Plot: What’s it about?
The 2022 Oscars will likely be remembered for the “slapping incident” in which actor Will Smith (who would go onto win Best Actor in King Richard later that evening) literally walked up on stage and slapped the emcee Chris Rock in front of a billion people. Many, including myself, thought the event to be scripted. It was not. Rock had made a passing comment about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith’s shaved head and her forthcoming role in G.I. Jane 2 (which was the joke). Many, including, Smith laughed at first but felt the need for vindication, resorted to physical violence on live, prime time television. In between these shenanigans there were some Academy Awards handed out for performances in film ranging from acting to sound to direction. CODA (Children of Deaf Adults) was the film that took home the statue for Best Picture, but its victory was and will likely always be overshadowed by this event.
Ruby Rossi (Emilia Jones) is the only one in her family who can hear. Her parents, Frank (Troy Kotsur) and Jackie (Marlee Matlin) run a local fishing business in the town of Gloucester, Mass. along with her brother (Daniel Durant). Ruby helps out and around the boat and helps with the tasks that require someone who can hear. Her parents are attempting to start their own co-op with some other local fisherman, but this also places her in a predicament – her parents need to be part of that co-op, but her school’s choir director, Mr. Villalobos (Eugenio Derbez) feels that her natural ability to sing might get her into a prestigious music school. This puts Ruby in a conundrum about potentially giving up her dream, but by doing so leaves her family without anyone to effectively communicate. To further complicate matters Ruby has a thing for Miles (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), another talented singer, who’s assigned to perform a duet with her in the school recital. The irony is, of course, with her parents not being able to hear, they don’t know and/or appreciate how truly talented she is.
If you can watch this film without getting a lump in your throat, you’re probably someone I don’t want to associate with. While some of the events of this film are dramatized, I’m sure there are situations out there that mirror this one. Imagine being a teenager and the two people who you look to for guidance and support, can’t even hear you. Actress Emilia Jones had to learn ASL (American Sign Language) for her role here and, though I’m no expert, I’d say she nailed it. It doesn’t hurt that she had two great actors portraying her parents, Oscar Winner Marlee Matlin won for Children of a Lesser God in 1987 and Troy Kotsur took home Best Supporting Actor for his role in this one. We take things for granted every day, but one of our five senses might be one of the most difficult things to comprehend. But CODA manages to pull this off while telling a great story to boot.
Video: How’s it look?
It’s refreshing to see a 1.85:1 movie these days. Oddly, back in the “early” days of the DVD, Blu-ray format I yearned for those big, wide boxes on the top and bottom and now I prefer the film to fill the entire screen. The aspect ration is, of course, irrelevant to what’s happening on screen. Set in the Northeast, Massachusetts in particular, this isn’t to be confused with a film that’ll utilize every color on the spectrum. It’s rather dull and bleak, to be honest. That’s not a fault of the transfer, of course, rather it’s just the way the movie was shot. Detail is tack sharp with a clear, definite palette that suits the nature of the film. It’s good-looking, to be sure.
Audio: How’s it sound?
The film sports a Dolby Atmos track that sounds eerily pleasing. It’s odd to talk about a film in which two of the main actors are deaf in real life, but in this instance it does give us a bit more perspective. For example, the Rudy character really does have an amazing voice, something that’s the main point of contention in the film. While we take for granted one of our senses, there are those in the movie who will never know what it’s like to hear. Vocals are spot on with surrounds being used sparingly, but with great effects. It’s a nice-sounding track.
Supplements: What are the extras?
You’d figure that a Best Picture winner would have some sort of feature on the disc. You would be mistaken.
The Bottom Line
Overshadowed by the “slap heard ’round the world” CODA finally makes its way to 4K. It tells a compelling story with great performances all around. The disc is featureless, but looks and sounds amazing.
