• Skip to content
  • Skip to navigation
Raising Children Network
  • Pregnancy
  • Newborns
  • Babies
  • Toddlers
  • Preschoolers
  • School age
  • Pre-teens
  • Teens
  • Grown-ups
  • Autism
  • Disability

Story

In Fences, Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington) is a 53-year-old African-American man living in Pittsburgh in the 1950s. He lives with his wife, Rose (Viola Davis), and their 17-year-old son Cory (Jovan Adepo). He has an older son, Lyons (Russell Hornsby), from a previous marriage. Lyons is a musician, who often comes to visit on payday. Troy works hard as a garbage collector to make enough money to provide for his family. His sense of responsibility weighs heavily on him, and it angers him that Lyons doesn’t get a ‘proper’ job and make real money.

Troy works with his neighbour and good friend Bono (Stephen Henderson), and they often have a chat and a drink after work. It’s during these chats that we learn about Troy’s difficult background. He had an abusive father and left home at 14 but later became a successful baseball player for what was then called an ‘all-negro’ team. He has a brother, Gabriel (Mykelti Williamson), who was injured during the war and is now brain damaged. Troy was sent to jail for 15 years for accidentally killing a man during a robbery. He met and married Rose when he came out of jail. By this time, he was too old to continue his baseball career but he has blamed his ineligibility on his colour. This seems to have had a long-lasting influence on his outlook.

One day Troy comes home from work with a revelation that is so upsetting to Rose that it threatens their relationship and happy life together. Cory refuses to speak to his father again, and Troy retaliates by kicking him out of home. Troy and Rose stay living in the same house but separately, with Rose refusing to let him back into her life.

Themes

Racial issues; father-son relationships; infidelity

Violence

Fences has some violence. For example:

  • Troy slaps Rose playfully on the bottom on several occasions.
  • Troy smashes things on a benchtop in frustration.
  • Troy hits Cory on the chest and tells him to ‘get the hell out of my face’.
  • Troy talks about how his father used to beat him with a leather strap. When he was 14, he stood up to his father but his father beat him until Troy couldn’t see. Troy hasn’t seen his father since and hopes he’s dead.
  • Troy describes pulling a knife on a man during a robbery.
  • Rose and Troy fight verbally and yell at each other. Troy grabs Rose by the arm, and Cory pushes him away. Troy pushes Cory back into the fence.
  • Troy yells at ‘death’ during a thunderstorm. ‘Death’ seems to answer him with thunder claps. Troy tells ‘death’ to stay on the other side of the fence.
  • Cory and Troy have a serious fight. Cory threatens Troy with his baseball bat. Troy dares Cory to hit him but says he’ll have to kill him if he does. Cory backs down but Troy grabs the baseball bat and thrusts it against Cory’s neck. Troy lets Cory go but sends him packing.

Sexual references

Fences has some sexual references. For example:

  • Troy often kisses and cuddles Rose playfully. One time when he’s been drinking he says he ‘has to finish what’s at hand’ while grabbing her crotch.
  • Troy has an affair and has to tell Rose he’s going to become a father again.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

Fences shows some use of substances. For example:

  • Troy often drinks gin neat out of a bottle, which he shares with Bono and Lyons. He often says regrettable things after drinking too much.
  • Troy drinks alone at a bar.

Nudity and sexual activity

None of concern

Product placement

None of concern

Coarse language

There is some coarse and racist language in Fences.

Ideas to discuss with your children

Fences is amovie based on a 1980s play by August Wilson. It feels very much like a stage play transferred to screen, but the high standard of acting, particularly by the main characters, carries it off.

The story is quite intense and its themes, violence, sexual references and coarse language make it more suitable for teenagers and adults. It isn’t recommended for viewers under 13 years, and we also recommend parental guidance for children aged 13-15 years.

The main message from this movie is that we all need to somehow live with the imperfections of others as well as our own. The movie also emphasises that success comes through hard work.

Values in this movie that you could reinforce with your children include patience, perseverance and forgiveness.

This movie could also give you the chance to talk with your children about real-life issues like:

  • how drinking too much can make you say and do things you might regret
  • how important families are
  • how family structures have changed since the 1950s when fathers had to be obeyed by their wives and children.

Supported By

  • Department of Social Services

Raising Children Network is supported by the Australian Government. Member organisations are the Parenting Research Centre and the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute with The Royal Children’s Hospital Centre for Community Child Health.

Member Organisations

  • Parenting Research Centre
  • The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne
  • Murdoch Children's Research Institute

Follow us on social media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Twitter
Sign up now to get free parenting news delivered to your inbox.
Aboriginal flag (c) WAM Clothing
Torres Strait Islands flag
At raisingchildren.net.au we acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which we live, gather and work. We recognise their continuing connection to land, water and community. We pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.
  • Privacy statement
  • Terms of use

© 2006-2023 Raising Children Network (Australia) Limited. All rights reserved.

Warning: This website and the information it contains is not intended as a substitute for professional consultation with a qualified practitioner.

This website is certified by Health On the Net Foundation (HON) and complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information.