A portrait of John Davidson—who campaigned to raise awareness about this condition—forms the basis of a true story that is at times humorous and at others deeply moving; the kind of film the UK used to produce with regularity in the past. Based on the real life of John Davidson—a Tourette syndrome awareness activist who serves here as an executive producer—*I Swear* is a biopic about a man who came of age in 1980s Scotland, during an era when Tourette syndrome was widely misunderstood and barely recognized. This led him to experience a wide range of situations: from difficulties in dating to acts of horrific physical violence. Director: Kirk Jones Writer: Kirk Jones Stars: Robert Aramayo, Maxine Peake, Somerled Campbell The "I" in the title *I Swear* is portrayed by *The Rings of Power* star Robert Aramayo; meanwhile, the second part of the title constitutes a play on words, alluding both to the involuntary outbursts triggered by his character's condition and to an oath w...
Stephan James delivers a brilliant performance as the protagonist—a 30-year-old who has spent half his life in prison—in a drama that possesses a profound understanding of the pathways of both injustice and self-sabotage. A dozen years ago, at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, I sat in the Eccles Theater and watched *Fruitvale* (later retitled *Fruitvale Station*), Ryan Coogler’s fact-based drama about Oscar Grant, a young man shot and killed by Bay Area police despite having committed no crime. When the film ended, everyone in the room knew we had witnessed something truly extraordinary—and that Coogler was a natural-born filmmaker. When he took the stage, he was exultant; grateful for the audience’s response, yet one could also sense—as his words flowed unchecked—that he was already brimming with stories he was eager to tell. For a viewer (or a critic), this constitutes the Sundance dream: walking into a film knowing absolutely nothing about it, and two hours later, having witnes...