NATURAL WOMAN (MISS JUNETEENTH)

 

If there has been one bright spark for cinema in 2020, it has been the greater exposure for indie films as audiences consumed movies on streaming services during a bumpy year for theatrical distribution.

New directorial voices have been given an exposure that might otherwise have been ignored if they had been reduced to arthouse cinema runs.

That has enabled a more diverse set of filmmakers and topics to come to the attention of audiences than would otherwise be the case.

Some of the most interesting films of 2020 have come from women.

Eliza Hittman's 'Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always' was remarkable for the way it took a sensitive issue like teenage pregnancy and abortion and dealt with it in a non judgmental way.

Similarly, Alex Thompson and Kelly O'Sullivan's 'Saint Frances' dealt with the consequences of abortion from the perspective of a 34 year old in an empathetic way.

Chinonye Chukwu's 'Clemency' tackled the death penalty with a searing honesty, showing how the trail of executions exacts a toll on those who deliver them.

Kitty Green's 'The Assistant' was a powerful drama for the #MeToo era, focussing on sexual harassment and exploitation in the workplace and, in particular, the movie industry.

Radha Blank's '40 Year Old Version' shone a very smart spotlight on cultural appropriation, stereotyping and the love of poverty porn on Broadway.

With its focus on institutional racism in the police and its Black Lives Matter style street protests, Melina Matsoukas' stirring 'Queen and Slim' felt very much like a film of this era - although it would have felt that way any time.

The other director to add to the list of new voices is Channing Godfrey Peoples whose drama 'Miss Juneteenth' confronts the struggles of parenting and facing up to unfulfilled dreams.

Nicole Beharie plays Turquoise Jones, a single mother and former winner of the Miss Juneteenth beauty pageant which not only celebrates the emancipation of slaves in Galveston, Texas in 1865 but offers the victor a scholarship at a premier black college of their choice.

Some of the winners have gone to great things - becoming lawyers and academics.

However Turquoise never fulfilled the high hopes for her, dropping out of college to give birth to her daughter Kai and winding up as a stripper just to make ends meet.

Her mother, Lori Hayes' Charlotte is a churchgoer by day who lectures Turquoise about the bad choices she has made in life and a heavy drinker by night.

However Turquoise's main focus is on her 15 year old daughter, Alexis Chikaeze's Kai and ensuring she has a chance to forge a better life.

When she is not earning tips in the BBQ shack where she works, Turquoise is trying to gee Kai up about entering the Miss Juneteenth pageant.

However Kai is barely interested, often staying glued to her phone and rehearsing cheerleader dance routines in her bedroom.

Kai's mechanic father, Kendrick Sampson's Ronnie flits in and out of their lives.

Turquoise is also wooed by Akron Watson's kind hearted and very smitten funeral director Bacon.

Kai succeeds in making the shortlist for the pageant but does she have the desire to win it?

Or is she going through the motions just to placate her mum?

Peoples' touching drama oozes authenticity from the smoky barbecue of the shack to the boozy atmosphere that descends on it at night to the holier than thou attitude of Charlotte and her fellow worshippers at the Baptist church.

Kai is a recognisable teenager to parents the world over and Chikaeze infuses her with a sweetness, naivety and mischievousness that is very endearing.

However it is Beharie who dominates the movie with a fiercely intense performance as a mother who is just trying to do the best for her daughter but whose love teeters on the brink of being too suffocating.

We go through the whole gamut of emotions with her as Turquoise - love, remorse, anger, humility among much morw.

It should be a star making performance and if there is any justice Beharie should be a serious awards season contender.

Sampson, Hayes and Watson also flesh out their supporting roles.

But if there is a minor quibble, it is that Peoples' screenplay misses the opportunity to tell us a little bit more about their fringe characters to help us understand their motivation.

The transformation of Charlotte from enthusiastic Gospel singer to lounge bar lush does come as a bit of a jolt.

It would help the audience more if we were able to fill in some of the blanks about her past.

Subtly shot by Daniel Patterson, the film moves at a languid pace.

Peoples is also comfortable in the silences between her characters.

That is a mark of a talented director who is clever enough to just let her performers work their way through the material without over indulging them.

It is clear throughout 'Miss Juneteenth' that Peoples is another US indie filmmaker to keep a close eye on.

With the right material and guidance, she could develop into a very important directorial voice for many years to come.

Here's hoping she gets the right projects to grow.

('Miss Juneteenth' was released in cinemas and on Video on Demand digital platforms in the UK and Ireland on September 25, 2020)