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Moonlight


Starring: Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, Alex Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, Trevante Rhodes, and Naomie Harris
Directed by: Barry Jenkins
Screenplay by: Barry Jenkins

     Moonlight is the story of a young boy who grows up in a rough neighborhood in Miami looking to find his place in his world and who he is.  This is more than a story about a young African American boy who grows up to find out he is gay.  This is the story of someone trying to understand his own human condition.
     In the first third of the film, the audience meets Chiron (Alex Hibbert) as a young boy running away from schoolmates after school who are trying to attack him.  This is where he runs into Juan (Mahershala Ali), a drug dealer in the area who becomes almost a father figure to Chiron.  Juan and his girlfriend Teresa (Janelle Monáe) help Chiron as a young boy grow up when his mother, Paula (Naomie Harris), is not the most positive influence in his life (she is an occasional crack smoker, who is supplied by Juan). But Juan isn't your typical drug dealer.  In fact, the way he's portrayed, you might not notice he is a drug dealer if he didn't say he was.  Juan isn't the tough guy type drug dealer we're used to seeing.  There's a more human aspect to him that Jenkins chooses to focus on, making the audience feel good about him and feeling like Chiron is in good hands when he's with Juan and Teresa.  It's an interesting way to portray this character and Mahershala Ali plays this character beautifully.  Perhaps that's why he won the Oscar for his role in this film.
     The second third of the film focuses on Chiron (now Ashton Sanders) as a high school student.  His mother has gone from a casual drug user to a full on addict, and it's affecting more than just her.  It's affecting Chiron as well.  He no longer wants to be at home with her very often as it has become an unsuitable environment for him.  Chiron is still trying to find himself, but he learns a little bit more now.  This is the part of the film where Chiron explicitly learns that he is gay.  He even has a "moment" with a friend of his, Kevin (Jharrel Jerome), whom he has known for a very long time.  He struggles to deal with this aspect of his life and his schoolmates pick on him for it.
      The final third of Moonlight finds Chiron (Trevante Rhodes) much older.  He has moved away from Miami to Atlanta and has a life there.  He receives a call from Kevin (André Holland) one day and invites him to the restaurant at which he now works.  They haven't seen each other in years.  The two characters have travelled in very different directions so it's interesting to see them reunite in this chapter of the movie.  But after watching it, there are plenty of reasons why they reunite.  So if you want to know more, then you'll just have to go see the film.
      Moonlight is very clearly not a love story.  It's not even really a story about love.  It's about the human condition, and explains it through an interesting perspective.  This is not a film that will entertain you, rather it will make you think.  At times, it feels like the film is more style than it is substance, but that is only at certain parts of the film.  Moonlight is overall a very good film that absolutely must be seen.  It wasn't my favorite film of the year, but the Academy absolutely made the right choice naming Moonlight best picture of the year!

I give Moonlight an A-.

Image Source: AwardsWatch

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