St Edward's Academic Review 2025

ACADEMIC REVIEW 2025

is contrasted with the broader and more systemic critique of the justice system presented in the memoir through extensive backstories and multiple narratives. The film lacks the narrative impact that the book unquestionably holds (Bamford, 2023). Difference in depiction of systemic racial inequality The depiction of systemic racial inequality in the film adaptation focuses more on the specific instances of racism experienced by the primary characters, using visual elements so that the watcher can experience the emotion firsthand, and focusing on character development. This lends a more personal lens to the portrayal of racism in the criminal justice system. In contrast, the memoir goes into significantly more detail about the history and context of racial injustice in the US, laying out how the oppression of black and ethnic minority Americans is entrenched in the system of criminal justice. This has the effect of portraying racism as part of the very structure of the criminal justice system. demonstrate how racial bias is integrated into the legal system in the US (Fattal, 2020). For example, at the beginning of the memoir, Stevenson delivers statistics on the number of black people who are incarcerated at the time of writing, ‘one in every three black male babies born in this century is expected to be incarcerated’ (p. 15), as well as delving into the history of slavery and continuing racial hierarchy in the state of Alabama, which is where he commences his law career. The statistical language is used here to underscore the magnitude of the issue, highlighting the racial disparities within the criminal justice system, providing clear facts to the reader that cannot be ignored. The use of the term “expected” suggests a sense of inevitability and systematic failure and implies that this rate of incarceration is a predictable outcome of the current system, causing the reader to question the fairness of this system. Stevenson’s decision to specify ‘black male babies’ emphasizes the racial disparities within the system and suggests a deep-rooted racial bias. He continues to discuss anti-miscegenation laws – laws that enforced racial segregation in marriage – as well as historic lynching and violence against men of colour. This factual approach, supplemented by statistics, offers a historical and legal analysis that has a political angle, serving to expose structural oppression. As Kerr argues, ‘ Just Mercy should be Stevenson’s memoir Just Mercy utilises explanations of historical context and legal analysis to

a small room and other prisoners are shown behind bars. This claustrophobia is heightened by Cretton’s cinematography with close-up shots down a corridor that is full of people, giving a sense of a being stifled in a small space. The presence of police and officials further emphasises Herb’s lack of freedom. Similarly, in the memoir, suffocating sensory imagery is used. Stevenson describes how ‘the room felt incredibly hot, like there was no air anywhere’, and the presence of a claustrophobic ‘cloud of regret and remorse’ (p. 90) that surrounds the proceedings. The language creates a sense of discomfort, with the adjective ‘hot’ that implies discomfort. The sensory language allows the reader to imagine the intense environment. The same sense of suffocation is created in the film through sound – the audience hears Herb’s gasping breaths as he is tied to the electric chair. The camera focuses on the act of strapping him down, a striking visual image encapsulating his entrapment. The memoir also creates a sense of psychological proximity through close detail of Herb’s thoughts and expressions as noticed by Stevenson: ‘I was really struck at how hard he was working to make everyone around him feel better in the face of his own death’, and ‘he looked up at me, and his face twisted in confusion’ (p. 86). Stevenson utilises visual imagery to convey Herb’s emotional state, attempting to humanise him which provokes empathy from the reader. At the end of the chapter on Herb’s death, Stevenson observes that ‘we don’t spend much time contemplating the details of what killing someone actually involves’ (p. 91). The straightforward language makes this a powerful statement about how society tends to overlook the harsh reality of the situation. By showing us Herb up close, both the memoir and the film show that true understanding of the failures of the legal system can only be achieved through proximity. This is an idea expressed by Stevenson when he discussed the crime policies in the US and observed, ‘There is power in proximity’, and ‘Getting closer to the problem and the people it affects is the beginning of how we change things’ (Stevenson, Creating Justice, 2018). To conclude, one key decision made in the adaptation of Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy from memoir to film was the change in narrative focus. This shift significantly influences the portrayal of the criminal justice system by narrowing the focus to a few key characters, making the injustices they face more personal and immediate to the viewer. This

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