Middle of Nowhere

Ruby is a medical student whose life changes when her husband Derek is given an eight-year prison sentence. She leaves her studies behind to stay close to him and to hold their marriage together during his incarceration, a decision that forces her to confront separation, guilt and the question of who she is apart from him. The film follows her through visits, waiting and the pressure of family and friends who expect her to move on.

Ava DuVernay wrote and directed Middle of Nowhere, her second feature, released in 2012. It sits before Selma, 13th, A Wrinkle in Time and Origin in her filmography. Emayatzy Corinealdi plays Ruby, with Omari Hardwick as Derek, David Oyelowo as Brian, Sharon Lawrence as Fraine, Dondré Whitfield as Littleton and Maya Gilbert as Gina among a credited cast of twenty-two. The independent drama runs 101 minutes and was produced through Kandoo Films and Forward Movement.

On IMDb the film holds a rating of 6.6 from roughly 2,100 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.1 from a much smaller base of 32 votes. The two audiences are close in their assessment, with the larger IMDb sample indicating a modest but steady level of appreciation for this early DuVernay work.