Miss Juneteenth

7/10 - this entertaining and important film akes for good Juneteenth viewing and gives a spotlight to the culturally significant pageant in a place you might not expect it.

I saw a lot of myself and my family in this movie which I appreciated the representation of. All the worry about money and Nichole Beharie having to jump through hoops and play the game to get her daughter ahead in life is what being a Black parent is all about, truly a excellent performance. Kai, her daughter, is extremely adorable and we can sense her inner dreamer ready to burst out when given the water and sunlight needed to flourish. She represents all of us children of immigrants or multiple generation African Americans who are finding their place in a world that has yet to make the space for them. Having to worry about getting full ride scholarships and juggling her love and inner truths is weighty stuff and she handles it all with grace and heart. So deserved of the Gotham award hopefully this awesome indie movie and Nikki get their dues down the like as well <3

"Miss Juneteenth" is a surprisingly realistic depiction of poverty, if little else, with its focus on a (mostly) single mother raising a teenage daughter. Despite being about a beauty pageant and the mother's forcing her ambitions upon her daughter (with the potential scholarship for rationalization), it does well to realize the important things--in this case, education and entrepreneurship and supporting others' diverse dreams. Dance may be either an expression of one's joy or their deepest regret, for instance. I also like the depiction of the hollowness made of otherwise hallowed institutions: namely, the black church being turned into snake-oil casting out of devils and Juneteenth celebrated by a parade and an uptight beauty pageant--involving, of all things, the straightening of African-American hair. Rival suitors prove to be just as frivolous. Meanwhile, the humble car repair shop or bar and grill become sites full of potential for redemption. It's a well-made little movie that graciously doesn't pretend any great message on race or anything else despite subject matter involving the holiday celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the United States that might've seemed to call for such in lesser hands than those of debut filmmaker Channing Godfrey Peoples. The cast overall is good, too, especially Nicole Beharie in the lead. Often, I don't care for these sort of low-stakes slice-of-life dramas, but I'll take a well-enacted one such as "Miss Juneteenth" over an overacted and overwrought picture with pretentions of grand import any day.

It is an engaging film about a woman who is working very hard to make ends meet, while also grooming her daughter to be a pageant queen. I feel for her experiences.

Turquoise Jones (Nicole Beharie ) is a former pageant winner who didn't fare as well as other winners with a free ride scholarship. She has a daughter (Alexis Chikaeze ) and a part-time husband, Ronnie (Kendrick Sampson ). She works two jobs, one at a bar and grill and the other doing Chicago paint jobs. She needs $400 for taxes, $400 for pageant fees for her apathetic daughter, and $700 to bail out her husband who killed a gator. She struggles and makes do. Uplifting film and educational. It wasn't really for me, but I can see where others would like it. Guide: No swearing or nudity. Brief love scene.