Welcome to the first truly baffling film of 2022. In his latest feature as director, Denzel Washington effectively attempts to resurrect the Hollywood ghost of Nicholas Sparks adaptations in this screen incarnation of a true story. Throughout several tours of Iraq First Sargent Charles Monroe King (Michal B Jordan kept a journal of life and motivational advice for his young son ( see the title.) The narrative cuts back and forth showcasing the romance between King and his young wife Dana (Chanté Adams.) In a contemporary timeline, she is attempting to raise Jordan as a single mother following King being killed in action years earlier(not a spoiler.) Dana and Jordan still read their husband and father’s journal all these years later. The entire thing reeks of decidedly schmaltzy Christian inflected melodrama in the worst way possible. Denzel Washington has a much leaner behind the camera CV when compared to his work as an actor. The question of what attracted him to a project of this calibre remains unanswered. Unless he woke up one day and decided he wanted to target the sort of inherently treacly wine mom that would not know what an effective on-screen romance is if it hit them square in the face. The said audience may well be satisfied purely based on seeing Michael B Jordan’s ass cheeks fill the frame at one point. The production has a major whiff of being an exclusive industry insider product. The real-life Dana Canedy turned the journal and her story into a memoir. She would go on to be a major figure in the publishing industry. On some level, she may want to see her story up on the big screen. The kind of inspiration porn that certain audiences will eat off the Hollywood conveyor belt with a spoon. That said vanity projects are usually considerably more interesting to you talk about than this. Everything about this project screams low effort on pretty much every level. This sort of thing will be farted out theatrically before being left on the modern roulette wheel of streaming culture.
2/10
A Journal for Jordan. Quick Review.
A Little Bit Of Everything 