Moonlight 2016

The whole movie, I was just thinking about this video:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=40hFDtQLB8c

I'm going to try to vent my opinions on this movie now.

I think this movie frustrated me more than anything. Barry Jenkins did a really outstanding job with the direction. The scene near the beginning with Chiron in the ocean is great. The way the camera bounces up and down with the water was fabulously disorienting and I loved it. A similar example of noticeable camera work was when Kevin enters Chiron's car. The camera is mounted to the car door and the camera moves accordingly when the door is opened. There's good work all around.

Another major positive of the movie was the acting. Everyone did a phenomenal job with the material they had, especially Naomie Harris. She was absolutely perfect as the drug-addicted mother, who eventually winds up in a Rehabilitation center. She gives an outstanding performance at the table with Chiron, as she breaks down and tries to tell him she loves him, to which he just has to respond that he hates her. Mahershala Ali was quite enjoyable, but unfortunately, he wasn't in the movie very long.

I'm not typically interested in films with topics about gays or victims who are resulted from bullying, but I felt obligated to check it out after all the buzz and critical acclaim it was getting. There was a lot going for it and I was having fun with the characters at different points in the story, especially Chiron's classmate Kevin, played by André Holland. However, even with him at the forefront of the third act, I thought the last hour of the movie dragged on way too long. Far too fucking long. I could see exactly where they were going with setup, but they took too long in the diner to execute anything. There's plenty of scenes like it throughout the whole film. Something will be setup, but then not go much anywhere or do anything particularly interesting.

I understand the movie is trying to get across some important messages about life, love, and the struggle of trying to find yourself as a person. But the problem is, while I applaud and definitely see some great scenes in this movie, like Little Chiron sitting alone in the bathtub, there is far too little happening. You can't have a movie that's only themes. You still need interesting scenes to convey your themes. The only parts I really got invested in was Chiron's life in high school. He finally had enough and threw a chair right into the back of his notorious bully, Terrel. It was a chapter of the film I could identify with, we've all gone through rough patches growing up.

I'd like to give this movie a higher rating because it has good material to boast, but while it has some good subject matter behind it, it's far too slow. Not even the impressive direction and performances can make me want to revisit this movie. I could see why some could get sucked up in the world of Chiron's, but I wasn't digging it. Great visual work from Barry Jenkins, but a script re-write was needed.

People told me this was amazing. Actually a lot of people. But wow, nobody warned me this was going to be emotionally striking. Praising this movie for being powerful is just an understatement.

Moonlight is one of best character study movies I've seen this year. The directing, the writing, score, and especially the acting is what this movie so freaking brilliant.

Director Barry Jenkins shot this movie in a very different and unique way. And I say "unique" as how this movie was filmed in a shallow depth that made the whole thing pretty intriguing. I wouldn't say he's directing is complete perfectionist, as there's plenty of room for improvement. Even if you don't like the choices he picked for a scene, but keep in mind that this doesn't equal bad directing. Lets not go that far. You can see that there's talent and he got a lot out of fantastic performances from all the actors.

Alex R. Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, and Trevante Rhodes all did a phenomenal job playing Chiron (the main character). Each of the actors builds on their character that the previous actor did. Despite the changes and the transformation, not once did you see a different person. There was never a moment where I didn't believe in a actor was giving a 100% their all or wasn't invested in the role. In my "A Monster Calls" review I said how great child actors are very rare in big budget movies, but not in indie. Several kid and teenage actors were all pretty fantastic in this, which is quite the accomplishment.

Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali were both outstanding in this movie. It's one of performances I've seen from them. Even through their screen time is shot as Hopkins was in "Silence of the Lambs". And that's kinda impressive. Both manages to give anything in a small matter of time. It's really mind blowing and a real challenge.

But what really surprised me the most was Nicolas Battelle beautiful violin score. Why this took me by surprise is because who's expecting a score like that from a movie that takes place in a gangster ghetto setting. This movie is more of a personal film of are main characters experience than anything else. So music like this fits perfectly and I'm glad it didn't go for a terrible R&B song for once.

