Moonlight is a dreamlike and beautiful film that probes into how we betray ourselves for others. To say this film is “about the human condition” or some bullshit like that is an easy out. The movie didn’t take any easy outs, so the least I can do is try to do the same.

This film has already wracked six nominations from the Golden Globes, so I’m not worried it won’t get the recognition it deserves.

Moonlight is broken into three distinct chapters of a black kid’s life in Miami as he comes to terms (or doesn’t) with himself and his sexuality. As he progresses through life he becomes surrounded by a network of people that have all had similiar journeys in their own little way and failed. The film deals with “being yourself” despite the stereotypes and the well worn grooves that people fall into over and over again.

Within the first third of the film a riveting conversation between Chiron the protagonist and Juan a cracker dealer who becomes a pseudo-father figure to Chiron makes the entire film worth it.

I wasn’t sure Matt our resident professional with an opinion would like the film. He normally does zero research before a movie, even to the point where he won’t watch any trailers. but he came out as enamoured as I. “I wanted to stay longer after the credits to hear more of the music. It also reminded me of how much I hated high school.”

If you’re into drama, this film should be the first thing you watch this year.

Using nothing but the below image, Matt had a crack at guessing what the movie was about.

From the image and title from before I’m going to take a stab at guessing what it is. ‘In a world in which everything changes at night. Only one man can walk in the Moonlight.’

It’s the nail biting story of how everyone becomes allergic to the moon. And it’s up to this one dude to solve the mystery and also reconnect with his ex in the process. In the end it turns out the government had a machine that turns moonlight into harmful rays. He’s immune because his whole being operates on a different frequency thanks to a completely separate government experiment. which, spoiler alert, was spearheaded by his ex.

Should be a good movie.

4 out of 5 stars