CODA
CODA
Starring Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin, Daniel Durant
Directed by Sian Heder
Ruby Rossi (Emilia Jones) has been a CODA since she was born, having to interpret for her deaf father Frank (Troy Kotsur), mother Jackie (Marlee Matlin), and older brother Leo (Daniel Durant). She has had to endure the taunting and teasing of the townsfolk who mock her family and treat them as second class citizens, despite their intelligence, work ethic, and values. Frank, Leo and Ruby work for their family fishing business, while Jackie does the paperwork, and she decided to take up choir because Miles (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), a boy she likes, signed up for it. Under the tutledge of Bernardo Vilalobos (Eugenio Derbez), Ruby finally finds her voice and learns that she really has a great singing voice, and it's something she wants to pursue. Mr. Villalobos suggests she audition for the Berklee College of Music, and it's something Ruby really wants to do - but she also worries about leaving her family, as she's the only one who can interpret for them. She also feels smothered by them, feeling at times like they're using her as a free interpreter, while bearing the brunt of the insults and troubles that face them. She struggles with wanting to leave and pursue her dreams, and stay home and work with her family's growing fishing business, because even though they've been at odds, she values nothing more than her family.
While, again, "CODA" highlights all the tropes of the coming-of-age movie, it also shatters those tropes by introducing us to a family unlike any other we've seen on screen before. While the parents and older brother are deaf, their younger daughter is not, and serves as an interpreter for her family. This adds a sense of belonging and also isolation for her, as she's depended upon to translate information for her family, yet also feels separated by them as well for being the only person in her family to hear. Her desire to leave her family and pursue her own dreams further compiles her inner struggle, as a part of her wants to stay, but another part of her wants to see what the rest of the world has to offer. I can't imagine the struggle a CODA has for their family, but I feel Emilia Jones really showcased that turmoil extremely well.
"CODA" is based off a French film called "La Familie Belier," and what sets "CODA" apart from that film is that it actually hired deaf actors to play the deaf characters in the film, while the only deaf actor in "La Familie Belier" was the son. Having deaf actors play deaf characters add to the emotional depth of the story, as they're not playing their parts, but telling their stories. While many other films that focus on the deaf view them as handicapped, sullen, and separate, "CODA" highlights and praises their deafness as something to be proud of. The Rossi family is highly successful, they run their own fishing business, they share a dirty humorous connection, and don't shy away from their own sexuality (in a humorous/cringy moment, Ruby and her crush Miles hear her parents having sex in the room next to hers, and later Miles admires them because his parents don't even love each other anymore). For this family, being deaf isn't a handicap, but something to be celebrated.
Director Sian Heder smartly allowed her actors to really be themselves, and it shows in the film itself. Troy Kotsur is an expert at comedic timing, and offers some of the most gut-rolling laugh-out-loud moments in the film, and yet he also has the dramatic chops to bring tears to your eyes as well. Playing the patriarch, he struggles with being the provider for his household as well as being an individual living in a world of hearing, and Kotsur balances both excellently. Daniel Durant plays Leo with a tough exterior but a deeply emotional interior that bubbles to the surface in sometimes violent ways. He is the older brother, yet at moments he resents Ruby because she bears more of the brunt for the family than he - as the older brother - should. You sense this turmoil in an emotional moment between Ruby and Leo when Ruby keeps struggling with wanting to leave, and Leo telling her that she has a great singing voice and that they're not as helpless as she thinks they are - a scene that brought more than just a tear to my eye and is up there with some of the most profound moments in recent cinema to me.
It's no secret Marlee Matlin can act, as she's the last deaf actress to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for 1986's "Children of a Lesser God," but she's also been typecast in most films as the more classy, put-together roles. Sian Heder cast Matlin as a fisherman's wife, and gave her the ability to spread her wings and be herself. "Marlee, in real life," Heder said, "is much more funny, and she has a dirty sense of humor. This (role) was a working-class fisherman's wife, and she has a lot of elements of her personality that were very right for this character." You can sense the freedom Matlin has in showcasing her role, and how much she really loved playing it.
The standout role goes to Emilia Jones, who plays the only hearing person in her family, Ruby Rossi. Jones hasn't acted in major films as of yet, or hasn't had any leading roles, and she completely shatters the glass ceiling here. She spent nine months learning how to sing and ASL to prepare for the role, and she plays Ruby with a sense of strength and fragility, as she during most times has to bear the brunt for her family. She wakes up at 3:00 am everyday, works with her family on their fishing boat, goes to school, goes to vocal lessons, and repeats it day after day. She holds a strong facade, but she's slowly falling apart inside - she's mocked and ridiculed, and feels like she can't go away because her family needs her. At times she feels like an intrical part of her family, and others she feels isolated for being the only one who can hear. She dominates the screen and serves as the anchor for the family, showing an intelligence wise beyond her years, and giving Jones an excellent stepping stone to even bigger projects in the future.
While Ruby struggles with her desires for the future, it comes from a deep sense of love she has for her family. If she didn't care about them, she would've shipped off without a second thought, but you see the deep struggle she endures with wanting to leave, but also wanting to stay. That's because all the actors really feel like a family. You can sense the love between Emilia, Troy, Marlee and Daniel just as much as you do with Ruby, Frank, Jackie and Leo. They act like the perfect family, going so far as to embarrass Ruby by blaring ghetto rap music, choosing Leo's Tinder dates "as a family," and leaping into the unknown together to start their own fishing business. There's not a negative clog in this family, and while they have their struggles, they always come together. It's a refreshing take on family, and one I wish I could be a part of.
Shedding light on a Child Of Deaf Adult, "CODA" is a name more than an acronym, but it holds to its musical definition as well by providing a perfect ending to a film filled with perfect performances, moments, and strengths that highlight the coming-of-age subgenre.
The Score: A+
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