Movies have long been one of my favorite art forms. I love watching and discussing them, critiquing them, and diving into the reality they propose. When a great storyteller crafts their art on the screen, all the details come together to form a whole; the script, the actors, the music, the scenery, and even the hair and makeup each hold tremendous power as they work together to create this experience, this story. Once in a while, a movie comes along that combines these elements so elegantly that the resulting product attaches itself to my heart and touches my soul in a mysterious way. Isn't this what good art is supposed to do?
"Finding Jenua" was one such movie. It is a story about a young woman, Edie, who is running from her brutally painful past as she builds a relationship with an old woman, Jean, who is forgetting most of her own once happy life. This is a story about healing. We watch these two women stumbling through their pain into peace. The story is told in a nonlinear style which only serves to give more potency to the emotions that are swirling about and forces the viewer to lean in as the story slowly unfolds. My tears freely flowed as I witnessed the beauty of hope blooming before my eyes.
Movies like this are the reason I force myself to dig up obscure independent titles on Netflix and devote hours of time to watching them. I'm searching, not often succeeding, but still searching for beauty. I know there are artists in the movie industry who are dedicated to their art and who make significant sacrifices to share their gift with the world. The least I can do is search for these artists and endorse them as much as I can. They are, after all, making the world I live in more beautiful and more honest by their efforts. And they inspire me to strive as they do and endure the labor pains of my gifts as I wrestle with my art to bring it out into the world.
