It seemed pretty fitting that I found myself sitting in a near empty cinema on Rosh Hashana waiting for the 2021 Sundance breakout sensation, CODA, to get underway. A film about new beginnings, CODA is a nuanced, uplifting coming-of-age story set in the seaside village of Gloucester, MA. Ruby Rossi, played by Emilia Jones, is a 17-year old high school senior who loves to sing. And as the only hearing person in her family of four, her parents and brother rely on her as their connection to the hearing world. When Ruby’s choir teacher suggests that she apply to the prestigious Berklee School of Music in Boston, Ruby finds herself at a crossroads. Should she leave her close knit family who sees her as a lifeline or abandon her soul’s deepest yearning and greatest joy?
Jones is exquisite in the role and takes us with her on a visceral journey as she toggles seamlessly between the hearing and deaf worlds. And Jones’ supporting actors, mom played by the luminous Marlee Matlin with Troy Kotsur and Daniel Durant as dad and brother, are also spectacular. Together, the quartet sparkles on screen and, as members of the Deaf community (Jones is the only hearing actor in the group), Matlin, Kotsur and Durant bring a rich, soulful authenticity to their characters.
It is Ruby, however, who grounds the film as she wrestles with the complexities of her unique and beautiful life. She teeters on the precipice prepared to take a leap of faith but filled with uncertainties. Her intersecting experiences bring to mind the Erin Hanson poem –
There is freedom
waiting for you,
on the breezes
of the sky
“What if I fall?”
Oh but my darling
what if you fly?
L’Shanah Tovah – to new beginnings.