Stories of systemic racism and injustice, particularly in the criminal justice system, are so common they’ve become their own sub-genre of film. The Amazon Prime documentary Time, an award-winner at Sundance earlier this year, is another such case, focusing on the inequality of sentences in the prison system.
Time is directed by Garret Bradley, and tells the true story of Fox Rich, a mother of six who has spent years trying to secure the release of her husband Rob from prison. He’s been sentenced to 60 years for an armed bank robbery they both committed at a time of desperation. She served a few years for the crime herself, and now works to see him freed while also taking care of their six kids.
Despite the accolades already heaped on the film, some reviews pointed out that it was sketchy on details which could’ve been more clarifying. Those were the viewpoints I heard while in Park City, as well, but this remains high on my list of docs that need to be seen before the year is through.
Time hits Amazon Prime on October 23rd, preceded by a theatrical run on October 9th.
SYNOPSIS: Fox Rich is a fighter. The entrepreneur, abolitionist and mother of six boys has spent the last two decades campaigning for the release of her husband, Rob G. Rich, who is serving a 60-year sentence for a robbery they both committed in the early 90s in a moment of desperation. Combining the video diaries Fox has recorded for Rob over the years with intimate glimpses of her present-day life, director Garrett Bradley paints a mesmerizing portrait of the resilience and radical love necessary to prevail over the endless separations of the country’s prison-industrial complex.
