The O. J. Simpson Story is a 1995 American drama film directed by Jerrold Freedman and written by Stephen Harrigan. It stars Bobby Hosea, Jessica Tuck, David Roberson, James Handy, Kimberly Russell and Harvey Jason. It premiered on Fox on January 31, 1995.[2][3][4]
| The O. J. Simpson Story | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Biography Sport |
| Written by | Stephen Harrigan |
| Directed by | Jerrold Freedman[1] |
| Starring | Bobby Hosea Jessica Tuck David Roberson James Handy Kimberly Russell Harvey Jason |
| Composer | Harald Kloser |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Robert Lovenheim |
| Producer | Bob Lemchen |
| Cinematography | Jeffrey Jur |
| Editor | Kimberley Bennett |
| Running time | 90 minutes |
| Production companies | 20th Century Fox Television National Studios Inc. |
| Original release | |
| Network | Fox |
| Release | January 31, 1995 |
Plot edit
O. J. Simpson's ex-wife Nicole Brown is found murdered along with her friend Ron Goldman, outside Nicole's Brentwood townhouse. Simpson is brought to the police station as a suspect. As he struggles with police interrogation and the focus of the media, Simpson's life unfolds via flashbacks, from his first meeting with Nicole in 1977, to growing up in San Francisco in the 1960s, to Simpson's and Brown's romance and marriage in 1985. The pair gradually descend into domestic squabbles over Simpson's selfish and controlling behavior, with Brown suffering depression and drug use. Aspects of Simpson’s life are shown, 1964, 1970, 1975, 1979, 1985 and 1989.
Charged with the murders, Simpson panics and flees with his friend A. C. Cowlings, finding himself flashing back to a childhood meeting with baseball great Willie Mays. The bronco chase filmed by media. Simpson ultimately turns himself in, as his life of his prime flashes before his eyes; his friends, children, fame, and Brown.[5]
Cast edit
- Bobby Hosea as O. J. Simpson
- Bumper Robinson as Young O. J. Simpson
- Jessica Tuck as Nicole Brown Simpson
- David Roberson as A. C. Cowlings
- James Handy as Det. Vannatter
- Kimberly Russell as Marguerite
- Harvey Jason as Howard Weitzman
- Bruce Weitz as Robert Shapiro
- Mariann Aalda as Eunice Simpson
- John Cann as Freeway Chris
- Noel Conlon as Nicole's Father
- Richard Fancy as Ed Ledbetter
- Jonathan R. Hoog as Justin
- Terrence Howard as Young A. C.
- Eugene Lee as Willie Mays
- Jarrett Lennon as Kevin
- Barry Livingston as Dr. Berney
- Henry Marshall as Dan
- Toy Newkirk as Young Marguerite
- Toni Sawyer as Nicole's Mother
- Roger Guenveur Smith as Professor Ford
- Jill Stokesberry as Freeway Kathy
- Jonathon Steele as Kato Kaelin
- Paul Witten as Ron Goldman
- Nastassia Yalley as Sydney
- Brian Ann Zoccola as Kevin's Mother
Production edit
Simpson is portrayed by Bobby Hosea.[6][7] Hosea was advised by fellow black actors not to take the part but ignored them, keen to portray Simpson, who was an influence on his life, in a non-judgmental fashion.[8]
Conceived by Rupert Murdoch who saw the biopic as a promotional platform for NFL telecasts, the movie was originally scheduled to air the week before Simpson’s trial began. However, after Shapiro raised concerns about the jury pool being tainted, the FOX network agreed to delay the telecast until after the trial had started. It eventually aired on January 31st 1995, one week after the trial began.
Reception edit
The site The Biopic Story gave a one-star review of the biopic:[9]
Directed by Alan Smithee, this biopic contains many of the filmmaker’s notorious traits; a rushed script, melodramatic soundtrack, poor acting, laughable directorial flourishes and, most importantly, a finished product that any self-respecting filmmaker would want to disown.
Opening on the night of the murders of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman, the movie uses more flashbacks than a Scooby-Doo cartoon to tell the O.J. Simpson story. The first takes place when police question OJ about his relationship with Nicole, resulting in a depiction of their first meeting in 1977. Yet the bulk of the movie takes place in the home of OJ’s lawyer Robert Shapiro, whose clumsy question “Who are you” leads us to journey back to 1964, 1970, 1975, 1979, 1985 and 1989. Just when OJ seems to escape this black hole of time warps via his infamous slow car pursuit, he finds himself flashing back to a childhood meeting with baseball great Willie Mays. Little wonder that he, like the movie, runs out of juice long before the end credits roll.
Conceived by Rupert Murdoch who saw the biopic as a promotional platform for NFL telecasts, the movie was originally scheduled to air the week before O.J. Simpson’s trial began. However, after Shapiro raised concerns about the jury pool being tainted, the FOX network agreed to delay the telecast until after the trial had started. It eventually aired on January 31st 1995, one week after the trial began.
Though the biopic refers to Simpson’s roles in Capricorn One and The Naked Gun, it contains no scene recreations from his film career. The film gives the impression the abuse that occurred on the morning of New Year’s Day 1989 was preceded by an argument over O.J. Simpson’s upcoming role in “The Naked Gun”, whereas the movie opened the month beforehand. The scene that shows O.J. beating Nicole on New Year’s Day was originally much more violent than the final version that aired...
“[The police report] included details of punching her, hitting her on the kitchen floor, kicking her in the ribs… and when we shot that scene, I was standing there along with two other researchers making sure that everything was done exactly as reported.” Robert Lovenheim (executive producer)
Bobby Hosea said in a interview that he felt his portrayal of Simpson ruined his career, stating that nobody wanted to hire him after.[10] The 2022 book Women in True Crime Media praised Tuck's performance as Brown as well as the potrayal of Brown as a human being. [11] Hosea reacted to Simpson's death in 2024 with "a mix of emotions and balances".[12]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ TV Guide
- ^ O'Connor, John J. (1995-01-31). "TELEVISION REVIEW; Now a Film About You-Know-What". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
- ^ Tim Gray (1995-01-30). "The O.J. Simpson Story". Variety.com. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
- ^ "The Oj Simpson Story Movie | Fox's 'O.J. Simpson Story' is docudrama at its worst". Articles.baltimoresun.com. 1995-01-31. Archived from the original on 2018-03-21. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
- ^ Watch ‘The OJ Simpson Story,’ the 1995 TV Movie, in Its Entirety (Video) - Yahoo Entertainment
- ^ "Bobby Hosea Takes a Risk with O.j. Simpson Role". Chicago Tribune. 21 September 1994.
- ^ "FOX MOVIE CASTS O.J. IN BAD LIGHT". ipg.vt.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
- ^ Jet (6 Feb. 1995) - Google Books (pg.62)
- ^ The Biopic Story
- ^ Actor Who Played O.J. in Forgotten 1995 Movie Recalls Their Cold Encounter, Yahoo News UK (23 March 2016).
- ^ Women in True Crime Media - Google Books (pg.154)
- ^ "Coach Bobby Hosea on LinkedIn: Brain injuries have been and will continue to be taught into the sport of…".
