A not very well known film, which I find sad; it has some pretty good performances. Released in 2014, Beyond the Lights shows that even when it feels like the weight of the world is on your shoulder, a little bit of love can go a very long way. Spoilers ahead as always.
Noni Jean (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is the newest and hottest pop star in the music business, having been pushed into super-stardom by her ambitious mother Macy (Minnie Driver). Despite her success before she has even dropped an album, Noni is feeling the pressure to succeed and it is consuming her. One night she heads to a balcony ready to end her life, until she is saved by police officer, who has his own ambitions, Kaz Nicoli (Nate Parker). The two are immediately drawn to each other and begin a relationship. However the two young lovers may be torn apart because of their families (specifically her mother and his father and police captain David Nocli (Danny Glover)), ambitions and the public. About as far as I should go without giving away the rest of the movie, but keep an eye out for Machine Gun Kelly as well.
Now this is not the best romantic drama movie I’ve seen, but it is an interesting story. Imagine having everything in the world like Noni has, but it is too much for her, and then her guardian angel in Kaz arrives (and looking very fine in uniform if I may say so.) Gugu Mbatha-Raw is a true shining star and I have loved her in every movie I’ve seen her in; she has something in her performance that I just enjoy. Nate Parker is amazing as Kaz; he and Raw have such great chemistry together. Driver and Glover are great as the overprotective parents as are the rest of the characters in the movie. The songs are pretty good, writing is decent (the performances make up for it) and the movie itself while not must see is a good watch. I think this was on Netflix streaming a while ago, not as of this date I think but that might just be in my area, but I know this airs on TV every now and then. I would definitely DVR when it is on, but in my opinion, there are a few other romantic drama films worth watching more than this.
Films or Television Worth Watching 