Happy Pride Month!
This week's Watch Out! review was written by Circulation Clerk Elizabeth Whitworth!
Dir. Dee Rees (trailer)
“Wherever the bird with no feet flew, she found trees with no limbs.” – Audre Lorde
The words of Audre Lorde open the film and are central to its exploration of identity. The film’s protagonist, Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), is a 17 year-old lesbian trying to express her identity and find love amidst a complicated relationship with her family. But summarizing the film in such a neat sentence simply doesn’t do it justice.
Alike (Adepero Oduye) is burdened by the expectations of others – her mother’s desire for her to be more feminine and ladylike, her father’s refusal to see his daughter as a lesbian, a potential love interest’s desire for her to be more masculine – leaving her ability to express herself, her agency, hobbled. The isolation that comes from being rejected by the ones who are supposed to love you most is devastating. What is a bird without feet and without a place to land to do?
Through Oduye’s masterful performance, we can see Alike absolutely shrink in on herself when on a bus ride home; she adorns herself with more feminine clothes and jewelry to avoiding incurring her mother’s wrath. The way that clothes are used in the film to express (or enforce) identity is an insightful motif that allows the characters to communicate their beliefs and desires without dialogue.
Yet, there is hope and freedom in Pariah. To watch Alike slowly become more self-assured and to embrace herself, even if others do not embrace her is a wonderful thing. A bird without feet is still able to fly.
Director Dee Rees' film is semi-autobiographical and it features a protagonist so rarely seen on screen; the love and care that Rees poured into this story and this film is readily apparent. I would recommend Pariah to absolutely everyone, especially those looking to watch something outside of their normal realm.
Rating: ★★★★★
Recommended for fans of: drama, Moonlight (2016), coming-of-age, Boy Erased (2019), Carol (2016)
0 Comments.