Page 2 April 26 , 2018
Check It Out Film Review
Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index
Wryly Wrestles with Woe
Reviewed by Tommy Vinh Bui,
MLIS, Associate Librarian,
Inglewood Public Library
This was a thoroughly enjoyable and
poignant tale of a young girl navigating the
trials and tribulations of adolescence. It also
strives to go beyond the mere tropes of high
school dramedy by trying to tackle a variety
of emotionally-laden subjects such as grief,
loss and soul-sapping depression. It offers up
some pretty weighty and sensitive societal
issues to the audience, but manages to do
so with an appropriate degree of tact and
social responsibility.
The quick pitch: Juniper Lemon is pitched
into a world of sorrow and bereavement
when she survives a car crash that tragically
takes her older sister’s life. Her parents are
hobbled with grief and she herself is racked
with unspeakable guilt over the whole ordeal.
She eventually uncovers a mysterious letter
written by her sister before the accident
-- a letter undelivered to a secret recipient.
Hamstrung with remorse, she undergoes a
by-any-means mission to convey the letter
to this unknown party. This redemptive act
becomes the last meaningful link she has to
her dearly departed sibling.
The narrative paces along at a manageable
momentum and endeavors to keep the
audience’s attention rapt throughout. The
protagonist Juniper is endearingly vulnerable,
but manages to muster enough spunkiness
Entertainment
to overcome seemingly the whole weight
of the world on her shoulders. This is an
indomitable character many should be able
to identify with quickly and feel knee-jerk
compassion as the story unfolds. She’s being
dragged through the emotional wringer. But
she comes out the other side stronger and a
fully-realized character for it.
The side characters also all contribute
meaningfully to the story. Juniper undertakes
an epic internal journey that hauls her through
an array of emotional peaks and valleys. She
recruits an eclectic motley of sidekicks to
help her find the way. Each and every one
is just as richly-textured and complex as the
primary protagonist. It’s a riveting cortege of
characters and inextinguishable friendship
quickly becomes another enduring theme
by book’s end.
Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index can
be likened to Mean Girls meets Extremely
Loud & Incredibly Close. The shifting from
teen rom-com to intense character profile
of pain and melancholy is seamless and
no easy course to slalom. But the author
manages it well here. The writerly acumen
for shrewd storytelling is superb. Julie Israel
does a fine job of articulating these authentic
characters. The dialogue strikes a correct
chord of verisimilitude. You can practically
hear the voice quiver and reticence of the
title character Juniper as she braves the
slings and arrows of her tragic adversity.
The writer really wrangles a heartrending
response from the reader. You just want to
offer Juniper a kind word and the comfort
of hearing, “Everything’s going to be okay.”
All in all, this showcases by-the-books
Young Adult genre machinations and is
perfect for a multitude of demographics. •
Bloodlight and Bami Shows Grace
Jones Like Never Seen Before
By Morgan Rojas
for www.cinemacy.com
In 2015, Grace Jones released a memoir
called I’ll Never Write My Memoirs. In
it, along with proving that she is not one
to be labeled “predictable,” Jones made
the divisive claim that Beyonce, Miley Cyrus,
Lady Gaga and other pop stars are guilty of
copying her style. This, of course, caused a
social media firestorm among the generation
that was too young to know who this Grace
Jones person was – how dare she insult
Queen Bey! In the long-awaited and (apparently)
much-needed reintroduction, director
Sophie Fiennes gives audiences a rare look
at this controversial, multi-hyphenated artist in
the documentary-meets-art house film, Grace
Jones: Bloodlight and Bami. The result is a
product that may make millennials think
twice before discrediting Jones as a selfproclaimed
“original.”
Filmed over a 10-year span and throughout
various countries, Fiennes has created a
Grace Jones. Courtesy of Kino Lorber.
quintessential profile piece with Bloodlight
and Bami that explores Grace Jones far beyond
her controversial statements and tabloid
headlines. Through hotel room conversations,
intimate family dinners and private recording
studio sessions, audiences see Jones as a
mother, a churchgoer and a daughter, among
other personal monikers. Most of the film
takes place in Jamaica, Jones’ birthplace,
and audiences are thrust into the center
of her family dynamic. Perhaps the most
revelatory fact is Jones’ admission of an
abusive relationship with her stepfather, and
the lasting effect it had on her. Yet she also
credits the man, whom she calls Mas P, for
inspiring her extremely masculine and “scary”
onstage persona.
Watching Grace’s creative process from
early studio sessions to her live performances
of “Slave to the Rhythm” and “Pull Up to
the Bumper” are perhaps among the film’s
most fascinating scenes. Like a true artist,
she performs without inhibition (except
when she thinks she looks like a lady pimp
with call girls as backup dancers) and follows
an “art over money” philosophy that is
inspiring to anyone pursuing creative dreams.
Much like Jones herself, Fiennes’ filmmaking
style is a reflection of her innovation.
This type of filmmaking includes using
film that looks dated, including glitches and
lags. It switches between more intimate,
fly-on-the-wall moments and energetic live
performances.
For as inclusionary as the film’s content
tries to be, it seems like if one is not already
a Grace Jones super fan or particularly interested
in the ‘80s music scene, Bloodlight
and Bami can feel exclusionary. No scene
is particularly set up, leaving the audience
to find themselves dropped into the middle
of a moment without prior context, which
can feel confusing and exacerbating during
long takes. The takeaway is to go in without
expecting this to be a straightforward
documentary, as Bloodlight and Bami is not
trying to be the next Amy. Approach this
film with an open mind and prepare for it
to get blown away by the wildly wonderful
Grace Jones.
Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami is not
rated. 115 minutes. Now playing at the Nuart
Theatre in Los Angeles. •
Morgan Rojas.
Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index by Julie Israel.
Tommy Vinh Bui.
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