Moonlight

Year Released: 2016

Runtime: 111 minutes

Directed: Barry Jenkins

Produced: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Adele Romanski

Starring: Trevante Rhodes, André Holland, Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe

Oscars: Won: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Ali), Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated: Best Supporting Actress (Harris), Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Original Score

IMDb Plot Summary: A young African American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.

Context, Context, Context: What Created Moonlight, and Why it’s Still Relevant

A personal play. Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney wrote the play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue in 2003 after his mother died of AIDS, to help him both cope with her death and to capture the experience of being black, gay, and raised in poverty. Director Barry Jenkins had only made one other film prior to this and was introduced to the play via Miami’s arts community. As fate would have it, both Jenkins and McCraney were from the same poverty-stricken neighborhood of Miami, Liberty City. Both of their mothers also struggled with drug addiction, and so a natural partnership was born out of hard childhoods. Jenkins used McCraney’s play script to develop Moonlight. Jenkins saw the potential to make a low-budget film from a small-scale story while exploring some big themes and creating an artistic masterpiece – a more difficult juggling act than you would think. The play originally had the three part of Chiron’s life unfolding at the same time, and it wasn’t revealed that it was all the same man until halfway through; Jenkins opted for a more straightforward approach with Moonlight’s three segments. Much of the cast was drawn by their personal relation to the script’s material: Mahershala Ali had grown up with a “Juan” in his life, as had McCraney, and Monáe had family members struggle with both their sexual identities and the world of drug use. Jenkins filmed on location in Liberty City but decided to use a very artistic approach to this material instead of a “documentary” look, and the result is poetry.

The legacy of Moonlight. A24, the studio, has established itself as producing some of the most artistically accomplished, albeit “indie” films of recent memory, and Moonlight was its first Best Picture win. There will be no forgetting the accidental announcing of La La Land for the prize due to a backstage mishap, and while both films are among the very best of the decade, Moonlight edges out La La Land in terms of its importance and artistic achievement, even if it was on such a smaller scale. The themes that this film tackles, and how it tackles them, is crucial for audiences. It’s not overtly preachy; it instead asks you to walk in the shoes of a gay black man growing up in poverty without a father and whose mother is a crack addict. There are no easy answers or “ah-ha” moments of how Chiron’s life could be improved, or his fate to become a drug dealer like Juan could be averted. Instead, we’re treated to a 360-degree view of his life and walk with him in his struggles for acceptance from others and himself. Joining Chiron in this crucible that plays as visual literature is one of the most profound and moving experiences film has to offer. The best picture of its year and among the best of the decade for sure.

The Story and its Characters

Big ideas, small scale. There is hardly a traditional plot holding this film together. Instead we experience Chiron’s interactions with others that shape him into he eventually becomes – and given that this is a work of fiction, Chiron’s story is better viewed as a parable than a “true story”. However, as with all parables, the truth that it speaks to is very real, and this decidedly small film speaks volumes. There is as much thematic density here as there is in Schindler’s List, The Godfather, or The Shawshank Redemption, an astounding achievement for such a contained story. The choice of the three-act structure is perfect; each act feels like its own miniature story, but characters and situations re-appear in each one. Using this structure, we get in-depth looks at the characters at different points in their arc, so we still get a sense of how they grow and change over time without sacrificing the feeling of truly knowing them. Each of the three acts is built around a real changing point in Chiron’s life, and the audience is invited to look at all the forces surrounding him – his family’s poverty, his authority figures, his mother’s addiction, his community – and consider how differently the situations would turn out if he had more help and acceptance. The combination of being black and gay takes a toll on him, as there are few in his community who accept him. Who he is, compounded by the forces surrounding him, sets him on his life’s path. The third act finds him a drug dealer, just like his father figure from the first act. My favorite aspect of the story is its use of symbols, such as the beach and the water. The beach is where Chiron has his most important experiences; Juan teaches him how to swim in the first act, he has his only sexual encounter in the second act, and he finally lays his soul bare before Kevin in Kevin’s apartment near the beach in the third act. Water is also a source of comfort and identity for Chiron. After he is baptized by Juan, he realizes someone will be kind and accept him for who he is. In the second act, he dunks his face into ice water before violently attacking the school bully; he does the same thing early into the third act, and we realize that when he did it in the second act he chose to become the character we see now. Don’t let the setting deceive you; this is pure literature.

