CODA review: A feel-good treat
Review Overview
Feel-good factor
10Emilia Jones
10Representation
10Matthew Turner | On 13, Aug 2021
Director: Sian Heder
Cast: Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin, Eugenio Derbez, Daniel Durant, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Amy Forsyth, Kevin Chapman
Certificate: 12
Where to watch CODA film online in the UK: Apple TV+
The second feature from writer-director Sian Heder (Tallulah), this utterly charming crowd-pleaser is a remake of the criminally underseen 2014 French hit La Famille Bélier. However, as good as the French version is, this might be the rare example of an American remake that’s actually better than the original.
Set in Gloucester, Massachussetts, the film stars British actress Emilia Jones (the daughter of Aled Jones) as 17-year-old Ruby Rossi, the only hearing member of her deaf family, which includes strapping older brother Leo (Daniel Durant) and loving parents Frank (Troy Kotsur) and Jackie (Marlee Matlin). As well as attending high school, Ruby has her hands full helping out with the family fishing boat, not least because she’s often required to interpret when negotiating a price for their catch.
However, things change for Ruby when she signs up for a choir class and discovers she’s a gifted singer, with her teacher, Mr Villalobos (Eugenio Derbez), encouraging her to both perform in the end of year concert and apply to the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Soon, Ruby finds herself torn between pursuing her love of singing and potentially leaving her family to fend for themselves. Meanwhile, she also finds herself growing closer to sensitive school crush Miles (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), after Mr V picks them to perform a duet at the concert.
If you were cynically minded, you could look at CODA and discern a calculated construct of feel-good tropes, given that it blends together elements from high school musicals, stories of overcoming adversity, coming-of-age tales and inspirational teacher movies. However, Heder’s assured direction makes it all flow together beautifully – it might be blatant emotional manipulation, but she knows exactly the right buttons to push, and how hard.
Heder has a real gift for creating fully rounded characters – the story centres on Ruby, but we understand the feelings and perspective of all four family members. Accordingly, the film’s central themes of communication and listening are incredibly powerful, and you fully understand the hurt – on both sides – when Jackie dismisses Ruby’s musical leanings as typical teenage rebellion, saying, “If I was blind, would you want to paint?”
The performances are simply astonishing. Emilia Jones (previously seen in Locke & Key) delivers a star-making performance as Ruby, nailing both the American accent and the impressive singing, but also conveying complex, largely internalised emotions in a way that’s both unshowy and deeply affecting. Kotsur and Matlin are equally wonderful as Ruby’s parents, and they both get beautifully written, emotional heart-to-heart scenes that pretty much guarantee tears. They’re also very funny, with their palpable chemistry sparking a great running joke about their highly active sex life.
There’s a trio of terrific supporting turns from Durant (who has his own perspective on Ruby’s problems), Walsh-Peelo (as sweet and charming here as he was in Sing Street) and Derbez, who takes a familiar caricature and turns it into something real and heartfelt.
There are a number of improvements over the original film, from the setting (the family are farmers in the French version) to Heder’s frequently bold directorial choices, such as the way she shoots the concert scene from the family’s point of view. It also scores huge points in terms of representation – Matlin successfully lobbied for all three family members to be played by deaf actors and the result is undeniably effective.
In short, this is a feel-good treat from start to finish. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry and you’ll pick up some fruity sign language into the bargain.
CODA is available on Apple TV+ from 13th August, as part of a £4.99 monthly subscription, with a seven-day free trial.
This review was originally publishing during Sundance London 2021.