FemmeFilmFest21 Review: The Light of the Moon (Jessica M. Thompson)

Trigger warning: rape.

It has been a few years since I first watched Jessica M. Thompson’s The Light of the Moon, but I was immediately drawn into the project. Whenever anyone from the cast of Brooklyn Nine-Nine does something, I like to support it. And it was the casting choice of Stephanie Beatriz that helped me originally discover this film.

However, this project is very different from the comedy of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and gets to show a dramatic role for Beatriz. The official synopsis of the film reveals very little of the plot: after her world is irrevocably changed, a successful New York City architect struggles to regain intimacy and control in her life.

Whilst this is accurate, it is extremely important to know going into the film that the “change” in lead character Bonnie’s life is that she is raped in an alley. It is a serious subject matter and one that not everyone will feel comfortable watching, but is something that I am glad is being told in this medium.

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What is particularly great in this film is the screenplay, also written by Thompson. Having a female voice behind the camera and with the screenplay helps the female perspective come through clearly on screen. This is not a story that is glamourised and it primarily is not about the rape itself, instead focusing on the impact of being a victim of rape.

We follow Bonnie as she views the world around her and sees how people treat her differently, even if their intentions are good. It shows the emotional impact of going through something like that and the writing highlights this aspect extremely well.

As mentioned before, this is a very different role for Beatriz to take on, but she is exceptional as Bonnie. Beatriz has shown in Brooklyn Nine-Nine that she can take on tough and important subject matters (primarily in the episode ‘Game Night’), but this role takes her performance to another level.

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Once again, it is not the rape scene itself that showcases this storyline, but Beatriz’s performance throughout and navigating the script to show emotion and trying to rationalise a situation which is hard to imagine. This raw and honest performance helps set the pace and tone of the rest of the film.

These stories are incredibly important to tell, but they are especially important to share when they are this well made. There is more than one way to look at stories regarding rape, and this one highlights the issues that come outside of the court cases and the incident that still impact the victim. Even if people think they are trying to help, it is hard to know how someone is feeling and what support they need. This is a film that is incredibly well written and impacted me, and I hope others give it a chance too.