36th Film Independent Spirit Awards: “Miss Juneteenth” (Four Nominations)

MISS JUNETEENTH

BEST FIRST FEATURE
BEST FEMALE LEAD
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

Viewing Information

INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS — FILM #11 of 33
MARCH 2, 2021
SCREENER

BEST FIRST FEATURE
Channing Godfrey Peoples
Producers: Toby Halbrooks, Tim Headington, Jeanie Igoe, James M. Johnston, Theresa Steele Page, Neil Creque Williams

Film Synopsis

Turquoise Jones is a single mom who holds down a household, a rebellious teenager, and pretty much everything that goes down at Wayman’s BBQ & Lounge. Turquoise is also a bona fide beauty queen – she was once crowned Miss Juneteenth, a title commemorating the day slaves in Texas were freed, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Life didn’t turn out as beautifully as the title promised but Turquoise, determined to right her wrongs, is cultivating her daughter, Kai, to become Miss Juneteenth, even if Kai wants something else.

Looking at Best First Feature

Of the two films I’ve seen, “Miss Juneteenth” lands a bit higher than “The Forty-Year-Old Version.” While Radha Blank shows her prowess as writer-director-actor in “The Forty-Year-Old Version,” Nicole Beharie and Alexis Chikaeze both shine in a much more relatable story.

BEST FIRST FEATURE
RANKING

1. “Miss Juneteenth”

2. “The Forty-Year-Old Version”

BEST FEMALE LEAD
Nicole Beharie

Character Synopsis

As a former Miss Juneteenth winner, Turquoise Jones did not follow the other successful beauty queens’ footsteps but instead became a single mom and a waitress at a BBQ & Lounge. Now, she’s determined to get her daughter, Kai, to have a brighter future by becoming Miss Juneteenth.

Looking at Best Female Lead

Facing the Oscar-nominated Viola Davis or Carey Mulligan, Nicole Beharie doesn’t stand a chance. I’d be hard-pressed to even seen her beating out the younger competition like Sidney Flanigan or Julia Garner. Nicole is a strong presence in “Miss Juneteenth,” but everyone else brings just a little bit more to their performances.

BEST FEMALE LEAD
RANKING

1. Nicole Beharie — “Miss Juneteenth”

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Alexis Chikaeze

Character Synopsis

Kai is a free-spirited student focused on dancing and boys, neither of which her mother, a former Miss Juneteenth winner, wants her to have any part. With her mother forcing her into the pageant, Kai tries to find her style amid beauty queen culture.

Looking at Best Supporting Female

Alexis Chikaeze could easily beat out fellow Supporting Females Valerie Mahaffey or Talia Ryder, but her biggest competition comes from either of the “Minari” actresses. Yuh-Jung Youn has to be the front-runner here, and at the Oscars, so Alexis most likely does not have a chance.

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
RANKING

1. Alexis Chikaeze — “Miss Juneteenth”

2. Valerie Mahaffey — “French Exit”

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Channing Godfrey Peeples

Looking at Best First Screenplay

Not to discredit “Miss Juneteenth” and its merits, but there’s nothing exceptional about the screenplay. The plot follows a mother, who was once a pageant winner, trying to get her uninterested daughter to follow her footsteps. It’s a well-broached topic. Compare that to a cold hard look at a Weinstein-like office environment with “The Assistant” or a revolutionary fast-talking L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ screenplay in “Straight Up.” Even “Palm Springs” brings something new to the time-loop genre. “Miss Juneteenth” feels fairly average standing amongst these other nominees.

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
RANKING

1. “Straight Up” — James Sweeney

2. “Miss Juneteenth” — Channing Godfrey Peeples

3. “Lapsis” — Noah Hutton