Rating of
3/4
Josephine - Review
Matthew Brady - wrote on 11/08/26
How do you explain sexual violence and the awful people in the world to a child? How do you explain injustice, or the fact that bad people can get away with things—even in a court of law? The hardest part for parents is finding the right way to talk about these subjects when their child may not fully understand them yet.
Set in San Francisco, an 8-year-old Josephine (Mason Reeves) witnesses a woman being raped in a park. The incident affects her deeply; although she does not fully understand why, she knows what she saw is wrong, and her behavior changes drastically as she acts out to reclaim her sense of safety amid fear and paranoia. Her parents, Claire (Gemma Chan) and Damien (Channing Tatum), are affected by their child witnessing such a crime and by her change in behavior, and they struggle to figure out how to help her. The woman assaulted in the sexual attack leaves San Francisco due to trauma, leaving Josephine as the only witness to the crime. The dilemma is for her to testify in court as a witness in order to get the rapist put in jail, which sadly means that when testifying in court, she has to be in the same room with the creep. But if she doesn't want to testify, then unfortunately, the charges against the creep will be dropped, and he will be on the streets again. All of this is put on the shoulders of a little girl.
Josephine is a difficult film to watch. After my screening, as I was leaving the cinema, I saw a handful of people crying, deeply affected by the film. It's the kind of film that tackles horrible, challenging subject matter, but it's important to raise awareness and start a discussion.
One aspect I really liked is that much of the movie is told from Josephine's point of view, allowing us to see and understand her triggers in ways many adults don't. This includes her reacting violently in self-defense after a boy at school hits her, prompted by the incident in which the woman in the park was attacked. When she walks through the streets and sees adult men pass by, she wonders whether she’ll see that man again. She even takes a second look at some of them because they bear a striking resemblance to the rapist—a resemblance reinforced by male extras wearing similar clothing and some with similar facial hair. She even carries a sharp-tipped pencil, just in case.
But sexual violence affects not only the victim, but also the people around them. We see its effects on the parents, too. Everyone who was there that day will be changed forever.
The performances across the board are stellar. For a child actor, Mason Reeves did a great job, given the heavy subject matter and what her character goes through. Gemma Chan and Channing Tatum were both fantastic. Chan's character has a motherly softness and is emotionally open. Tatum's character deals with his emotions differently, mostly through physical activities like sports, but also through aggression.
I wasn't a fan of the metaphorical visual storytelling that has Josephine seeing the rapist everywhere—and I do mean everywhere. At times, he appears in her house, just chilling out or hanging around in her bedroom; when they move, he follows them. Obviously, he isn’t literally there; it's all in Josephine's head. But I didn't think it was necessary. It would have been enough to show her seeing him in other people and in their behavior.
Other than that, it's a good movie. I don't see myself watching it again. Writing that down makes it sound bad, but it's a compliment to the film because it affected me.