The performances. With limited screen time for each role, the ensemble cast really shines. André Holland is excellent as the adult Kevin in the third act, who senses and brings out Chiron’s vulnerability while challenging the notion that he’s a hardened drug dealer deep down. Naomie Harris is incredibly realistic as Chiron’s addict mother, and her performance in the third act is supremely moving. Janelle Monáe is delightful as the kind-hearted Teresa, and I’m excited for her to continue pursuing acting in addition to music. Mahershala Ali absolutely earned his Oscar as the tough drug dealer with a soft heart who looks after Chiron while he’s 9. His performance gets even more nuanced when he learns Chiron’s mother is a customer of his, and he’s making Chiron’s life harder despite his desire to make it better.

Trevante Rhodes (adult Chiron) and Ashton Sanders (teen Chiron) tie for my favorite performance, something I’ll allow since they play the same character. It is during these two phases that Chiron experiences the most change; in his teens, he gets put on the path of becoming the drug dealer we see him as in the final phase, which is when he has the biggest reckoning of who he is or isn’t, and why. Both actors are tremendous at evoking Chiron’s repression – a man of few words because he is consistently being put down for who he is, but his eyes yearn to say so much more. His environment forces him to be masculine, and so he puts on a persona of masculinity by saying nothing. His face, however, says everything – an ongoing theme of the film, but acted so perfectly by these two performers.

Technicalities

Artistic and subjective. Barry Jenkins, in an interview with Vice, claimed that his approach to making Moonlight was to “bring the art house to the hood”, and the effect of doing it that way (rather than the other way around) is mesmerizing. The film is rooted in authenticity through its locations, its dialogue, and its actors’ performances. The film’s subjectivity (meaning we are subjected to Chiron’s experience) is also immensely powerful when Jenkins works to put the audience in Chiron’s shoes. One early example is when Chiron is hiding inside a vacant house – being used as a crack den – from bullies chasing him, and their pounding on the door is the loudest sound in the whole film. Other moments include over-exposing the camera when Chiron’s mother is experiencing withdrawal and forces him to giver her money for drugs; the camera’s over-exposure to light creates a harsh brightness that adds to the scene’s intensity. The camera is also employed in this throughout the film; each segment utilizes different film stock that has different effects on the colors of each, creating a unique look. The long takes aren’t just to show off, they happen around people who are in control: Juan in the opening scene, Terrel in the second act, and Chiron the drug dealer in the third act. Jenkins also uses POV close-ups of characters looking into the camera in a few select moments, utterly bringing us into those moments. This is an absolute master of subjectivity, finding subtle ways to communicate the emotions that Chiron is feeling so that we feel them to, and walk alongside him in his hardest times. This escalates the film beyond its already strongly written story into an utterly moving experience and a film that has rightfully earned its place among the absolute best of the decade.

John’s Highlight Reel

· Meeting Juan. The movie opens with a bang, cutting from black screen and the studio logos directly to a sunny Miami corner where Juan pulls up. The colors are bright, and the composition make’s Juan dark skin shine; he and his skin are as much a part of the scenery as anything. The camera doesn’t cut away, starting with a bold long take using a swirling camera that drifts and swirls around Juan, but he is undoubtedly the center. This is his world.

· Chiron’s “Baptism”. In this scene Juan fully embraces the role of father figure, and a nice fun fact is that the actor of young Chiron didn’t know how to swim. The scene is shot extremely low, with the camera right on the water with waves frequently splashing over the camera lens – we are in the water being baptized ourselves, and the colors pop in a beautiful way. The music playing at this time is classical, which is both beautiful and unique, like Chiron himself.