The writing is just top-notch and if you're an inspired writer, you should take notes from this. This is how you write great characters. Nothing cartoonist or anything that's one-dimensional. All the character's feel fleshed out and so natural to the point I forgot it was acting. And the best thing I can say about the film is that isn't predicable. I honestly didn't know where the story was going.

When I called this a "character study film", that's because of the arks the main character goes through that leads to the next scene. It starts off with Chiron as a shy child living in a crime ridden neighborhood in Miami with his crack addict mother. This leads to him meeting Juan (Mahershala Ali), which leads to him taking a lot from him (appearance wise) when an adult. Him being bulled at school leads to him being buffed, strong, and confident so none can pick on him ever again. But at the same time, he's hiding himself even more by being something that he's not. He acts gangster and talks in a American slang that I bet he doesn't fully understand. You can say different arguments to this, but how I see it, he's just getting better at hiding of who he really is. It's are journey through life that defines us as human beings. Same goes to the rest of the characters. I don't know about you, but that's pretty upsetting.

You know, for awhile I was pretty close of giving "Moonlight" the perfect rating that I never thought would happen. But what stopped me is the little flaws. Some of the editing choices didn't really hit at times and lucky it didn't happen too often. I also notice some sound errors in a few parts, but it's only tiny.

Overall rating: "Moonlight" is an original film that stays away from following a predicable path. I thought this was absolutely mesmerizing and was quite the experience that I didn't expect.

[9.8/10] Growing up is hard enough. Figuring out who you are, figuring out the balance on what’s in the core of your soul and what parts of it you’re willing to share with the world is a difficult endeavor under the best of circumstances. Throw in the difficulties of living in a household of addiction, of a sexual preference that earns you additional scorns, and an already fraught journey becomes a cruel and unforgiving one.

Despite the harshness of these difficulties, Moonlight finds the beauty forged within that crucible, the kindnesses large and small, the transcendent moments and connections, that help a sweet, put upon young boy have something to hold onto as he becomes a man. It is, despite the aesthetic pleasures of its gorgeously shot scenes, at times an ugly, dispiriting film, but ultimately a life-affirming one, centered on the unique challenges of its protagonist, struggling to define himself, and finding his way among the pitfalls and gentler paths of growing up.

It is a lovely (and to my mind, superior) companion piece to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood, another coming of age tale told in pieces with a reserved but introspective bent. Certainly, the circumstances of Chiron and Mason are markedly different. And Moonlight does not share Boyhood’s ambitious ten-year film schedule, instead relying a trio very talented actors who manage to turn three separate performances into one remarkably unified character. But both gain strength and meaning from the contrast of who the young men at the center of these films are at various points in their development, and how they explore what lessons, ideas, modes of being, stick with them or come back later in life, and what falls by the wayside.

It is a film that is both strikingly specific but also universal. Director Barry Jenkins does well to explore the particular hardships of being stuck in the middle of a parent who doesn’t know how to deal with her son’s differences and labors under an addiction and a mentor who accepts those differences, who guides this young man and gives him tools to survive, but who also feeds his mother’s dependency. Moonlight also succeeds in its focus on Chiron’s fraught attraction to his best friend, Kevin, bound up with all the fears and insecurities of teenage affection, with the added challenges of homosexuality and race that deepen the sense of unsteadiness, self-doubt, and betrayal that come with such steps into adulthood. There is a specificity to these threads, a depth and particularity to Chiron’s unique struggle through uncharted waters.

And yet, it is rooted in such recognizable emotions and motivations that the film transcends his individual story at the same time it embraces it. Moonlight explores the perilous effort to define yourself – in relation to, in opposition to, in the shadow of blessings and pain – from the misfit kid who doesn’t know where he belongs, to the troubled teenagers who find comfort but make their choices, to the adult who remakes himself in a loved one’s image. That struggle is an eternal one, one experienced by everyone, even as its given poignant life in one young man’s story.

