My expectations for “If Beale Street Could Talk” were too high. The Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and award season hype had me expecting a mind-blowing film but I felt pretty indifferent in the end. It reminds me of “Loving” from a few years back. With both films, I had an expectation of an emotionally-charged racial story that would have me fired up but the end result was “very good” but not great. That isn’t to say that I wasn’t fascinated by this classic story from James Baldwin. This adaptation utilizes a nonlinear timeline to maintain the mystery of why Fonny is in prison and whether he is guilty. It also helps us to form bonds with the characters by allowing Director Barry Jenkins to decide when to reveal different events in each character’s life. Introducing Fonny when he is stealing woodworking materials might not make him very likable but introducing him within the context of his relationship with Tish paints him in a positive light. This makes us more understanding of his negative actions as we’ve already seen how the trials of his life have shaped him. Kiki Layne and Stephan James give strong performances in the lead role while Regina King gives a very good performance as the mother, but I’m not sure that it is worth all of the hype. A nomination in the Best Supporting categories comes with a certain expectation - the actor will have one extremely emotive moment that sticks with you (think Anne Hathaway in “Les Mis”). This is the same issue that I had with Mahershala Ali’s win for “Moonlight.” He had a nice performance but there was no “wow” moment. I was very surprised to see Marina de Tavira with a nomination for “Roma” but even she had that heartbreaking moment when her husband leaves. King plays her character very well but I was still waiting for here “wow” moment when the credits began to roll. If I were going to choose a supporting performance that stood out, it would be Teyonah Parris as Ernestine. I believe that she was only in one scene but her spunky attitude left a big impression. One of the film’s most perplexing Oscar nominations is for Best Original Score. As a musician, I am very attuned to the memorable themes woven throughout a score and the music that enhances our emotions throughout a film. Nicholas Britell provided neither. This score is a plodding, repetitive dirge with an occasional jazz dissonance. I can’t imagine that anybody could sing “The Theme from Beale Street” if I asked and I blame the score for preventing me from forming the truly empathetic bonds that should come so naturally in this story. “If Beale Street Could Talk” has an interesting story and good acting but I am one of the few that is not surprised by its lack of Oscar nominations.
[Pictured: "Beale Street" offers a powerful story but doesn't quite live up to the hype]
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