· “You gon’ keep selling me rocks?” We’re back at the drug corner with Juan, but this time it’s at night, and he discovers Chiron’s mom smoking crack that his organization just sold him. When he walks over to the car, the camera is much shakier than in the beginning of the film, signifying that he is visibly rattled by the knowledge that he is contributing to making Chiron’s life harder by enabling his mom’s addiction. Naomie Harris is fantastic in this whole film capturing the arc of addiction, and this scene is no exception.

· “What you cry about?” In some brilliant use of symbolism, Chiron flees to his beach to escape his mom’s worsening addiction and the bullies. Kevin finds him on the beach, the two smoke, eventually leading to a sexual experience. Chiron slowly gives into his vulnerability and begins opening up to Kevin in a rare tender moment for the film, another significant memory for both us and Chiron taking place at the beach.

· Knock down, stay down. This is a brutal scene but is so well made that it’s gotta be on the highlight reel. Terrel has goaded Kevin into playing a game from their childhood called “knock down, stay down”, where Kevin must knock down a guy of Terrel’s choosing. Chiron is unaware of this, and in yet another excellent long take the camera goes from over Chiron’s shoulder as he’s leaving school to Terrel circling like a shark (and looks like one thanks to his hat), creating a circle of students around him springing his trap. The camera swirls from Chiron’s POV looking at Terrel circling around and ends looking right into Kevin’s shocked face before the rough beating.

· Meeting Black. The third act comes out of the gate with an older, hardened Chiron who has followed in Juan’s footsteps to become a drug dealer. Rap music is heard, as Chiron has attempted to trade in his uniqueness that would have been signaled by classical music. He also gets a long take when he’s out in the streets. In a completely different city, he has made a new identity for himself and appears to be the “king” like Juan was, but there are still moments where he is presented as unsure of himself. At this point, he’s too deep into his new persona to back out, so we continue to pity him for what he’s become because we know it’s not genuine.

· “So you ain’t gotta love me; but you gon’ know I love you”. In yet another terrific performance from Harris, Chiron and his mother reconcile. Chiron, played by Rhodes, first rejects her but then gets vulnerable and emotional; however, we get the impression that he’s still holding back the flood of emotions. A rare moment of hope in an otherwise depressing film.

· The Diner. This scene is more extended than most scenes in this film, Kevin recognizes Chiron, cooks him dinner, and begins teasing out the truth that this front of his isn’t genuine. There are different tensions that threaten to boil over in this scene that make it feel like the time is dragging by, which is part of the genius: the sexual tension between the two men (soured by Kevin’s reveal that he has a child), Chiron’s insecurities returning (which he tries to joke away), and Chiron’s longing for acceptance that his new front isn’t bringing him.

· The ending. As it turns out, Kevin is living by the beach. Now that he’s back by his comfort place, all the previous scene’s tensions finally come to a head. Chiron confesses that he became a drug dealer after his stint in prison but keeps up this persona because he’s made himself into someone. He also confesses that Kevin is the only man who has ever touched him. This is the emotional hammer of the film, and the final shot of child Chiron by the water is beautifully haunting. Was his destiny to become a drug dealer inevitable?

Came for _____, Stayed for ______

The Importance. I first saw this film with my college roommate as a part of our annual mission to watch the year’s nominated films, and we were both struck by the power of the story. Its win for Best Screenplay is a testament to the raw emotions the film taps into, and the extremely underrepresented character of a “macho gay black man”. Chiron’s lifelong crucible doesn’t just make for heart-wrenching material but serves to educate the audience who isn’t the combination of being black AND gay AND poor about what life for these individuals can look like.

The Achievement. The film is important because of its subject matter; it earned its Best Picture win over La La Land by being a masterpiece. The artistry on display here serves the film perfectly; we experience Chiron’s life, rather than follow a traditional plot. The beauty on display is breathtaking, the film draws us into our protagonist’s life like few other films before or since; and due to circumstances outside his control, what a difficult life it is. This film is destined for historical greatness and earns every bit of it.