Identity Across Films By Dajee Provitt and Marina Cepeda MILS: Moonlight, I Am Not Your Negro, Lady Bird, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, are four films that couldn't seem more different on the surface. A political documentary, a traditional coming-of-age story, a dreamlike drama, and an action animation film. All award winners, all fantastic movies, however, these nuances are not what connects them. These four masterpieces are tied through ongoing identity conflict and performance of selfhood. In Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the use of comic-book-like graphics and color schemes accentuate Miles Morales as he struggles to discover and establish his own identity behind the mask of Spider-Man. In Moonlight, the protagonist Chiron is on a journey to find his authentic self outside of the expectations of his environment. In Lady Bird, the narrative progresses through a maternal relationship as the protagonist struggles to find her way. In I Am Not Your Negro the identity conflict manifests in the cognitive dissonance of White Americans necessity to oppress black people. Through each of these films we, as an audience, are challenged to analyze the self-dissonance through the formal elements of cinema. We are invited to not only view the films but to become a part of them. I welcome you to the lineup of Cinematic Dissonance, and the journey through identity performance, discovery, and acceptance.
