If you know me remotely well, you’ll know that I love Jennifer Lawrence. I find her down to earth, her interviews are hilarious (I’ve watched quite a few while procrastinating on YouTube), she’s a phenomenal actress, and I love that she makes me feel a little better for being clumsy and constantly tripping on things. When I watched the trailer for "Joy," it automatically became a part of my "movies I need to watch asap" list.
I ended up watching it around 20 days after it premiered and was skeptical to do so given the lukewarm reviews it had received. Most people that commented on the movie said the plot was boring, but that Lawrence was a star and the movie’s sole driving force. Well…I partially have to agree to disagree.
I do share the opinion that Lawrence is great, but I don’t think the plot is boring at all. It’s not full of twists and turns and excitement like the "Hunger Games" franchise Lawrence was a part of, but it depicts the real struggles of a woman trying to make it in the entrepreneurial world -- and while I do agree that Miracle Mops aren’t thrilling products, Joy’s journey to success is one we should all look at and learn from.
Her determination and desire to succeed is inspiring, especially since Joy is a woman. Virtually everyone, even a few members of her own family, doubts she will make it. However, nothing stops her. She goes from illegally trying to sell the mops in the parking lot of a supermarket to selling them on national television (initially suffering from camera fright and going mute when doing so), and personally deals with the manufacturers of her product, who were trying to patent her idea and steal money from her by excessively raising the costs of production. All of this while trying to keep her family together.
We have all faced some kind of struggle in our lives, regardless of its magnitude and type, and seeing Joy persevere makes you want to do so too. The moment she finally sees the numbers pouring in and people wanting to buy her product brought me to tears -- Lawrence’s emotion transpires through the screen and it is difficult not to relate to and empathize with the protagonist. After this moment, her path becomes your own, and you suddenly find yourself trying to overcome all obstacles she faces. As a woman, seeing Joy take control of her own destiny and succeed in doing so at a time when that wasn’t common for women, was particularly heartwarming.
The movie isn’t mind-blowing, doesn’t end in a plot twist, and has no major visual or sound effects, but it depicts a reality that many people face in our everyday world. It is equally as mundane and thrilling as our day-to-day lives can be, but has a protagonist that can help inspire us -- we live in a world that is constantly making following our heart’s desire more difficult. So, ignore the reviews and do watch "Joy," because if nothing else, it will be another Oscar movie to tick off your list.
