Movie Review - Miss Juneteenth

Juneteenth is a holiday celebrating the emancipation of enslaved Black people in the United States. It takes place on June 19 and it originated in Texas, 1865. Writer-director Channing Godfrey Peoples is from Texas and this film focuses on a young girl's participation in a beauty pageant that was set-up in honor of the holiday. The pageant is akin to Miss America. Only, it consists of only Black teenage girls. For most of this film though, this film is less about the pageantry and more about the poverty, experienced by African-Americans in and near Fort Worth. It's in a way about those African-Americans trying to get out of enslavement of one form or another, even in this modern-day setting. That enslavement is particularly focused on Black women, conforming to societal pressures or being held down by so-called limitations. It's also about finding one's own way and not depending on others, as well as the expectations one's mother has for their child, particularly their daughter.

Nicole Beharie (The Last Fall and American Violet) stars as Turquoise Jones, a woman in her mid 30's with a teenage daughter. She's currently a single mother working two jobs. The father of her daughter is still in her life, but they're separated. She still has feelings for him, but he's proven to be unreliable, mainly when it comes to providing child support. The reason that Turquoise is working two jobs is because she's trying to stay afloat financially. She has to pay bills and take care of her daughter. What makes things more difficult is that Turquoise wants her daughter to participate in the beauty pageant, but doing so costs extra money, such as entrance fees, fancy clothing and other expenses. Yet, even with two jobs, the costs to do the beauty pageant is too much for Turquoise.

Alexis Chikaeze, in her feature debut and screen debut, co-stars as Kai Marie Jones, the 14-year-old daughter to Turquoise. She's an aspiring dancer, but the way she was acting out reminded me of the recent French film Cuties (Mignonnes). Except, Kai isn't as rebellious or aggressive. When she does try to wear short or revealing clothing and when she does hang out with boys when she's not supposed to do so, her mother is right there to correct her. Kai doesn't then get too rowdy or shout. She doesn't act out. She'll simply do what her mother says. Kai is actually very respectful. She knows her mother is struggling but she doesn't perhaps know how much.

It's obvious that Turquoise is living vicariously through Kai. Turquoise participated in the beauty pageant 15 years ago and was the winner in 2004. Now, Turquoise wants Kai to also be the winner. Of course, she wants it so that Kai can get the scholarship, but she also wants it as a way of reliving her old glory and also giving some positive purpose to all that she didn't get to achieve. As it's pointed out, most of the pageant winners go off and have better or wealthier lives. Unfortunately, Turquoise didn't go off to have a better life. Her life over the past 15 years has been impoverished and rough. That reality might be due to her involvement with Kai's father.

Kendrick Sampson (Insecure and How To Get Away With Murder) also co-stars as Ronnie, the father to Kai and husband to Turquoise. He works as a mechanic. He probably went to school with Turquoise and got her pregnant, maybe even before she graduated. It's not stated in the film, but one can deduce that that's what probably derailed Turquoise from going to college or finishing college, if she did attend. Now, she's struggling as a single mom and she needs his help with money. He proves to be unreliable, despite the fact he keeps insisting he's going to be reliable.

It becomes more and more apparent that she has to rely on herself and do it all herself. It's not to say that all men unreliable or there aren't any reliable men around her. Akron Watson (Empire and Broadway's The Color Purple) plays Bacon, a funeral director who is inheriting his father's business and expanding it. He's certainly a reliable man and marrying him could make Turquoise's struggle all but disappear, but her pride dictates that she wants to earn what she has, not have it be given to her so easily. She doesn't have a problem taking money from Ronnie. She's already married to him. Getting the help from Bacon would almost feel like a transaction, again one she didn't earn.

There's also a bit where Turquoise's mother tells her that all a woman needs to get by is her looks. It might seem counter-intuitive because Turquoise is striving to have a daughter win a beauty pageant, but even Turquoise knows that looks aren't all a woman needs to survive. The past 15 years of her life proved that. Since she knows that, the question becomes why she's pushing her daughter so hard to win this beauty pageant, if she recognizes that? It makes the outcome of the beauty pageant one that is obvious, if one wants to stay consistent with that theme because the value of the pageant has already been undercut. The milieu of the film is one that isn't often seen. There was a film that came out earlier this year, Annie Silverstein's Bull (2020), that did have a similar milieu. Prior to that though, the last film that felt similar aesthetically or even thematically was Jason's Lyric (1994). Story-wise though, there was a film earlier this year that I felt like from an emotional level really hit me and it was Sam de Jong's Goldie (2020). This film does have an emotional impact at the end, but not like the one in Goldie. The ending here is bittersweet, but it's not the gut punch of Goldie.

Not Rated but for mature audiences.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 39 mins.

Available on VOD.