CODA (2021)

This movie was a good story that showed hilarious moments, awkward moments, and cultural moments that involved a Deaf family. All of the actors were great. Especially, Troy Kotsur. He is a master! He deserves an Oscar, in my opinion. The movie was written and directed by Sian Heder. She is pretty good! I really enjoyed this movie but this movie should have been released in 1970s-1990s instead of today. This movie didn't show the use of technology that we use along with American Sign Language, (ASL). Technology such as Video Relay Services, and a Video Phone. The device was in the movie but they didn't use it, because they preferred to use their daughter to interpret instead. My dad and aunt did this during the 1970s-1990s, because at that time, there were no devices such as Video Phones for Deaf people to use. Technology was not yet developed then. Today it is better. So, when I watched this movie and I felt like the movie had the same old theme. The theme is consistent in depicting the old adage; "poor Deaf people can't do anything for themselves, because they can't hear and they need to depend on their CODA children to interpret and do everything for them". CODA means Child of Deaf Adults. Did we, the Deaf Community ALL like this movie? No. It's very different today. I use a Video Phone, I use the technology available to me today. I can request an ASL interpreter for my doctor's appointment by myself, along with communicating with my employer, and communicating with other hearing folks through current technology/interpreting services. I don't need to use my dad to interpret, or my sister. This movie didn't show that because like I said this move shows an old theme, and this movie should have been released 20-30 years ago. I don't understand why they made this movie, until I learned that this movie is based on the original film, "La Famille Belier." They decided to make the movie, "CODA", as "La Famille Belier" is a foreign, (French) film, and they wanted to do a reinvention/remake of this film. I haven't seen the original film yet, but the issue here is the story/plot is old and out of date. While I enjoyed the movie, I would give it an 8 out of 10. I truly hope that this is the last movie that depicts Deaf folks in a negative and pitiful light, and that we can move on from this and develop/produce movies that depict Deaf people equal to hearing folks.

Fmovies: CODA is hilarious and awkward and touching. Part coming of age story about finding your voice, part family drama, and all incredibly moving and effective. So rich and authentic, every scene will either make you laugh or make you cry. I felt my heart start to race about 30 minutes in, knowing I was experiencing something great. CODA is simply as beautiful as movies get. Emilia Jones will capture your heart, and it's remarkable how effortlessly she carries this movie. Keep an eye on her, she's about to break out.

This movie on the surface looks like any other coming of age movie about a girl from a troubled family. But I assure you, its anything but that. CODA follows Ruby as the only hearing person in the deaf family with a beautiful singing voice. We follow along as she struggles with the decision to stay and help her poor family's business or follow her singing dreams.

In hindsight, this movie gets away with many sugary sweet cliches that makes you puke. And that's what makes it stand out. A very touching story impressively crafted. It's direction, performances and story are all high class. Truly magnificent storytelling.

CODA fmovies. If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please follow my blog :)

I know Sundance is one of those festivals that carry dozens of impressive, impactful films from writer-directors that really throw themselves into the art of filmmaking and storytelling. I anticipated being blown away by many movies that I knew nothing about or didn't recognize the crew and cast involved. I expected some films to emotionally impact me so much that I'd save them close to my heart until the very end of the year. With this said, I was unbelievably far from imagining that the very first viewing would be a heavy contender for my absolute favorite movie of the entire festival.

CODA (Child Of Deaf Adults) is the first film I watch by Siân Heder, and after this session, I can't wait to see what she did so far and what she's going to do in the future. The clearly interesting premise is developed through a much more emotional narrative than I expected. From rich visual storytelling to exceptional use of sign language, Heder is able to capture something unique and deeply important to transmit to the audience and to today's society. The world was fortunate enough to get Sound of Metal last year, and CODA reinforces the essential message that being deaf must not be seen as a massive disability or a brutal handicap.

As the movie cleverly communicates through its impeccable screenplay, having some sort of "limitation" doesn't automatically characterize someone as weird, different, or that the respective family members don't love each other as much or more than the so-called "normal" families. Except for a somewhat insignificant love relationship featuring the main character (that could have brought up an entirely different, unnecessary, and even distracting topic to the film's central, vital themes), I was incredibly invested in every single storyline.

In fact, I find every interaction within the deaf family much more compelling and captivating than any other dialogue in the movie, and this is mostly due to the amazing performances from the cast. Leaving the protagonist to the end, Daniel Durant (Leo Rossi, brother) and Marlee Matlin (Jackie Rossi, mother) are great as supporting characters, but Troy Kotsur (Frank Rossi, father) and Eugenio Derbez (Bernardo Villalobos, music teacher) literally left me in tears with their heartfelt displays. I could feel the outstanding commitment to their roles, and I'm delighted that Bernardo Villalobos isn't just another stereotypical, cliche, hysterical choir adult.

However, the biggest praise in my bag must go to powerful glue that holds everything together, elevating the whole film to a whole other level: Emilia Jones as the only hearing member of the family, Ruby Rossi. First of all, I love music, and Pentatonix is actually my favorite group (acapella or not), so hearing so many wonderful voices singing together would always be a massive plus for CODA in my review. Nevertheless, not only Jones' voice is sumptuously heartwarming, but her performance has everything an actor needs to receive acting nominations. I can't remember the last time I was fully invested in a single character in such an emotionally powerful manner, and Jones is definitely a major reason.

A final praise to Paula Huidobro's visually grabbing camera work and Marius de Vries, who composed the movie's subtle yet efficient score and who I'm guessing had a hand in the song choices. Either way, terrific job.

CODA may v

Saw this movie at SUNDANCE 2021. Features great performances all around, but Emilia Jones is going to be a star. Would be awesome to see Troy Katsur get some recognition come awards season as well. The movie is full of heart, made me laugh and made me cry. There were some really beautiful scenes in here and some surprisingly funny ones. The only thing that holds it back is the predictability that comes with abiding by coming of age genre conventions. The pacing also drags a little bit in the middle of the movie. However, the family dynamic here just completely elevates it above normal coming of age fare.

As the opening for Sundance, CODA gave us a delightful story of a hearing child in a deaf family. She finds herself torn between pursuing her love of music and her family's reliance on her to be their connection to the outside world. I would like to say how much of a crowd pleaser this is. All of the reviews have come back positive saying this is the best opener since Whiplash. The performances are good all around. What got to me most is the family dynamic. It's something really heart-warming to watch that put a smile on my face the whole time. The comedy landed well throughout. The same goes for the drama. Sian Heder is a good director and we see the heart put into the movie. The story is where some of my issues came from. It follows a typical storyline that we've seen before in movies geared toward teens. It became predictable along the way and some of the scenes felt too good to be true. But I understand this isn't meant to be something to breakdown and analyze. All in all, this is meant to make us feel good and that's exactly what it did. I look forward to rewatching this again in the future.