Angela Sylvester (Keshia Knight Pulliam) is proud to have earned her spot as a newly appointed judge working under her idol, Judge Cynthia Paulino (Shannen Fields) in Redeemed, an outstanding performance by Pulliam. Angela is surprised to learn, however, that justice is not being served, when she is blackmailed to comply with a scam underway that involves convicting minority offenders and even murdering them for lucrative government contracts. Fearing dream of becoming a federal judge is over, Angela devises a plan to expose the crimes.
Blamed for the death of a young boy she sentenced to jail, Angela agrees to have a driver escort her to places that she needs to go, and subplots begin to merge as Angela learns the identity of her driver, and her connection to his past, as her career begins to spiral out of control. Meanwhile the local pastor speaks into Angela’s life, privately and through public appeals from the pulpit, and urges his congregation to make ethical choices that will advance their spiritual lives before their careers.
While there is one off-screen murder, and an attempted murder, the ethical struggles portrayed could make for rich consideration among teens, as Angela is confronted with doing the right thing regardless of how she feels and who she trusts. She finally turns to her faith to find the strength she needs to make peace with God, her love interest, her community at large, and herself, as she orchestrates the exposure of a corrupt system in the name of true justice.
The Dove Take
Redeemed offers a model of how true judgment and grace should prevail in the work of God’s redemption.