- Release year: 2024
- Director: Johanné Gómez Terrero.
- Producers: Fernando Santos Diaz.
- Screenplay by: María Abenia and Johanné Gómez Terrero.
- Cinematography by: Alván Prado.
Synopsis: a teenager is forced to grow up quickly due to an unexpected pregnancy.
Shotgun Commentary: beautiful narrative about coming of age under dreadful conditions.
Review
Sugar Island is the story of Makenya (Yelidá Díaz). She is a 14-year-old girl who gets pregnant at the worst time possible: when her family is about to lose their house. Themes of colonialism, sexism, and racism merge in this gorgeous drama, putting a very needed emphasis in the unfairness of an obsolete system that should have never been accepted as a norm in the first place.
A precarious position
The narrative begins when Makenya realises she’s pregnant and can do nothing about it. Sadly, this is the reality of many women all over the world nowadays. A reality that should have become extinct decades ago. The feature focuses on the systems that rule the Dominican Republic, both societal and institutional.
On the one hand, society still sees pregnancy as a woman’s business, expecting zero accountability from the man who impregnates her. On the other, it is incredibly hard for a woman to find a decent job. But it is pretty much impossible if they are expecting. This web of contradictions makes no sense from a logical standpoint. Regrettably, it hasn’t been designed to be logical, but profitable for the few.
Sugar Island does a great job commenting the precarious situation of women and intertwining it with the bureaucratic trap that is being from Haitian descent in the country. Much like in the US, while slavery is no longer regarded as such, it doesn’t mean that it is fully extinct. Actions like denying people IDs for being Haitian or having HIV, and kicking out of their homes once they can’t work any more without a pension or a roof over their heads, seems like a more intricate way of slavery. One that is just as, if not more, dangerous than the straightforward way of the 18th century.
Community and power
In a system that is designed to make you fail, the movie also reminds you that you can always find a community to help you or, at least, to fight alongside you. Solitude is the great ally of discrimination. It is a lot harder to step on a group than it is to step on an individual. A common ground like working in the same plantation or having the same beliefs sometimes work wonders, creating strong communities that can actually fight together against the injustice and support each other with their troubles.
These themes are not easy to navigate. Fortunately, on top of great writing, there is great acting. Díaz shows a lot of promise in her role of Makenya, one that demands lots of intensity and powerful emotions. Her approach is quite minimalist, but pungent where it needs to be, managing to stay away from needless melodrama that could take away from the message of the film.
A rainbow of meaning
About the technical aspects of the film, the use of colour is probably one of the most interesting features. Bold colours in the scale from pink to blue reign at the beginning of the film over the intense green backgrounds, the youthful nightlife combined with the nature’s power. The colour palette of earthy colours slowly eats away any other contrast during most of the film, except for when people get together to celebrate, support each other or protest. Their bright colours visually representing a rebellion against the natural course of things. A course that, ironically, is anything but natural from a humane point of view.
Great news for those of you who want to learn more: Cut to the Take has been lucky to be able to interview Gómez Terrero on the subject of colour and other themes from the film, interview coming out real soon!
All in all, Sugar Island is a powerful story that exposes the precarious situation of young women in the Dominican Republic and the corrupt system the country is organised by. A system that worsens the already shameful situation of discrimination towards fellow humans due to prejudice and greed.
Advice to take from this movie:
- Sexual education is not a sin or a privilege, it’s a RIGHT.
- If sexual education is not being taught, you need to tell your kids about it. It might be awkward, but it could save them from HIV or unwanted pregnancies, among other consequences.
- Don’t wait until the problem affects you to get on the side of the victims.
What’s your take? Have you watched Sugar Island? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message in my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