Kicks
Brandon is a 15 year old whose dream is a pair of fresh Air Jordans and works hard to make that dream come true. After the titular shoes promptly snatched by a local hood, Brandon sets on a dangerous mission through Oakland to retrieve them.
29 October 1996, New York City, New York, USA
31 August 1992, Monterey, California, USA
2 April 1992, St. Louis Park, Minnesota, USA
16 February 1974, Oakland, California, USA
2 March 1994, Los Angeles, California, USA
February 07, 2017
A dangerous quest for a stolen pair of shoes becomes an odyssey through ravaged California minority neighborhoods where drugs are omnipresent and violence is never far away. It is a tale of lost innocence, absent fathers and rites of passage.
September 22, 2016
The motif of a faceless, imaginary spaceman following the boy around is overly precious, but what does work is Tipping's focus on sensitive boys hardening in reaction to their father figures (or lack thereof).
September 08, 2016
The characters have enough dimension to avoid appearing to be symbols of a social tragedy, and the movie's relative gentleness makes the harsher realities of Brandon's world all the more distressing.
October 03, 2016
Poignant, mature indie drama about a teen and his sneakers.
April 12, 2017
Still, what Tipping masters perfectly in the film is the constant ebb and flow of humor, and darkness, that runs through the narrative that is inner city boyhood.
September 23, 2016
Tipping, who also co-wrote the polished script, captures this unique mix of adolescent anxiety, urban decay and societal friction in a remarkably confident fashion ...
September 16, 2016
Tipping throws all sorts of tricks at the screen, most of which don't work.
March 22, 2017
It's about manhood, growing up in the hood, and the inner struggles you don't see played out on the news... It's not a perfect movie by any means, but I'm interested to see what Tipping does next.
September 09, 2016
Kicks is not without its flaws, but even the flaws show Tipping's willingness to take risks, to go for the big gesture and to go for it honestly.
September 29, 2016
Kicks is tense, horrifying and hypnotic: a stunning premiere from a new filmmaking talent to follow.
September 15, 2016
Tipping's admittedly artful style is relatively ambiguous, focusing mostly on cheap visceral thrills, to the point where it's impossible to glean what he thinks about the depths to which Brandon will go.
