Nominated For: Best Picture, Best Director; Barry Jenkins, Best Supporting Actor; Mahershala Ali, Best Supporting Actress; Naomie Harris, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, and Best Original Score.
Won: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor; Mahershala Ali, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Moonlight follows the coming-of-age story of a reserved youngster who gets bullied on a day-to-day basis and his search to discover himself. Moonlight is similar to the vein of Boyhood where it seeks to explore making a path for yourself but a little less gimmicky considering Moonlight didn't take twelve years to make (and if you click on the Boyhood hyperlink, you can visit my original review that was actually one of my first and see how far my reviews have come... I plan to revisit those down the line in some Recollection Reflection Reviews).
Barry Jenkins writes and directs Moonlight based on the screen story penned up by playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney that splinters Chiron's life into three parts entitled "i. Little", "ii. Chiron", and "iii. Black" in correspondence to how he identifies himself at that respective stage of life. Jenkins manages to put forth a screenplay that doesn't share too much information with the audience, leaving them the responsibility to infer and fill in blanks and gaps left in Chiron's story, but also walks the fine line of showing significant events that aren't cliché and how those shape Chiron.
Cinematographer James Laxton utilizes some great hand-held camera work and luminescent lighting to capture picturesque images that fit Chiron's story like a glove with both intensity and intimacy while Nicholas Britell's sweeping orchestrations paired with vulgar pop songs also hit the mark of auditorily juxtaposing Chiron's blissful and visceral experiences.
Alex R. Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, and Trevante Rhodes each portray Chiron in different phases of his life as Little, Chiron, and Black respectively and each manages to bring a slightly different take on the same character that remains true to Chiron as he's grown. Hibbert plays the shy child, Sanders gets to grapple with teen angst and emotional instability, and Rhodes puts up a hardened exterior that's been built up by childhood trauma but underneath that maintains the soft-spoken demeanor of Little and Chiron's sensitivity. Each actor adds another layer on top of the younger predecessor's work amounting to complex showing from young talent (Hibbert and Sanders) and incredible turn from Rhodes.
The film's supporting cast bestow a solid foundation for the three actors playing Chiron including Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, Naomie Harris, Jaden Piner, Jharrel Jerome, and André Holland as the father figure and neighborhood crack dealer, sweet supportive mother figure, troubled mother, and three phases of the love interest respectively. Ali in particular stands out and I wouldn't be surprised to see him scoop an Oscar nomination for his work here.
Moonlight is certainly a well-made character study and performance piece that thoroughly examines identity, development, and black culture, but didn't personally resonate with me, and as a result, I was neither invested in the characters or the story at hand. Moonlight will likely appeal to a wide audience who find common ground with the protagonist, but the film's simply wasn't my cup of tea.
Won: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor; Mahershala Ali, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Moonlight follows the coming-of-age story of a reserved youngster who gets bullied on a day-to-day basis and his search to discover himself. Moonlight is similar to the vein of Boyhood where it seeks to explore making a path for yourself but a little less gimmicky considering Moonlight didn't take twelve years to make (and if you click on the Boyhood hyperlink, you can visit my original review that was actually one of my first and see how far my reviews have come... I plan to revisit those down the line in some Recollection Reflection Reviews).
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