Coming-of-age dramas often revolve around the adolescent phase, where characters grow and become more mature, adult versions of themselves. However, adults can go through a similar journey to grow out of their shells. In this context, Richard Linklater’s “Boyhood” is about a young kid’s growth as much as it is about his parents’. Similarly, Meredith Hama-Brown’s “Seagrass” is about its child characters as much as it is about the adults. This bittersweet film follows a family of four on their own journeys of growth and acceptance. It is a deeply moving and melancholic film that embraces a tender, poetic approach to storytelling.
Spoilers Ahead
Seagrass (2023) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
What is ‘Seagrass’ about?
Written and directed by Meredith Hama-Brown, “Seagrass” is about an interracial family learning to coexist in mid-90s Canada. In her full-length feature debut, Hama-Brown follows Judith, a Japanese-Canadian woman, on a family retreat with her husband, Steve, and their two daughters. While mourning her mother’s death, she tries to work on her distressed relationship with Steve and their young children.
What happens in ‘Seagrass’?
“Seagrass” largely happens at a family retreat seminar. Judith (Ally Maki), a Japanese-Canadian woman, attends it with her husband, Steve (Luke Roberts), and their two daughters. About five months ago, Judith’s mother died. Since then, she had emotional struggles in her relationship with Steve. At the retreat, they meet another interracial couple, Carol (Sarah Gadon) and Pat (Chris Pang). Unlike Steve, Pat is more open and transparent about his emotions. He seems to have a healthier relationship with Carol. Besides, unlike Judith & Steve, they do not have a child. Carol notes that she doesn’t want kids, considering the emotional struggles of couples with children.
At the couple-oriented workshops, they have to partake in different exercises to understand the issues in their relationship and to work on them. Judith speaks about her mother’s loss. But, Steve does not become as vulnerable as others. Maybe it reflects his upbringing, where he didn’t get to be with emotionally available men. The film doesn’t disclose a reason. Later on, Carol & Judith speak about their beliefs about relationships. Carol thinks that putting in the work to make a relationship work. Judith shares that thought with Steve. He gets happy seeing Judith’s optimism about their marriage. While trying to work out things between them, the couple takes care of their daughters – Stephanie (Nyha Huang Breitkreuz) & Emmy (Remy Marthaller)
Stephanie & Emmy
Emmy and Stephanie have their own share of emotional battles. They both try to fit in an environment while fighting their sense of alienation. As the older sibling, Stephanie feels ignored by her parents. She befriends a white girl from this retreat, who unknowingly passes some racist remarks about her. Still, to feel less alone, Stephanie goes along with Sam’s (Hannah Bos) wishes. Because of it, she ends up scaring and humiliating Emmy. Later on, Stephanie gets humiliated when Sam shares something that should have remained a secret. While she goes through this awkward transition, Emmy does too.
Emmy clings to Stephanie as her source of comfort and support. But Stephanie finds herself in a tough spot as a teenager. She wants to take care of Emmy but doesn’t want her to feel embarrassed in front of her peers. Judith & Steve notice these changes in their daughters. While Judith tries to discipline them, Steve appears to go easy on them. By accident, the kids break their closet. She tries to make them understand the cost of reckless behavior. It seems like she wants them to care for and value what they have. However, he says that it won’t cost much because he doesn’t want the kids to feel too bad about it. It likely reflects their past and their upbringing.
Interracial Couples
As an interracial couple, Steve and Judith have relationship struggles. We see them reflect in their casual interactions. One day, Steve says something racist to Judith but doesn’t accept the blame. While trying to process her grief, Judith also has to make Steve explain his occasional bigotry. Unlike with him, she can connect with Pat better as a child of immigrant parents. She doesn’t feel shame in accepting and sharing some things with him than with Steve. While she feels more comfortable speaking with Pat, she seems somewhat awkward with Steve.
Steve makes efforts to bridge the emotional gap between him & Judith. But it isn’t a steady path. At times, he falls behind on the progress he made by giving in to his fragile ego. Perhaps he feels insecure about how well Judith bonds with Pat rather than with him, or he feels ignored. So, he occasionally tries to prove he’s right to affirm his sense of self-worth. This habit sours their relationship further. One day, they both reach their boiling points in a bar. She starts manically laughing & dancing whereas he takes out his anger on Pat. His behavior reflects his jealousy & feeling of inadequacy.
Seagrass (2023) Movie Ending Explained:
After her heated argument in the bar, Judith keeps dancing to music & refuses to return home. Steve finds it hard to control her. While he sits in his car, a stranger brings Judith outside. She tells this man to drive her home and refuses to go with Steve. While Judith & Steve were away, Stephanie was responsible for taking care of Emmy. She bailed on it to hang out with her friend. But soon after, she started worrying about Emmy. So, she decided to return home. While both daughters feel lost & alone, their parents return home, arguing with each other.
In her drunken state, Judith kisses the man who drives her home. So, Steve gets mad at this man and beats him. The next morning, Judith doesn’t join Steve for their workshop. He feels hurt that she didn’t apologize for the night before. During the workshop, he gets more emotional than ever before. Later at home, he stays fixated on TV news that talks about riots in a city. While that happens, Emmy & Stephanie play together indoors. All that noise gets on Judith’s nerves, who is cooking at the time. Suddenly, she loses her calm and gets angry at the kids. So, Emmy & Stephanie immediately get out of the house while she & Steve start arguing.
Do Judith & Steve find their daughters?
After getting out of their house, Stephanie and Emmy part ways. Emmy walks away toward the shore. She steps inside a seaside cave and stays there while Stephanie lies on the roof. After some time, Judith & Steve start looking for their daughters. They walk around, arguing about their differences. Judith expects Steve to take care of the kids and not only sit back and watch TV. She defends her father for spending his time in front of the TV because of his long & tiring shifts at work. Steve ignorantly says that her father should not have had many kids in their poor financial situation. Neither Steve nor Judith thinks before they speak.
Meanwhile, Stephanie returns to her senses and heads out, looking for her younger sister. Judith & Steve find Stephanie on their way. Stephanie goes running in a particular direction. She seems certain where Emmy is. To find her, Stephanie jumps into the ocean and swims inside a cave. After she finds Emmy, Judith & Steve reach there. They bring both their kids out of the cave. Together, they return to their temporary residence and have a meal together without sharing a single word. Midway, Stephanie, and Emmy say they should return home the next day.
What happens to Judith & Steve’s relationship in the end?
After a few chaotic arguments, Judith and Steve have to face the reality of their relationship. Judith looks out of the window at their neighboring couple, who seem in love with each other. While Steve comes to speak with her, Judith says she doesn’t know if she ever loved him. She somehow convinced herself that she needed to. Right after, Steve hugs her. The film ends in this tender moment of bittersweet acceptance.
In the end, Judith gets honest about her feelings. Since the film ends on this ambiguous note, there is no clear answer about the fate of their relationship. They may live together in their marriage of convenience for the sake of their children, or they might end their relationship. But after all the chaos, they find this silent moment of acceptance and embrace.
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