CULTURE
By Sister Rose Pacatte, FSP
Sister Rose Pacatte, FSP
FAVORITE MUSICALS Les Misérables (2012) Fiddler on the Roof (1971) A Chorus Line (1985) Hamilton (2020) The Sound of Music (1965)
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snavi (Anthony Ramos), a bodega owner in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, tells a group of children about Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz), who helped raise him, Kevin (Jimmy Smits), and Benny (Corey Hawkins). He also introduces his cousin, Sonny (Gregory Diaz IV), and the ladies who run the beauty salon. Finally, we meet Vanessa (Melissa Barrera), his girlfriend, who wants to become a fashion designer. Then Nina (Leslie Grace), Kevin’s daughter, comes home from Stanford and tells her father they cannot afford her tuition. Tension and joy are evident in the Heights over a hot summer. The neighborhood is made up of people who came to New York from the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, and their US-born children. People get excited when they learn that someone bought a winning lottery ticket from Usnavi’s bodega, and they each hope they win. But things are changing in the Heights. The beauty salon is moving to the Grand Concourse in the Bronx because rents in Manhattan are rising. Vanessa’s rental application for a small apartment in the garment district is denied because her credit is not good enough. Abuela sings “Paciencia y Fe” (“Patience and Faith”), a song about virtues she learned as a new immigrant long ago. Then the lights go out due to a power outage. As Abuela lights candles in the darkness, the
42 • August 2021 | StAnthonyMessenger.org
Jimmy Smits (top) stars in the new musical In the Heights, about the proud residents of a Manhattan neighborhood.
people sing a song of being powerless, with its double meaning of no electricity and their struggles as citizens in the community. In the Heights is a Broadway musical adapted by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes. Making its debut in cinemas and on HBO Max, this film is a slice of life unfamiliar to many, characterized by joyful, energetic dancing and rap songs, Miranda’s specialty. Though the cast is almost entirely made up of Latino characters, some have criticized the film for not including Black Latino actors, something that Miranda and director Jon M. Chu have vowed to remedy in future projects. The themes of family, community, immigrant struggles, and racism are handled in ways that create awareness and uplift at the same time. A-3, PG-13 • Mature themes.
SUMMER OF SOUL (. . . OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED): COURTESY OF SEARCHLIGHT
Sister Rose’s
IN THE HEIGHTS
LEFT: COURTESY SISTER ROSE PACATTE, FSP/MIKE BLAKE/REUTERS; IN THE HEIGHTS: COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURES (2)
Sister Rose is a Daughter of St. Paul and the founding director of the Pauline Center for Media Studies. She has been the awardwinning film columnist for St. Anthony Messenger since 2003 and is the author of several books on Scripture and film, as well as media literacy education.