The most universal, heartening, and at times heartbreaking aspect of Moonlight, however, is that it is also a love story. As much as the core of the film is about Chiron’s development, about the man he would become and the boy he was to get there, the heart of the movie is in the relationship between him and Kevin. In their gentle companionship as children, to their shared vulnerabilities and comfort on the beach in adolescence, to their cautious but tender reunion as adults, Moonlight depicts one of the most complicated, most believable, and most compelling love stories to make its way to celluloid in years. There is a truth in the pair’s few tentative steps, in the hesitant way their romance moves forward and crumbles in turn, and the baggage and lives lived that hang in the background as it’s rebuilt, that gives it a force unmatched.

The shape of that love story is given form by the incredible art direction, editing, and cinematography in the film. At a time when where the two stand in relation to one another is very uncertain, Moonlight lingers on images of Kevin lovingly preparing a meal for Chiron. The warmth of the process, the tactile effort of it, become the focus in a fashion that tells you everything about how Kevin feels without anyone needing to say it. At other point, the camera swirls around, giving you a view of the tumult in this corner of Miami and the man at the center of the orbit. And by the same token, the film’s use of color is outstanding, with crisp blues that stand for the choices confronted Chiron, as outlined by the man who takes him under his wing, often isolating it amid white space or primary colors. There’s a warm naturalism in how the film is shot, where every hue pops and a gentle glow that permeates moments harsh and beautiful.

But all that beauty is in service of what is, unassumingly, a tremendous ensemble film. As the film passes through the years, only Naomie Harris (who gives an incredible performance as Chiron’s mother Paula) appears in all three segments. And despite their comparatively brief appearances, Janelle Monáe and especially Mahershala Ali make big impressions as the early lights in Chiron’s life. But with that lack of continuity, it falls to the tripartite collection of actors who portray Chiron and Kevin at different points in their lives to carry the whole, and each rises to the occasion. There is a unity to these two young men, from youth to adulthood, a cohesiveness to their struggles and their character even as each changes dramatically, that speaks to the overwhelming talents of the actors young and old, and the quality of the writing that support them.

Moonlight is simply a superlative film, one whose merit and impact, I must confess, are hard to capture with the clumsy implements of the written word. It is wide in scope, spanning years and grazing eternal truths, but also focused and succinct on the compelling story of Chiron and committed to providing a glimpse of his inner life. It shows harrowing events in gorgeous ways, and tender moments with artistic care. It is a film about who we are, and who we choose to be, that finds power and beauty in the spaces in between.

People told me this was amazing. Actually a lot of people. But wow, nobody warned me this was going to be emotionally striking. Praising this movie for being powerful is just an understatement.

Moonlight is one of best character study movies I've seen this year. The directing, the writing, score, and especially the acting is what this movie so freaking brilliant.

Director Barry Jenkins shot this movie in a very different and unique way. And I say "unique" as how this movie was filmed in a shallow depth that made the whole thing pretty intriguing. I wouldn't say he's directing is complete perfectionist, as there's plenty of room for improvement. Even if you don't like the choices he picked for a scene, but keep in mind that this doesn't equal bad directing. Lets not go that far. You can see that there's talent and he got a lot out of fantastic performances from all the actors.

Alex R. Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, and Trevante Rhodes all did a phenomenal job playing Chiron (the main character). Each of the actors builds on their character that the previous actor did. Despite the changes and the transformation, not once did you see a different person. There was never a moment where I didn't believe in a actor was giving a 100% their all or wasn't invested in the role. In my "A Monster Calls" review I said how great child actors are very rare in big budget movies, but not in indie. Several kid and teenage actors were all pretty fantastic in this, which is quite the accomplishment.

Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali were both outstanding in this movie. It's one of performances I've seen from them. Even through their screen time is shot as Hopkins was in "Silence of the Limbs". And that's kinda impressive. Both manages to give anything in a small matter of time. It's really mind blowing and a real challenge.

But what really surprised me the most was Nicolas Battelle beautiful violin score. Why this took me by surprise is because who's expecting a score like that from a movie that takes place in a gangster ghetto setting. This movie is more of a personal film of are main characters experience than anything else. So music like this fits perfectly and I'm glad it didn't go for a terrible R&B song for once.

