Review of Joy (2015) by Hanneguacamole — 04 Jan 2016

Joy is inspiring, as it should be, to the audience and I believe that was the movie's ultimate goal. A self-ringing mop may not be the most important invention, yet Joy's success and failures resonate with our own lives and our own problems.

Joy was nonlinear and a bit confusing at times. Joy's dead-beat mother practically lived inside of a soap opera, but that does not mean that I want to watch the main character trapped inside a television screen. This isn't Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory! Nonetheless, the abstract scenes took away from the overall meaning and story. Less is more when unnecessary.

Joy's strongest point may have been its emotional connection. Everyone I spoke to after viewing the film had a strongly negative reaction to Joy's family and felt some type of empathy towards her. Character development is crucial, but I don't always want to feel disgusted towards everyone except the protagonist. And can someone tell me why Mimi was so important to the story? Joy's success did not seem to stem from that women – it stemmed from herself.