The film revolves a day in the life of two people who met at a party and had a one-night stand as they would spend the entire day walking around San Francisco where they fall in love but also talk about who they are including being among the few African-Americans living in a city that is largely white. It is a film that explores these two people who met at this party as they don’t know each other until circumstances occur where they meet again as they would spend the rest of the day together to see the city riding on bicycles as well as talk about all sorts of things with race being a big issue. Barry Jenkins’ screenplay is largely straightforward in its narrative as it doesn’t have much of a plot yet it does play into these two people in Micah (Wyatt Cenac) and Joanne (Tracey Heggins) as they deal with the aftermath of this one-night stand and how to spend the rest of the day as they get to know each other. At the same time, they deal with being black in a city that is predominantly white where people from poor areas are being pushed out in favor of the upper class as Joanne is in a relationship with a white man who is currently out of town.
Jenkins’ direction is mesmerizing for the fact that it is shot on location in San Francisco with a small budget of $11,000 as every scene is shot on location with a film that is shot in desaturated style with little resemblances of color except for one small sequence. Much of Jenkins’ direction is intimate as there are a few wide shots in the film yet Jenkins emphasizes largely on close-ups and medium shots to get a scope of the tiny apartment that Micah lives in as well as the more spacious apartment that Joanne lives in. The direction also play into this sense of the African-American identity where they visit the Museum of the African Diaspora as it’s a place that Joanne never knew about while Micah has a poster on his wall that features a document about the city’s development with the word “lies” covered over it. It plays into Micah’s own issues with a city he has a love-hate relationship for as well as wonder why 7% of its population is filled by black people.
Jenkins also plays into this lack of black identity in San Francisco in a brief scene in which a bunch of white activists talk about gentrification as well as the effect it has on various areas in the city such as Castro Street and East Bay as the latter has people being pushed out for more upper class residents. It is a brief moment that shows it’s not just African-Americans who are affected by gentrification but also the poor as it plays into Micah’s own sense of alienation. Even though he and Joanne would go to a party where it is largely filled with the white indie/hipster crowd, Jenkins reveals that there is still this disparity into the city’s small African-American population as it plays into Micah’s desperation to be with Joanne though she has a different view of the way she sees race but understands Micah’s own problems. Overall, Jenkins crafts an evocative and somber film about two African-Americans who deal with their identity and their surroundings following a one-night stand.
Cinematographer James Laxton does brilliant work with the film’s desaturated cinematography with its emphasis on little colors as well as aim for something gritty to play into this sense of mood and lack of diversity in San Francisco as it would become more desaturated at times as it is a highlight of the film. Editor/sound designer Nat Sanders, along with sound mixer Nikolas Zasimczuk, does amazing work with the editing with its usage of jump-cuts as well as other stylish cuts to play into the drama while his approach to the sound plays on natural locations and how music sounds in a room and such. Music supervisor Greg O’Bryant cultivates an incredible music soundtrack that largely features indie music of that time including lots of unknowns in acts such as Tomlab, Ivana XL, Yesterday’s New Quintet, Total Shutdown, Tandemoro, Gypsophile, the Changes, Au Revoir Simone, White Denim, Canoe, Oh No Oh My, Bloodcat Love, the Octopus Project, the Answering Machine, and Casiotone for the Painfully Alone with the Donkeys plus more well-known music from Igor Romanov and Tom Waits.
The film’s ensemble cast largely consists of real people and non-actors as the main highlight of the film are its two leads in Wyatt Cenac and Tracey Heggins in phenomenal performances in their respective roles as Micah and Joanne. Cenac’s performance is the more outgoing as someone who has a chip on his shoulder when it comes to racial identity as well as being someone who feels alienated by his surroundings. Heggins’ performance is more reserved as someone who doesn’t see race yet begins to realize the lack of African-Americans in San Francisco yet tries to find a more hopeful outlook on things. Cenac and Heggins together are a joy to watch in seeing these two people who had only met the night before at a party as they deal with their one-night stand as well as being among the few blacks in a city that is predominately white.
Medicine for Melancholy is a sensational film from Barry Jenkins that features great leading performances from Wyatt Cenac and Tracey Heggins. Along with its commentary on racial identity, the film’s offbeat yet entrancing visuals, and a killer music soundtrack. It is a film that explores two people who meet in the aftermath of a one-night stand as they deal with who they are in a world where there are part of a small minority as they cope with their identities and views of the world. In the end, Medicine for Melancholy is a phenomenal film from Barry Jenkins.
Barry Jenkins Films: Moonlight (2016 film) - If Beale Street Could Talk - (The Underground Railroad (2021 Limited TV Series) – (Mufasa: The Lion King)
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