The writing is just top-notch and if you're an inspired writer, you should take notes from this. This is how you write great characters. Nothing cartoonist or anything that's one-dimensional. All the character's feel fleshed out and so natural to the point I forgot it was acting. And the best thing I can say about the film is that isn't predicable. I honestly didn't know where the story was going.

When I called this a "character study film", that's because of the arks the main character goes through that leads to the next scene. It starts off with Chiron as a shy child living in a crime ridden neighborhood in Miami with his crack addict mother. This leads to him meeting Juan (Mahershala Ali), which leads to him taking a lot from him (appearance wise) when an adult. Him being bulled at school leads to him being buffed, strong, and confident so none can pick on him ever again. But at the same time, he's hiding himself even more by being something that he's not. He acts gangster and talks in a American slang that I bet he doesn't fully understand. You can say different arguments to this, but how I see it, he's just getting better at hiding of who he really is. It's are journey through life that defines us as human beings. Same goes to the rest of the characters. I don't know about you, but that's pretty upsetting.

You know, for awhile I was pretty close of giving "Moonlight" the perfect rating that I never thought would happen. But what stopped me is the little flaws. Some of the editing choices didn't really hit at times and lucky it didn't happen too often. I also notice some sound errors in a few parts, but it's only tiny.

Overall rating: "Moonlight" is an original film that stays away from following a predicable path. I thought this was absolutely mesmerizing and was quite the experience that I didn't expect.

Man what else is there left to say? One of my all time favorites. Every major character is so human, neither demonized or sanitized or flattened. All delivering career and generation defining performances, from Ali to Harris to Monae. The things Ali does with his eyes when he’s comforting Little, trying to navigate his way through something he never prepared for but with full earnestness and heart… and the way he crumbles when called out on his part of Little’s mother’s situation. Harris destroys in two opposite directions, first with her demanding money and then her final monologue, delivering both with equal aplomb and interiority. She makes damn sure she’s not playing a caricature. And Monae is so earnest and caring.

But of course the center of the movie is the Chirons and Kevins. Perfectly casted so they feel like the same person over time, the chemistry between each paring is unreal. Rhodes and Holland leave you smiling the whole time they’re flirting, it’s so good. And your heart aches for Sanders and Jerome, navigating their sexuality and being closeted in different but equally stifling ways. Each Kevin actor is drawn to Chiron, deflecting and redirecting but never disengaging until they can’t resist anymore. Holland is so soft and charming. And Rhodes pulls the heartstrings with his last confession.

On top of all that the lighting is gorgeous, still rarely matched today. Gorgeous, unforgettable shots. Immaculately paced so you don’t even notice it’s almost hours. Moonlight is functionally a flawless movie, and I’ll come back to it for the rest of my life.

A beautifully shot movie that lacks any real story outside of the poorly laid out pseudo-romance. For instance, Chiron meets a clearly over-compensating/lying gay man named Kevin and they end up having a short sexual encounter on a beach. Soon after, Kevin is peer pressured by bullies to beat up Chiron. This leads to Chiron retaliating and ending up in prison. We fast forward 10 years and Chiron is a hardened drug dealer in Atlanta. Kevin calls him randomly, Chiron decides to immediately drive down to see him, they unload feelings on each other in a diner and later Kevin's apartment and the movie ends. That's it. Other threads in the movie are similar. His mom is an abusive crackhead who's lost hope. He gets bullied for being gay (even though he's never been seen doing anything gay, and its insinuated they call him that because of "how he walks" even though in the endless walking in this movie, he walks completely normally...). It's just things that happen over and over but no real story to them. Even important plot points, like Juan dying, are just casually referred to in the past tense after a time jump.

That said, it's a beautiful movie. Every scene is gorgeous and the way it plays with color is great. The actors are likewise great, every single one putting in a heart wrenching performance, and left me wanting to see more of Mahershala Ali who was excellent as Juan. This movie gives no answers to any of the questions it lays out, instead holding up a mirror and letting the viewer process it for themselves.

I read another review that said "you can't have a movie that's only themes." Well, apparently you can, this is one example. But I agree with the sentiment, it would've been nice if there were an actual story instead of what felt like a series of vaguely connected vignettes. Enjoyed it overall, but it could have been so much more.