Moonlight

The film Moonlight, “divided into three chapters—“Little,” “Chiron” and “Black”—the three names used to refer to the same person that we follow from childhood through adolescence to adulthood. He’s a boy, [then a teen] and then a man who has trouble figuring out his place in the world, which is also articulated by the character being played by three separate, all-remarkable actors.” (Rogerebert.com) The beauty in the movie is the fact that despite the fact that all three actors essentially play the character that makes up Chiron, they each display growth at each stage which creates a sense of consistency in the midst of the multitude of changes that take place in the main character’s life.
On its own, Moonlight gives viewers a different narrative than many cultural mainstreams as the plot tackles universal themes concerning masculinity, fatherhood, manhood, family and most importantly sexuality. From the scene where little Chiron asks Juan why he is called a bad word to the final scene where Kevin and a now grown Chiron bask in the ocean of their emotions that society has given them no chance to express. Many movies that have attempted to shed light on these specific issues have lacked the confidence displayed in every second of Moonlight. Juan, his surrogate father, instead of pushing Chiron to sell drugs like so many movies have depicted “hood” father-son relationships to be, tells him to embrace who he is and even teaches young Chiron how to swim. “No. You're not a faggot.
You can be gay, but you don't have to let nobody call you a faggot.” The scene on the beach, where he shares a moment with Kevin, is the climax of the movie where Chiron essentially becomes who he is and stops running from his true self. By the third act, his sheer physique is almost contrary to what mainstream culture displays homosexual men as. Usually, they are depicted as “soft” men who do not look and absolutely do not share the same interest as Chiron who grows up to be a drug dealer. At the end of the movie, it’s almost as if Chiron has been putting up a facade, which totally melts away when he reconnects with Kevin years later, the only person it seems he can be himself with.

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