Moonlight (2016)

Directed by Barry Jenkins 

Written by Barry Jenkins (screenplay) and Tarell Alvin McCraney (story)

Starring Mahershala Ali,  Naomie Harris and Janelle Monae

     A timeless story of self discovery-which follows the same character from childhood to adulthood. Moonlight is a cruel but honest story that in large, is a story of a gay black man. Broken down into thee parts though- this is a story of how this character overcomes many things, along with his sexuality. Chiron battles poverty, overcoming social boundaries, his drug addict mother, and love. Barry Jenkins brings us an episodic tale which allows us to see the character's struggles as he grows up, and how he learns from them. 

     The first part of Moonlight is named "Little," which introduces us to elementary school Chiron (Alex Hibbert) and we really start to gain a perspective on his personality that sticks with him through all three parts. Young Chiron is shy and tormented by the other boys at school. He really only seeks comfort with one other kid, Kevin (Jaden Piner). With a parental gap at home, the young boy starts to become attached to drug dealer Juan (Mahershala Ali) and his girlfriend, Teresa (Janelle Monae). 

     The bullying Chiron faced as a child progresses in the second part while he's now a teenager (now played by Ashton Sanders) in high school. Kevin (now played by Jharrel Jerome) still remains his only friend, his mother began a relationship with crack, and Juan is dead. A lot changes for the naive boy in this middle part. Chiron's questioning of his sexuality only heightens after a passionate experience on the beach with his friend Kevin- which eventually leads to a violent bullying experience at school. By the time we enter the third part of the film, we see Chiron's totally re-branded himself. He takes on this "hood" persona, wearing grills and becoming a bulky drug dealer in Atlanta now known as, "Black" (now played by Trevante Rhodes). On a lighter note, we get to see a reunion between Kevin (Andre Holland) and Chiron in the end. 

     The ensemble cast is the reason for the film's greatness- especially the three actors who portrayed Chiron. I was sad to see Mahershala Ali's supporting role was so short-lived. My favorite performance definitely came from Naomie Harris though. She had some riveting, serious scenes showing the negative impacts of crack on family members- specifically on her son. The cast had lots of newcomers that all attributed to the storytelling in their own way. 

     The film covers many serious topics including poverty, bullying and coming to terms with ones sexuality. Chiron's specific upbringing and habitat may be unfamiliar to some, but the adversities he is forced to overcome are universal. I really liked that the film was broken up into three episodes. Even though I wasn't crazy about the ending of the film, I still left feeling satisfied that I was told a heroic story of self discovery. 

I give Moonlight a...

7/10