In the Pines (2011)

Released on Disney+ during the pandemic, this musical tells the story of founding father Alexander Hamilton and depicts the formation of the United States with a diverse cast.

A haunting look at grief, survival, and a mother’s quiet collapse in a world that never gave her room to fall.

Considering the runtime, I expected each scene to hit harder as opposed to a series of montages and vignettes. 

As an extremely avid fan of DC’s animation, I’ve become familiar with the way the studio uses Batman as a bit of a Trojan Horse to introduce some of their lesser known characters.

The social issues The Half of it takes on are handled well, between the antagonization brought on to Ellie for her race and the conflict that arises from her being gay. Both aspects of her character are built up over the course of the film and don’t seem abrupt or rushed. The film shows racism towards Ellie and her and father in varying levels, from having her schoolmates specifically address her as "Chinese girl” to the fore mentioned way her Dad is treated due to language barriers. The same can be said about Ellie being a lesbian. While she never truly “comes out” in the narrative, that does not undermine her journey of self-discovery from being meaningful. These ideas aren’t thrust upon the viewer in a preachy manor, the scenarios that occur feel believable given the rural setting. The film presents watchers with problems whom those like Ellie may face, and leaves us to sit with them and reflect.