Film review #2

Louisiana is a very unique place. The people, the food, the music they all have one thing in common. They express deep love towards anyone who express love towards them. The documentary “My Louisiana Love” was made in 2012 and directed by Sharon Linezo Hong. This documentary follows Monique verdin as she returns to Louisiana only to see an environmental crises; Katrina. This movie follows her life all the way from her native grandparents to her. Throughout the movie she constantly shows how much she love Louisiana, and how she is hurting from the disastrous things impacting Louisiana citizens. 

In the film they explain her heritage and where she came from. It explains how she is a descendant of the Houma Indians, Native Americans. Her grandmother and her family had their land stolen from them. Big oil corporations came and made them sign a contract, even though they were illiterate, that payed them between 10-25 dollars and forced them off their land. It then goes through her live as she moves to Florida only to eventually return to Louisiana. Once she returns she finds herself reconnecting with her family and their traditions. However, all this comes to an end as the man-made environmental disaster, Hurricane Katrina, ends this sweet reunion. Eventually losing everything close to her including her father and lover she turns to activism. As she advocate for her home, loved ones, and her culture she stands as one of the courageous indigenous women who are involved in the movement.

The director of this documentary does a great job. I feel that her goal was to tell and inspiring and powerful story, and she did exactly that. She shows how much pain this women has been experiencing and how she is still determined to fight. She shows the true side of this whole business. Many people haven’t had to personally deal with this sort of thing. They haven’t had their land been taken many years back, nor have they had all their loved ones taken and culture ruined by an event that can be see as a direct correlation to climate change. This movie does a great job showing them how these sorts of things really are happening, and for those who have experienced this sort of thing it shows that they are not alone. It shows that we aren’t in the pre-apocalypse; it has already started and we need to start fighting now or it will be too late.

This movie not only inspired me but it made me feel such a cluster of emotions. It made me angry while also making me happy and sad. It had scenes where she illustrates how the New Orleans community and her father got along; which filled me with joy. However it had see where she is trying to get justice after Katrina, and the women on the phone is shutting everything she says down which filled me with rage. On the other hand, they’re scenes like when she was literally losing everything she cared about that made me so sad. However, I was inspired too; I was inspired by this women who lost everything but still persisted to fight. It made me feel that even I could fight despite what’s going on in my life.