a movie's job is to generate drama and suspense, not necessarily behave as a documentary.   Despite its flaws, The Hurricane is still able to live within the moment and provide the audience with the emotional resonance it deserves.