"CODA" Review

CODA is a comedy-drama film directed by Sian Heder and starring Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin, Daniel Durant, and Eugenio Derbez. Jones stars as Ruby, a child of deaf adults, or coda, who is the only hearing member of her family. She soon finds herself torn between her commitments to her family's struggling business and her own dreams of being a singer.

The premise is simple enough, but what makes it really work is the sheer emotional impact. Sure, all the plot beats are almost entirely predictable, but all the lead actors give utterly committed performances that draw you into the world of the film and keep you invested in all the drama that unfolds throughout the film. 

All the characters feel very realistically portrayed, with very human flaws and sympathetic moments. The struggles Ruby has to deal with are rooted in understandable concerns and fears centered around Ruby growing up and developing her own dreams in the face of her family relying greatly on her as the only hearing member of the family. This reliance leads to Ruby feeling smothered and prevented from actually pursuing her own desires, but at the same time, it is clear that her parents (especially her father) really do count on her to help in the family business and they also can't quite connect with Ruby's singing due to their deafness, which fuels their reliance on her and reluctance to leave their side.

The performances are really something to behold, especially since most of the lead actors (aside from Emilia Jones and Eugenio Derbez) and their characters are deaf, therefore they have to use sign language and their facial expressions to communicate what their characters are thinking and feeling, and the fact that all of it is communicated clearly and with a lot of emotional weight is nothing short of marvelous. Emilia Jones as Ruby completely sells the character's hopes and frustrations, and the fact that Jones never received formal singing training, and didn't know American Sign Language (ASL) before getting the part make her performance all the more impressive since much of Ruby's interactions with the members of her family are done in ASL, and Jones manages to convey all the necessary emotions, whether through spoken or signed dialogue. Also, Jones is English yet puts on an extremely convincing American accent, and I don't recall any major accent slip-ups. The climactic scene where Ruby sings "Both Sides Now" is not only heartwarming and touching, and a perfect cap on the film's themes of growing up and how separating from family can be bittersweet.

CODA is a simple comedy-drama with a deeply involving emotional core, a slew of great performances from a very talented cast, and also highlights the struggles of deaf people in everyday situations as well as how being overly reliant on people around oneself can do more harm than good. The plot is pretty predictable, but the performances and emotional resonance of the story and its themes more than make up for it in a big way. I really recommend CODA!