Miss Juneteenth’ review; Dir. Channing Godfrey Peoples (2020)

Channing Godfrey Peoples writes and directs this wonderfully staged and deeply absorbing portrait of a mother and daughter relationship in the lead up to the annual Miss Juneteenth beauty pageant in contemporary Texas.

After a successful debut at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, one of the handful to have actually taken place in physical form in 2020, comes this excellent drama from Channing Godfrey Peoples who makes her feature directing debut – and what a debut that is. The title refers to the holiday recognising the date that the slaves of Texas finally found out they were free, two years after Lincoln’s emancipation proclamation of 1863; June 19th, 1865. It also refers to a beauty pageant that takes place in Forth Worth, Texas on that holiday, the winner being awarded a lucrative scholarship to college. Past winners have gone on to become neurosurgeons, and marry senator’s, but one former winner, Miss Juneteenth 2004, Turquoise Jones (Nicole Beharie) saw her life take a different turn. After becoming pregnant with Kai (a superb Alexis Chikaeze), singer mother Turquoise had to drop out of further education to support her young child, first dancing as a stripper, and then eventually working in a local bar and also a funeral home where we find her at the start of the story.

It’s 2019, and Kai is herself of the right age to enter the Miss Juneteenth competition herself, Turquoise absolutely wanting her to follow in her own footsteps, and be crowned beauty queen. However, rebellious teen Kai has her own thoughts on how to present herself; dancing, and notably a dance number for the pageant instead of the poem recital (Maya Angelou’s Phenomenal Woman) ,that her mother performed to crowning glory 15 years earlier. Then there are boys coming onto the scene as Kai turns 15, and also a returning father, Ronnie (Kendrick Sampson) who her mother seems to have started a relationship with once again. The film tells the story of the lead up to the competition, the relationship between mother and daughter, and the father, in a perfectly-staged tale which touches on many themes, including personal redemption, ambition and overcoming adversity. Turquoise is constantly up against it financially, but always wants to do the right thing; whether it be for Ronnie, who she has welcomed back in her life, still obviously in love with him, and also her daughter who she is so desperate doesn’t repeat her mistakes.

Miss Juneteenth had me involved from the start. It’s beautiful to look at due to Daniel Patterson’s wonderful cinematography, while the music used also compliments those visuals, Emily Rice’s subtle score simply wonderful. Peoples manages to bring a wonderful natural tone to proceedings, a film that is both intimate, compassionate and complete absorbing.

It’s quite the debut from the filmmaker, and she’s certainly one to watch for the future. This is absolutely one of the best, most beautiful dramas we’ve seen all year.

Miss Juneteenth is released in cinemas and on digital from 25th September.