SUNDANCE: ‘Ricky’ Captures The Empathetic Power of Cinema

One of cinema’s greatest powers is allowing strangers to feel compassion for people they have never met in circumstances they have never experienced. When a film can capture empathy with a tender hand, it can impact its audience and change their perspectives, or at the very least, get them to see beyond themselves. Writer-director Rashad Frett does precisely this with his directorial debut, Ricky (2025). 

The film, based on Frett’s 2023 short film of the same name, was co-written by Frett and Lin Que Ayoung. Ricky follows its titular character (Stephan James) after he’s released from prison. Incarcerated at 15 years old, Ricardo Smith (Ricky for short) is now 30, and the 15 years passed have left him forced into adulthood, but without the milestones to help inform his choices.

The film is one part an incisive look at life after incarceration and the difficulties of reentering society to a world far different from what you remember. However, the second part of the film feels like a coming-of-age story as he begins to explore what it’s like to gain independence for the first time as an adult. Ricky’s world is filled with firsts as he learns to navigate social media, dating, and how to respond in stressful situations.

The world’s quick changes are one thing to navigate, but moving back in with his strict and religious Caribbean mother adds one more layer, and his attempt to leverage his talent as a barber into a full-time job adds another. To meet his parole officer Joanne’s (Sheryl Lee Ralph) requirements, Ricky has to learn the world quickly, even when it causes him to clam up and stop in his tracks. While Ricardo means well, a series of misunderstandings seem to be something that he can’t escape.

Actors Stephan James and Sheryl Lee Ralph give powerful and nuanced performances as Ricky and Joanne, his hard-boiled, big-hearted parole officer. Rashad Frett’s directorial hand overflows with humanity and marks an auspicious feature debut.

Stephan James is extraordinary in Ricky.

James and Ralph are forces of raw vulnerability throughout the film. It is astonishing how deftly Frett’s script allows the audience to get to understand and feel for both characters. And while the two of them work as stunning actors for the film’s intimate narrative, James soars high.

James’ performance as the titular character is dynamic. It’s not just about the loneliness of entering a world that has moved on while you’ve been locked up. It’s not just about the yearning for connection and not understanding what to do with relationships after 15 years away. It’s not just the art of rebuilding your life in a system that does not provide you the tools to do so. It’s all of it and so much more. James’ performance shines a light on the people our communities refuse to see.

Frett’s exploration of Ricky’s life is nuanced, dynamic, and filled with love. There is an understanding and care dedicated to depicting even the most complicated moments of Ricky’s relationships. There is no finger-pointing; there is no justification. It’s just the audience watching Ricky attempt to live. His mistakes, his dreams, it’s all there. Ricardo is, first and foremost, a person deserving of empathy and love, making  this intimately constructed story so important.

As we watch a 30-year-old Ricky go through the milestones he should have completed when he was younger, Frett is able to capture the uncertainty that each moment causes. James portrays Ricardo Smith with a childlike curiosity and vulnerability, which can only come from trying to be an adult for the first time at 30. Ricky is ultimately a tender film with one purpose: connection.

One of the primary reasons that people face increased difficulties when transitioning into everyday life after being incarcerated is that their community and support systems have dissolved. Whether time or the stigma that comes with incarceration, Frett’s film, much like Sing Sing last year, asks the audience to see its subject as a person first. The compassion that Frett crafts through his script and Sam Motamedi’s cinematography culminates in James’ performance.

Ricky (2025) is necessary viewing. It’s a must-watch because of the impact of the film’s subject matter and the strength of acting and compassion on display. Stephan James’ future should be bright beyond compare, and Sheryl Lee Ralph continues to prove why she is one of the greatest actresses on the screen.

Ricky (2025) screened as a part of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.