CODA | KAIROS GLOBAL | SEPTEMBER 2022

Author: Joseph Anthraper

We have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, affirms St Paul in his letter to Hebrews. Strange as it is, in his wisdom God himself deemed it necessary to suffer the full breadth of man’s infirmities and sufferings! For infirmities and limitations we have in abundance – and it’s only in the law of self-giving love (the law of the gift as St JP2 calls it in the context of marriage), that one truly finds the freedom to rise above and beyond those all-so-prevalent human limitations, that sometimes seem to smother life of all its joys.

CODA, directed by Sian Heder, tells the story of Ruby Rossi (masterfully portrayed by Emilia Jones) and her deaf family (CODA is the acronym for Children of Deaf Adults). Ruby is the only hearing member of the family – her parents, Frank and Jackie, as well as her brother, Leo are deaf. The family has a fishing boat, and she assists them daily with the fishing early in the morning before attending high school, where often, she gets bullied because of her family.

Ruby loves singing and when she notices her crush at school, Miles signing up for choir, she impulsively does the same. The choir teacher, Mr Bernardo Villalobos, notices her talent at singing and offers to give her private lessons to prepare her for auditioning for a scholarship at Berklee College of Music. With returns from fishing diminishing all the time because of new regulations as well as from unscrupulous middlemen, Frank and Leo proceed to set up a co-op business to procure fish from fishermen and sell it directly; and they are counting on Ruby to be their voice. Ruby tries hard to juggle her two loves – the love for her family and her love of singing, but of course, something must give and through many heartbreaks and tears, each of them learn in a deeper way what it is to truly live for the other; what it is to need one another.

We all have our fears, yet it can be hard for a ‘normal person’ to truly understand the fears and anxieties of another who has a disability. True, all of us are wounded in one way or another, but some of us bear disabilities and profound wounds, which none apart from his/her maker can truly comprehend. At its core, the movie delves into the fears of the deaf protagonists, their fear of failure; the fear of not being ‘normal’ enough – scarred by social interactions and scared of being the odd one out – fears which have been reinforced time and again through life’s bitter experiences. Yet, they compensate for all that silence with love and laughter and in the end, it is that love for each other in the family that shines through.

All the deaf characters in the movie are portrayed by deaf actors, Troy Kotsur and Marlee Matlin as Ruby’s parents are outstanding, as is Daniel Durrant who plays Leo.

NB: Viewer discretion is recommended as language is R-rated

Joseph lives in Southampton, UK with Mahima, his wife and their 4 kids.