I want to recommend the musical film CODA (2021). I had great expectations for this movie because an all-time favorite of mine is the movie Begin Again. Therefore, I could not wait to watch it. CODA is about a girl who grows up in a deaf family but loves to sing. There are beautiful songs and lots of touching scenes in this film. Above all, I recommend CODA to share the life of a deaf family and CODAs with you.

  Have you ever heard of the word CODA? It is not only a word that means a concluding section in a musical composition, but it is also an acronym for ‘child of deaf adult.’ In this movie, a teenage girl, Ruby, is a CODA; her parents and brother are deaf. She has a natural talent for singing, but her family is unaware of this. The story starts with Ruby joining her school’s choir, following the guy she has a crush on, Miles. She learns how to sing professionally and dreams of being a singer. One day, she has an opportunity to move a step closer to her dream, so she starts to think about the life that she really wants to live.

  Some of the choices that we make in life are special, leading us to a whole new life. So we all try hard to find the best direction, leading to what we are aiming for. For Ruby, it is her family that has the most influence on her choices. She feels a heavy responsibility toward maintaining her family's livelihood because she is the only link between her family and others. Sometimes she wants to escape from this heavy burden. However, Ruby loves her family a lot. So she chooses her family all the time when at a crossroads between her family and her dream. Like Ruby, there is no other option for CODAs but to accept assisting the deaf as their identity. It is a kind of fate for them, but their hardship is not well known.

  Ruby seems unable to communicate clearly with her parents. They do not fully understand her, and Ruby feels alienated from her family. In the film, Ruby asks her mother, "Have you ever wanted me to be deaf, too?" Surprisingly, her mom answers, "At first, I desperately wanted you to be deaf, too. When I heard that you were born capable of hearing, my heart was broken." Actually, most deaf parents want their children to be deaf, too. Some are worried that they would not be able to raise their hearing children well, but what really matters is the difficulties faced in understanding each other. Ruby's parents can hardly understand their daughter, who loves to sing, and they do not know how beautiful her voice is. They finally realize Ruby's talent and the power of her voice when they see people crying while listening to her sing.

  The movie ends with all of the villagers learning sign language and helping Ruby’s family. It is a happy ending. But is this realistic? This world is full of phonetic languages, and many CODAs give up their dreams. Few people can communicate using sign language, which makes the deaf feel isolated.

  Many parts of the movie involve sign language, so we can experience deaf characters’ minds with a quiet background. The directing of the emotions of the parents who cannot listen to their daughter's songs and the scenes in which Ruby uses sign language with love toward her family are really touching. The film is recommended for those who are interested in the life of CODAs and the deaf, those who have experienced a disconnection from their parents who are different, and those who want to enjoy a feast of wonderful songs and sounds.

  Watch CODA, and we will all start to think about what our community must do for disadvantaged people and their families, and what roles we can play in that new society.

 

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