The thousand and one review

Before seeing a single painting in the thousand and onehear the sounds of the New York neighborhood where the film is set. It’s a deftly implemented recurring strategy that helps establish a sense of time and place in AV Rockwell’s layered and emotional early life, and proves an effective backdrop for a rich history of black motherhood, sacrifice, and community.

The inciting kidnapping might make you think this is a story about two people on the run, but Rockwell’s smarter, less conventional approach yields impressive results. The patient storytelling allows you to immerse yourself in the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood of Harlem, in which the majority of the film takes place, and its impact on people of color in the community. At first, the sociopolitical context is cleverly intertwined (at one point we hear audio of the controversial policies of former New York City mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg), then we are explicitly punched in the face in a stunning scene with Inez’s owner trying to force them out. His apartment. Both approaches are effective, all aided by Gary Gunn’s ethereal ’90s R&B-influenced score and Eric Yue’s lush cinematography.

It’s a perfect foundation for a Moonlight–It’s a trio of impressive performances from Aaron Kingsley Adetola, Aven Courtney and Josiah Cross as Terry transitions from childhood to adulthood. Each actor is so emotionally in tune with the character that the time jumps are never shocking. Though the backbone of the film is in its perfectly flawed dynamic with Inez and father figure Lucky (Will Catlett, in a refreshingly nuanced turn), each version of Terry is given plenty of time to showcase the complexities of him. A teenage Terry’s courtship of a girl and the misogynist Inez calls him to be is particularly playful and enlightening, if not entirely undermined.

Multiple casting calls were unnecessary for Inez, especially since Taylor, an R&B artist in her first starring role, is always genuinely honest about capturing her character’s exterior and determination, as well as her loving tenderness. . With nearly every turn, she reveals new skills, playing all of Inez’s various notes without smoothing the rough edges out of her. It’s an eye-opening performance from her that should make us excited for her future work on screen.