Waves
Waves
is a 2019 American drama film written and directed by Trey Edward Shults. It
stars Kelvin Harrison Jr (“Luce” and “The Godfather of Harlem”), Lucas Hedges (“Ben
is Back”), Taylor Russell, Alexa Demie, Renée Elise Goldsberry (Broadway’s “The
Lion King’, “Dreamgirls” and the highly acclaimed “Hamilton”) and Sterling K.
Brown (“This is Us” and “The People vs OJ Simpson”).
Set
against the vibrant landscape of South Florida, it traces the epic emotional
journey of The Williams - a highly successful suburban family. Together both parents
Catherine Williams and Ronald Williams have worked hard to be entrepreneurs in
their construction business. They are also the personification, almost strident
and rigidly so, of the ultimate hands on parents, totally immersed in virtually
all aspects of their two children’s Emily and Tyler social, academic and
personal activities lives: especially and more so their son Tyler.
Tyler
is a popular and charismatic high school senior on the wrestling team. Outside
of school, he parties with his friends and spends time with his girlfriend,
Alexis Lopez, but is always on a short leash 24/7 as he is constantly being pushed to be better in all aspects of his life
by his domineering father, Ronald. His stepmother, Catherine other hand, is far
more understanding of Tyler's pressure, and tries her best to connect with him.
Unbeknownst to anyone at school or at home, Tyler suffers from a secret which he
keeps from his family. His team doctor recommends undergoing surgery before
it's too late, but against that advice Tyler
stubbornly and unwillingly fails to postpone the remainder of his wrestling season.
So, he continues to competitively and more determinedly wrestle. But it is his ill-advised
decision that sets off a train of sequential events resulting in a horrible tragedy
for the Williams family, for others outside of their home and uniquely life altering
for his shy emotionally recluse younger Emily.
REVIEW: Feeling
like a two act play and running 2:15 minutes “Waves” is not for everyone. The analogy would be most people like to eat steak,
but if I invited you over for steaks and I cooked them all rare, most would of
you would object to eating them even though you probably still like to eat steak
(aka like movies), just not that way…………… (FYI, I hardly eat meat any more but
when I do I am a medium rare kind of guy…….I digress).
Structurally,
the film is as powerful of humanistic story about modern nuclear African
American family life you will ever see. With stellar performances by all, “Waves’
doesn’t just assault your emotional senses but moves deep within the bone
marrow framework of your very DNA. It makes you want to look at it hard and then
with the same equal impulses stare quickly
away as you go on an emotional journey of highest peaks and lowest valleys with
nothing redeeming to latch onto Inbetween. With this fundamentally decent Williams
family there are no moments of quiet respite or pause.
Clearly
early on the film makes the effort of establishing the importance of the tried
and true foundational rules that makes all families essentially a cohesive unit
– one whole. Regardless of their social
economic status, most families lifelong will spend emotional capitol through displays
of strength, love, support, stability, guidance and financial prosperity, as part
of the never ending altruistic hard work to keeping a family intact, connected
and normal.
But
as with the film’s Williams or any family for that matter who all vigilantly try
to move unimpeded through life, perpetually and constantly reinforcing these same
virtues over and over again; day after day I likened their family journey similarly
to observing a rare coin rolling effortlessly along the floor. Moving with a constant
smooth pace perfectly erect on its edge, without a single hint of wavering or falling
over. Then without any warning it flips over exposing possibly one of two random
sides. And in that very blink of an eye, the good side where happiness, normalcy
and wellbeing flourish for so long now has suddenly succumbed to a alternate family
realm immersed into much darker qualities of bitterness, anger, fury, frustration
and sadness. Uncontrollably and destructively
qualities pulling endlessly at the very DNA
threads that once so cohesively held everything in tack.
But
even as with a coin can suddenly change sides, it’s never ever broken by its
fall. “Waves” is very convincingly not just about the Williams having to deal
with an unimaginable tragedy, it’s also about never ever becoming broken – never
really totally losing its way. No, instead “Waves” makes the wonderful, albeit
very subtle dramatic point, that to get back to the good side of life again it requires
more new hard work. Sometimes through more individual self-reflection, more compassion,
more benevolence; maybe with newer and deeper expressions of empathy and sympathy
for others. But above all of these notable virtues probably the most central one
of all, the most important step to take to getting back up on the right side of
life is the ability for anyone in a family to beginning that initial healing is
by simply walking across the room to looking someone else in their eye, maybe holding
their hands and maybe even hugging them as well ………..to asking them for their forgiveness.
On
a side note “Waves” at times was a bit annoying with its occasional intrusive over
play of oddly loud incoherent techno music. Nevertheless, I still found the vast
majority of this film very scintillating to watch. It richly made me reflect on
my own parents and the mistakes I made (minor in comparison to this story)
while growing up. It also made me, not of any deep regret, wish I could do my youth
all over again with the same mistakes and all.
Once
again “Waves” is like a “rare grilled steak” ………not many of you may not like it.
Still at some point it definitely should be on your viewing list for 2019. It will
remind you as Amy Winehouse once so sultry sang …………………..”Love is a Losing Game”
and yet through forgiveness what Dinah Washington also sang…………….”What a Difference
a Day Makes”.
4.00
Stars
AW
- Song
DW
- Song
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