Chassin, 1

Phoenix Chassin

Mr Phillips

Cultural Media Literacy

May 20, 2018

Barry Jenkins’ ​Moonlight ​follows the story of Chiron, a black male growing up in

impoverished Miami, throughout three defining chapters of his life. In the first chapter of

Chiron’s story he is very young, and the film focuses on him discovering what it means to be

gay, and learning very early what society thinks of people who break societal norms. The film

then transitions to Chiron in high school, where the separation from society that spawned in his

early years has continued and worsened. During this time period of his life Chiron establishes a

sexual connection with his friend Kevin, before it is quickly broken due to the pressures of a

hyper-masculine society. The film’s final chapter takes place much later on in Chiron’s life, well

after his high school years. He is much more masculine than before and seems to have left all of

his more sensitive side behind. Not long after the audience rejoins him Kevin calls, and Chiron

meets with him. They discuss their lives that they experienced in the many years they spent apart

and Chiron questions his conformity to the masculine portrayal of himself he has come to accept.

The film ends with Kevin and Chiron resting their heads on one another, thinking about their

next steps in life. The open-endedness of the film’s ending along with the way sexuality is

displayed throughout the film make moonlight great. The display of homosexuality juxtaposed

with hyper-masculine society causes ​Moonlight ​to effectively challenge gender stereotypes.

Moonlight​’s portrayal of sexuality not only gives light to relationships within black

communities but more importantly shows the impact society and toxic masculinity can have on
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said relationships. Many who have analysed the film speak to its portrayal of gender and how it

shows the complicated side that is rarely shown in other modern media; “​Moonlight​ builds on

this idea of gender being something that is performed as opposed to inherent”​ ​(Stephanie Watts).

Watts speaks throughout her article about the problems associated with masculinity and how

Chiron and Kevin take two different approaches to coping with it. Constant pressures from all

sources of society cause Kevin to suppress his true self, while Chiron rolls with the punches and

takes what people throw at him. The suppression of one’s self is a major theme within ​Moonlight

and it is fully driven by masculinity within the film. The suppression is furthered by both Kevin

and Chiron throughout the film until the final scene when the two are finally alone again when

Chiron says: “You the only man that ever touched me” (1:48:39), revealing the thoughts held by

Chiron. This portrayal of sexuality is a far cry from many other movies that deal with lead male

roles, most of which support hyper-masculinity to its fullest.

Although it is the hyper-masculine characters that have a large impact on Chiron, the

characters that do not follow this aggressive trope are the ones that have the largest impact.

Teresa and Jaun, two characters who guide Chiron in his early years give him hope and solace

from the world that rejects and punishes him for being himself. The fact that these characters are

present and respected in society shows the viewer that toxic masculinity is a choice, not the

standard. This idea is further explored by Amanda Parris, who says: “The film explores the idea

of masculinity as a performance and how that performance is used as a form of survival”. This

idea is another that is rarely seen in modern media, and its use causes the audience to question

their own portrayal of themselves and how it has an impact on both how they are viewed and

how their portrayal impacts others. The performance of masculinity and its varying degrees of
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visibility act as a focal point for the film, and show the audience how much is lost by

conforming to societal norms rather than displaying one’s true self to the world.

The many faces put on by Chiron throughout the film ​Moonlight ​show the constantly

evolving identity of a homosexual black man growing up in hyper-masculine Miami, but it is the

brief peaks the audience gets into Chiron’s internal image that truly defy gender stereotypes. The

rough neighbourhoods much of the audience would associate with drugs, violence, and hip-hop

music are replaced with soothing classical music in the mind of Chiron. The spinning camera

shots or the close-ups focusing on Chiron’s back that accompany this music give the audience a

glimpse of the reality stolen from Chiron by his surroundings. David Sims mentions that “In

some of the film’s most important moments, Jenkins literally bathes his characters in that baleful,

blue light, stripping them of whatever disguises they might unwittingly wear in the daytime”, a

point reflected by the film’s promotional poster. The juxtaposition of the environment that

Chiron inhabits with the serene music, camera angles, and lighting effects drive home the fact

that he is nothing more than a shell of his true self when he is not in solace.

Barry Jenkins’ ​Moonlight ​made use of an incredible story, accompanied by non-diegetic

music, jarring camera angles, and out of place lighting in order to display the struggles of a

homosexual man growing up in a hyper-masculine environment. Jenkins challenged the

stereotypical view of many black men portrayed in media by giving the audience a glimpse of

the inner Chiron juxtaposed with the performance that he shows the world. This portrayal of

sexuality allows ​Moonlight ​to challenge gender stereotypes in a way that few other films do.
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Works Cited

Horton, Perry. “'Moonlight' Explained: A Masterpiece That's Also A Masterclass in

Filmmaking.” ​Film School Rejects​, Film School Rejects, 21 Apr. 2017,

filmschoolrejects.com/meaning-in-moonlight-89b894977868/.

Jenkins, Barry, director. ​Moonlight​. Lucky Red, 2017.

Parris, Amanda. “Masculinity and 'Moonlight': Eight Black Men Dissect Barry Jenkins'

Momentous Film.” ​CBCnews​, CBC/Radio Canada, 4 Nov. 2016,

www.cbc.ca/arts/masculinity-and-moonlight-eight-black-men-dissect-barry-jenkins-mom

entous-film-1.3836460​.

Sims, David. “Moonlight Is a Film of Uncommon Grace.” ​The Atlantic​, Atlantic Media

Company, 26 Oct. 2016,

www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/10/moonlight-barry-jenkins-review/505

409/​.

Watts, Stephanie. “Moonlight And The Performativity Of Masculinity.” ​One Room With A View​,

17 Feb. 2017,

oneroomwithaview.com/2017/02/17/moonlight-performativity-masculinity/.