The Public(2019)

PG-13
1h 59m
- Drama

Release Date: Apr 5, 2019 | Limited

An act of civil disobedience turns into a standoff with police when homeless people in Cincinnati take over the public library to seek shelter from the bitter cold.

Releases

Original Release | Apr 5, 2019

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Box Office Results

Results

Opening Weekend US & Canada:
$259,455
Total US & Canada:
$573,503
Total International
$71,237
Total Worldwide:
$644,740

Current Showtimes

Your Location or

(U.S. Only)

Director & Top Cast

Emilio Estevez
Director

Alec Baldwin
Detective Bill Ramstead

Taylor Schilling
Actor

Emilio Estevez
Stuart Goodson

Jena Malone
Myra

Christian Slater
Josh Davis

Jacob Vargas

Ernesto Ramirez

Gabrielle Union

Rebecca Parks

Derek Polen

William Larsen

Michael Kenneth Williams

Jackson

Jeffrey Wright

Anderson

Rhymefest

Big George

Ki Hong Lee

Big George

Patrick Hume

Caesar

Richard T. Jones

Chief Tom Edwards

Susanna Thompson

Chief Tom Edwards

Spencer Garrett

John Harper

Michael Douglas Hall

Smutts

Gallery

Technical Specifications

Aspect Ratio: 2.39 : 1

Other Details

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English,Sign Languages

Summaries

Storyline

In "the public" an unusually bitter Arctic blast has made its way to downtown Cincinnati and the front doors of the public library where the action of the film takes place. The story revolves around the library patrons, many of whom are homeless, mentally ill and marginalized, as well as an exhausted and overwhelmed staff of librarians who often build emotional connections and a sense of obligation to care for those regular patrons. At odds with library officials over how to handle the extreme weather event, the Patrons turn the building into a homeless shelter for the night by staging an "Occupy" sit in. What begins as an act of civil disobedience becomes a stand off with police and a rush-to-judgment media constantly speculating about what's really happening. This David versus Goliath story tackles some of our nation's most challenging issues, homelessness and mental illness and sets the drama inside one of the last bastions of democracy-in-action: your public library. One of Cincinnati's public libraries soon becomes an unlikely shelter for homeless people seeking warmth from the city's cold weather. All hell breaks loose as the homeless begin barricading themselves in the library and the police are called in to try and defuse the situation. Writer and director Emilio Estevez's carefully-crafted dramedy focuses on the story of two librarians, a crisis negotiator, a district attorney and the leader of the homeless as they become tied up in this act of civil disobedience.