Moonlight (i was pleasantly surprised)

 

Moonlight was a movie that I did not expect to think about for so long after. I thought there were so many subplots that speak to identity as well as socioeconomic differences. First off, Chiron's upbringing automatically makes you feel empathetic towards him and somewhat foreshadows that he won't be able to escape the life of drugs and mental abuse. One of the things in this movie that set it apart from many other movies is that it is split up into acts. At first I didn't think the movie needed this breakup, however, I don't think it would've been effective or made much sense without it. I am going to break up my review into three acts.

The first act is when Chiron or 'Little' is just a boy and he is being picked on in school and meets probably one of the most likeable characters, Juan. I didn't expect the dynamic between them to be so sweet but I thought that Juan was a really important father figure to Chiron and really shaped him into who he was. My favorite part of this act was the conversation between them. I thought Chiron for being as young as he was, is incredibly aware of the situations around him which show he was essentially forced to grow up. When he talked to Juan and Tanya about being gay, their response was so supportive that it was upsetting to see him struggle with this part of his identity for the rest of his life. It also really pulled on my heart strings when Chiron asked Juan if he deals drugs and if his mom buys the drugs. To hear Juan admit this to such a young boy, you could see the pain it caused Juan because he was ruining the idolization of himself in the eyes of Chiron. 

In the second act, we see Chiron in high school and him really struggling with his identity. We learn he lost Juan, his mother's drug addiction has only gotten worse, and the only steady thing in his life is Tanya who the boys at school make demeaning comments about. He has a friend Kevin who he discovers he has feelings for when they share an intimate moment at the beach and we see some relief and comfort in this moment from Chiron. However, when Kevin gets peer pressured into beating up Chiron, we can see this betrayal is what derails his life and everything he has known about friendship. I think the stillness of the camera in this act speak to the amount of internal conflict Chiron is feeling and he intensity of what was externally happening to him. 

In the third act, we see Chiron all grown up. His life has taken a turn and he is in a sketchy business. I feel like the camera in this act really tells us that his internal feelings don't match his external appearance. However, his entire life has only made him have to built up this manly facade in order to protect himself and his identity. We see him struggle in his relationship with his mom and whether or not he can forgive her for being an absent parent. We also see Kevin reach out and the feelings it stirs up in Chiron. I don't think there was ever an apology but I think there was a moment of clarity in which we see Kevin and Chiron have a mutual understanding they were never able to fully reveal themselves and it brought out negative qualities in the both of them. The final scene where we see the serene ocean really helps demonstrate the peace that came with Chiron acknowledging his past and being with the person he was never able to get over. It was a beautiful parallel to the peace he felt in act 1 when Juan taught him how to swim and act 2 when him and Kevin were on the beach.

I was truly surprised with how much I enjoyed this movie and I think the cinematography and silence in dialogue really helped show the stages of insecurity for Chiron.