CODA

In February 2022, I watched CODA for the first time at Toho Cinemas Nagareyama Ootakanomori. The coming-of-age drama film was released in 2021. It is a remake of the 2014 French movie La Famille Bélier.

It depicts the youth of Ruby who is healthy and has been born in and raised by a deaf family.

I was moved to tears by the movie and I was done to tears at a theater for the first time after having watched Bohemian Rhapsody, The Greatest Showman and Blinded by the Light in recent years. The singing of Ruby performed by Emilia Jones was really touching especially with sign language.

I hesitate to watch a flick, in which physically disabled characters appear, because there are always concerns that the story is hypocritical, however, people, whose remarks I have usually referred to, praised the one, so I thought that it was worth watching on a big screen, then I went to the theater. Although I had imagined it to be like Teen Spirit starring Elle Fanning, yet the story was realistic. The development was not beyond my expectations before reaching the ending. When I began to think why the people praised it like that and to feel that it was disappointing, the concert of Ruby's chorus group started, then as they were singing my favorite song "Starman" written by David Bowie, I easily thought of musical masterpieces as timeless watching Ruby and the members enjoying to sing together and Ruby's dad gazing at his daughter when a teardrop suddenly fell down from my eyes. I was puzzled by that at the moment but I could not stop crying after that because the following development was really dramatic. I felt cleansed.

Except for "Starman", I felt happy when I heard "I Fought the Law" by The Clash. I love Sex Pistols but I have not liked The Clash and Green Day, so I have regarded myself as not a Punk rock fan, however, I felt the punk number to be cool when I unexpectedly heard it. People might come to love something that way.

I thought that Emilia Jones was not so beautiful but she was really charming and cute. I was touched especially when Ruby performed by Jones shows an attitude toward a young man who she is falling in love with.

The moving picture has been nominated for the 2022 Academy Award for Best Picture. I will be pleased if the picture or The Power of the Dog will win it.