The Force

At a powderkeg moment in American policing, The Force goes deep inside the embattled Oakland Police Department as it struggles to confront federal demands for reform, the ris... Read more

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The Force

Directed by Peter Nicks

Year: 2017
Running Time: 93
Color Type: Color
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Country: U.S.
Language: English
Genres: Documentary
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The Force

Crew
Directed by Peter Nicks


"Sprawling, immediate, and complex, Peter Nicks’s vérité documentary moves like a pulsing, timely thriller. In 2014, after over a decade of federal monitoring for misconduct and civil rights abuses, the Oakland Police Department hires Chief Sean Whent … in hopes of bridging an historically tense divide between its officers and the community they serve. The Force captures everything; it hovers over Oakland’s evening skies and rides inside speeding police vehicles, granting viewers breathless firsthand access to some of law enforcement’s most dangerous jobs. With fly-on-the-wall intimacy, we see a department trapped in transition, desperate to shed its corrupt image but also challenged by an increasingly organized and urgent Black Lives Matter movement erupting right outside its doorstep." – Harry Vaughn, Sundance Film Festival

Reviews

"Hypnotic and eye-opening. The Force has the texture of a Michael Mann film combined with the clarity of a Frederick Wiseman documentary. I could have watched it for hours more."

– Bilge Ebiri, Village Voice

“An urgent chronicle that captures the deep ruptures in our communities. Riveting and resonant.”

– Anthony Kaufman, Indiewire

“Gripping. Inspiring. Brutally honest.”

– Tim Grierson, Screen Daily

“Takes us behind the blue wall, offering a poignant, realistic sense of the difficulties and challenges of modern policing.”

– Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

“A penetrating, you-are-there look at the men and women in blue that patrol the Bay Area.”

– Charles Bramesco, Rolling Stone

"The Force is a gripping, broad-spectrum nonfiction drama that stuns with its sublime mastery of intelligent storytelling.”

– Chris Barsanti, Film Journal

“Engrossing. Absorbing. Crystal-clear. The Force examines one of the most talked about issues in America from an ideal vantage point."

– Tony Hinds, The Film Stage


Awards

  • Directing Award, U.S. Documentary – Sundance Film Festival 2017

  • Best Bay Area Documentary– San Francisco International Film Festival

  • Courage in Cinema Prize – Independent Film Festival Boston

Press Kit

Hi-Res Poster

Hi-Res Images

Trailer Embed Code

Interested in bringing The Force to your school or library? If you'd like to have an in-class viewing, on-campus screening, or purchase the DVD for your library's collection, please contact Estelle Grosso at EDU@kinolorber.com or call (212) 629-6880 with your request.

The Force may also be available with Public Performance Rights (PPR) and Digital Site Licensing (DSL) for colleges and universities. To purchase the DVD with PPR or DSL, please contact Estelle Grosso at EDU@kinolorber.com or call (212) 629-6880. Click here to learn more at Kino Lorber Edu.

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Officer Jonathan Cairo of the Oakland Police Department, courtesy Kino Lorber
Oakland activist Cat Brooks, courtesy Kino Lorber
Body cam footage from the Oakland Police Department, courtesy Kino Lorber
Former Oakland Chief of Police Sean Whent, courtesy Kino Lorber
Reverend Ben McBride, Oakland Police Department community liaison, courtesy Kino Lorber
Officer Jonathan Cairo of the Oakland Police Department, courtesy Kino Lorber

PLAYDATES

Venue City Date
Fresno Filmworks Fresno 1510376400November 11, 2017
Wexner Center for the Arts Columbus 1508472000October 20, 2017
Vermont International Film Festival S. Burlington 1508472000October 20 - October 29, 2017
New Parkway Theater Oakland 1507867200October 13 - October 19, 2017
Parkway Theatre Baltimore 1507867200October 13 - October 19, 2017
Belcourt Theatre Nashville 1507867200October 13 - October 17, 2017
Indie Memphis Memphis 1507694400October 11, 2017
Osio Cinema Monterey 1507262400October 6 - October 17, 2017
Speed Art Museum Louisville 1507262400October 6 - October 8, 2017
Landmark Ritz at the Bourse Philadelphia 1507262400October 6 - October 12, 2017
Grand Illusion Cinema Seattle 1507262400October 6 - October 12, 2017
Cinema505 Montclair 1507089600October 4 - October 8, 2017
Milwaukee Film Festival Milwaukee 1506830400October 1, 3, 7, 2017
Roxie Theater San Francisco 1506657600September 29 - October 5, 2017
Landmark Nuart Theatre Los Angeles 1506052800September 22 - September 28, 2017
Landmark Sunshine Cinema New York 1506052800September 22 - October 5, 2017
Landmark California Theatre Berkeley 1505448000September 15 - September 28, 2017
Grand Lake Theater Oakland 1505448000September 15 - September 28, 2017
Landmark Embarcadero Center Cinema San Francisco 1505448000September 15 - September 28, 2017
Smith Rafael Film Center San Rafael 1505448000September 15 - September 23, 2017
Maine International Film Festival Waterville 1500004800July 14 - July 23, 2017
Big Sky Documentary Film Festival Missoula 1498190400June 23, 2017
AFI Fest Los Angeles 1497412800June 14 - June 18, 2017
BAMCinemafest Brooklyn 1497412800June 14 - June 25, 2017
Mendocino Film Festival Mendocino 1496289600June 1 - June 4, 2017
Seattle International Film Festival Seattle 1495252800May 20 - May 21, 2017
Chicago Critics Film Festival Chicago 1494561600May 12 - May 18, 2017
Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival Toronto 1493352000April 28 - May 7, 2017
Independent Film Festival of Boston Cambridge 1493179200April 26 - May 3, 2017
Louisiana International Film Festival Baton Rouge 1492747200April 21 - April 23, 2017
San Francisco Film Society San Francisco 1491883200April 11 - April 15, 2017
Sarasota Film Festival Sarasota 1490932800March 31 - April 9, 2017
Freep Film Festival Detroit 1490846400March 30 - April 2, 2017
Sundance Film Festival Park City 1484802000January 19 - January 29, 2017


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