Rosalind Eleazar as Misty Green (Photo courtesy of IMDB/A24)
Despite the overstuffed narrative of A24’s “Misty Green,” Rosalind Eleazar’s show-stopping yet chaotic performance is enough to leave an audience enamored.
Although the film has only been rolled out to certain theaters worldwide, Chris Rock’s newest directorial project is already facing divisive reviews from critics.
Starring Rosalind Eleazar, the film focuses on Misty Green, an out of work Emmy-award winning actress desperately chasing a career revival in seven days. She must face a minefield of personal addiction, family mental illnesses, and a tarnished reputation that prevents her from ever truly succeeding. While the film stars heavy hitters like Chris Rock, Anna Kendrick, Topher Grace, and Adam Driver, Rosalind’s performance is clearly the only one worth paying any attention to.
The first ten minutes of the film shows the shambles of her life as she awakens to her dead lover’s wife telling her that she has seven days to vacate the apartment he left for her. Rather than preparing for a high stakes audition the following day that would give her enough security to find a new home, Misty decides to party with Zach (Driver) where she gets high on various drugs and wastes the night away. Rather than getting her life together as the ticking clock hangs over her head, Misty continues to unravel, making it difficult to become a fan of the star. Yet even as Misty continues to make terrible decisions, Eleazar’s hypnotic performance of pure desperation keeps you watching.
The film starts to become convoluted, however, as Misty’s brother throws a wretch in her career plans. Played by Oscar winner Daniel Kaluuya, Jay (Jordan) is Misty’s bipolar brother who has recently been released from a psychiatric hospital and is working to rebuild his life. While he swears that he is taking his medication and plans on getting his life together, constant racial profiling and systemic hurdles trigger moments of distress where Misty becomes the only one able to care for him.
While Jay’s addition overloads a dense film with Misty’s declining career and substance abuse, his character adds emotional beats that anchor the narrative. Jay’s constant emotional turmoil in the face of oppression elevates what would be a melodramatic plot into an exploration of sibling loyalty. Even as Jay faces moments of distress and struggles to adapt to his new life, Misty remains his protector, gaining the sympathy of the audience despite her frustrating decisions. Fortunately for Misty, she has her own guardian angel in the form of Rock’s Jordan Green, who has no relation to her brother but is coincidentally also named Jordan Green.
Rosalind Eleazar (Left) as Misty Green with Chris Rock (Right) as Jordan Green (Photo courtesy A24)
Jordan’s relationship with Misty is another central dynamic to the narrative as he and Misty share a complicated history. Before Misty’s career began to unravel, Jordan hired her to work in his “Cinderella” film. That was until Misty decided to assault the wardrobe department, embarrassing Jordan and tarnishing her reputation. Yet an invisible string continues to pull them together as Jordan is in town to cast a new lead for his “Dreamgirls” remake. While Misty is undeniably perfect for the role, Jordan struggles to trust her, forcing the reemergence of their deep-seated friendship.
Throughout the film, Misty is visibly pulled towards two different directions. On one side is Zach’s destructive party habits where Misty will continue to be trapped in a cycle of substance abuse that derails her career. The other is Jordan who inspires Misty to reignite her career and make something of herself. After an incident where Misty decides to drive with Jordan under the influence, Misty finally has a breakthrough. She auditions sober for the role in “Dreamgirls” which she is offered and rekindles her friendship with Jordan. Eleazar’s performance truly shines once Jordan enters the picture as audiences can see the light enter Misty’s eyes. The laughter that was missing from Misty’s face resurfaces as she begins to take her career seriously again. Once more, audiences are enamoured with Eleazar’s unsteadiness as she leaves them with deep frustration one moment and pure pride the next.
This sense of pride audiences feel towards Misty is only amplified by the contrast of people she surrounds herself with. While Misty struggles with her brother’s mental illness and Zach’s partying habits, she also grapples with her best friend Naomi (Kendrick). Naomi is a shallow enabler who is planning on marrying a man simply to gain access to her trust fund, completely disregarding Misty’s unraveling if it doesn’t get a ring on her finger. Watching Misty rebuild her life and detach herself from her enablers only grows audiences’ admiration for Misty and her journey.
However, Misty can only detach from her life for so long before reality catches up to her. The fragility of her rebuilt life shatters as Jay is arrested after an altercation with a cop, leading Misty to need $600,000 to bail out Jay and secure him a spot in a psychiatric facility. This situation regresses Misty’s journey as she once again abandons Jordan and “Dreamgirls” to party with Zach in Dubai to earn quick cash. Did I mention that her seven days are now over? The ticking clock is no longer hanging over her head but rather a deafening alarm forcing her to choose between a career she has fought to reclaim and the brother she would rather die than lose.
Chris Rock (left) as Jordan Green with Rosalind Eleazar (right) as Misty Green (Photo courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter/A24)
However, as great as the performances and dynamics in the film have been, the ending of “Misty Green” feels like a missed opportunity. Rather than hanging in the hopelessness and desperation of Misty and her situation, the film decides to do an abrupt time skip and takes the easy way out.
Two years later, we learn Misty is working again as her and Jordan are on good terms, and Jay is getting the help he needs after suing the state for law enforcement’s systematic racism. The film decides to wrap a nice bow over the story just minutes after Misty’s life falls apart. Instead, audiences should have never gotten this comfortable closure. They should have lingered in the immediate ashes of Misty’s failed career to strengthen the frustration yet sympathy they feel for Misty’s situation. Throughout her spiral, Eleazar plays Misty’s demise incredibly well. You can see the raw desperation and disgust with her own choices all over her face. But it all falls flat if audiences can’t live in desperation with her.
“Misty Green” has divided audiences with its convoluted plots that threaten to take attention away from Misty herself. However, the chaos of the narrative is what truly allows Misty to shine. Misty is not meant to be a perfect, idealized representation of a Hollywood star or even a representation of a perfect sibling. Rather, she is a deeply flawed human who constantly makes the wrong choices even when she hopes to help others, destroying her own life in the process. Eleazar’s performance of both desperation and joy show the inconsistencies of Misty’s character. But for the film to truly work, that overwhelming chaos needs to be embraced rather than being tied up neatly in an epilogue that betrays the messy, defining spirit of “Misty Green.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Arsema Mulushewa at arsema.mulushewa@colorado.edu.
