The movie, Antwone Fisher, is the true story of a young man abandoned at birth by his mother and raised in abusive foster homes, orphanages, and reform schools. After his 18th birthday, Antwone attempts to escape the horror of his past by joining the navy. It is there his bitterness and anger surfaces and he becomes embroiled in a series of scuffles. After several fights, he is considered a disciplinary problem and is ordered to undergo counseling.
Psychologist Jerome Davenport probes Fisher's past to find the root of his present difficulties. After hearing Antwone's story, he encourages him to find his family in an attempt to promote healing. After several phone calls, Fisher reaches one aunt and uncle in Cleveland. He arranges a visit with them and they escort him to a dilapidated apartment complex where his mother lives.
Fisher's knock at her door is answered by a suspicious and aloof woman. As she realizes that Antwone is the child she gave up at birth, she retreats to another room, sits down on a soiled and worn couch, and begins silently crying. Antwone asks for an explanation as to why she gave him up and never sought him out. She cannot answer. She simply stares ahead, not daring to look at him, while tears roll down her expressionless face.
He gently kisses her on the cheek as if to say, "I forgive you" and walks away devastated; feeling helpless and alone. His mother remains on the couch and stares at nothing; making no effort to reach out to him as he leaves. A despondent son leaves the apartment with his questions unanswered and rides back to his aunt’s house with his uncle.
As he exits the car, his slow gait betrays the loneliness of a man with no hope of a meaningful connection to anyone. As Antwone enters the front door, however, his world changes. He is met with a chorus of cheers from 50 plus relatives, all waiting to meet Fisher for the first time. There are cousins, uncles, and family friends all greeting him with hugs, slaps on the back, and beaming smiles. The hallway stairs are filled with kids holding up signs with his name scribbled next to crayola-sketched smiley faces and rainbows. One cousin tells him his name is Edward and adds, "I’m named after your dad." An older aunt squeezes his face in her hands, while Antwone, overwhelmed, tries to take it all in.
He is then led into the next room where a grand feast is spread across a long table. The table is overflowing with chicken, mashed potatoes, pancakes, fruit salad, and many other dishes. The room is prepared for a party in his honor. For the first time in his life, Antwone is the center of attention and the focus of every one's affection. You can see it in his face, as it slowly dawns on him, that for the first time he belongs...he is family.
