Waves (2019) — movie review
Where do I even begin? This is easily one of the best films I’ve ever seen, and I can’t think of a better movie I could’ve started my summer with. Waves (2019) is a stunning coming-of-age film about family, love, and forgiveness. I won’t reveal much more because it’s best to go into this movie not knowing the entire story, which also means this is gonna be a spoiler-free review.
I’m obviously going to start off by talking about the cinematography. Every tiny decision made in this movie created such an incredible experience to watch. The attention to detail in every shot, the use of color, specifically red and blue, was so interesting, and the change in aspect ratios absolutely blew my mind. Waves (2019) truly has the most beautiful cinematography I’ve seen; my mind cannot even begin to comprehend its complexity and brilliance.
Now, about the soundtrack. I’m literally listening to it as I write this. I haven’t been this obsessed over a soundtrack since Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). The soundtrack includes songs from Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean, SZA, and Tyler the Creator. Every time one of their songs started playing, I started doing mental laps. This is genuinely the most breathtaking soundtrack ever. Besides the music, I noticed that Waves uses sound to induce feelings of anxiety and comfort throughout different situations in the movie, which I thought was really cool!
Moving on to the writing, one argument I’ve heard a lot is that while the movie is beautifully executed, it falls short in its writing. However, I disagree; I think the simplicity of the writing is part of what makes this movie so appealing. The movie felt real and raw, yet so simple. It is divided into two parts — the first part focusing on Tyler and the second part on his sister, Emily. The simple two-part story structure of Waves plays a huge role in invoking emotions in the audience. It takes you to the depth of Tyler’s downfall, making you feel like you’ve hit rock bottom, only to then shift the narrative to Emily’s healing journey. This juxtaposition of tension and hope amplifies the emotional impact, making every single emotion feel so intense.
I loved this movie’s cast. I feel as if no one could’ve played their roles better than they did. It reminded me a lot of Moonlight (2016), not only in its perfect casting but also in the themes and story structure.
Overall, I loved everything about this movie, and it’s definitely one of my new favorites. I’ll need to think about it more before deciding whether or not it’ll make it to my top 4 on Letterboxd, but if I’m being honest…it most likely will! I cannot recommend this movie enough. If you haven’t watched it already…go watch it right now!
Thank you for reading! .｡.:*☆
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Letterboxd: lovel4nd
