Dissecting Sia's movie Music, one timestamp at a time

Feb 26, 2021

This past week, I obtained a copy of Sia's movie Music, taking her up on her tweeted request to watch the film before judging it. Released clips aside, I went into it with expectations based on its description and promotion. Below are real-time notes with time-stamps as proof of screening.

This dissection cannot and does not cover everything, with selections focused on specific and problematic depictions of autism, autism treatments, parents and caregivers, ableist tropes and other issues I felt could not be ignored. I watched this with a friend whose insights are included with my own.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

00:00:51 - Music starts its first shot of Music (played by Maddie Ziegler) in her underwear, getting dressed. It's an...odd way to start the film considering the descriptions and trailers that have been released.
Not a sexualized shot, but...uncomfortable. Why is this the opening shot? What purpose does it serve?
Music puts on her pants and then starts hitting her thigh with a closed fist; why? Does she not like the clothing? No answer.

00:01:20 - First music video (song performance) and the imitation of autistic stims and behaviors begins, with twitching, blinking, and hand motions/stilted fingers; wide eyes and open mouth with upper teeth jutted out. Overwhelming colors and strobe light effects (not as intense as your local haunted house, but very much there). Not sure what this performance at this time is supposed to represent, but the song at least gives context clues; something about how her mind isn't in control of her body.


00:03:26 - aaand suddenly Music is back in reality, but also back in bed!...wait, wasn't she just getting dressed and standing up? Maybe we're doing the whole ‘Chicago’ route with musical numbers representing what the character is thinking?
Humming and the same upper teeth jutted out. Not Ziegler's fault, but you can tell it's not natural.


00:05:30 - After a non-contextual scene with Music and what appears to be her....mom...?, Music has breakfast, has her hair braided and then leaves on her own accord. Not great, but so far not terrible.


00:05:34 - Toe walking! Starting to think that I should've brought my Autism Bingo card from Giraffe Party, because I have a feeling there's going to be an awful lot of autism tropes in this film, with a focus on infantilization.
Man running newspaper stand gives Music pictures of dogs (assorted). Normally this would be kind of sweet, but likely this is a not-so-subtle hint at one of Music's ‘special interests’.

Who's this guy in the green and white striped polo paying for the watermelon slice that the vendor hands to Music? I applaud the coordination here but this doesn't feel right.

...wait, is the entire neighborhood in on watching her? So she wasn't just leaving of her own accord on her own? NEED CONTEXT.


00:06:00 - Music visits the library, and if the newspaper stand guy's torn-out dog pictures weren't enough of a clue, Music explores a book about dogs on a shelf.


So far, all we know about Music is:
- Girl
- Interested in Dogs (What kind? Favorite? No clue)
- Lives with parent?
- Has headphones and wears them, but no idea if she's listening to anything


00:07:07 - Entire veneer of ‘autistic girl’ is dropped as Music seems to stare off into the sun. No jutting teeth, mouth closed, eyes no longer wide, a very calm and almost meditative expression.
Why is th-OPE NEXT SCENE!
Back to the ...mom...?, where we find out that her conversation topics come from popsicle sticks. Okay, but is this implying that Music cannot read? We just came from the library, but was she just looking at pictures?
Maybe the next scene or two will enlighten us.


00:07:47 - Music is no longer staring at the sun, but the ...mom...? is having trouble! Something is wrong!
Back and forth between Music and her mom, with Music performing all the autism tropes as she walks down the street. The same neighbors are there but at least they're not giving her baby-talk; talking AT her, yes - but no baby-talk.

MOM IS HAVING A STROKE....I THINK!

00:09:06 - The ‘mother’ has fallen down and looks at the very least unconscious. Music doesn't seem to notice this at first, taking her seat at the kitchen table as though nothing was out of the ordinary. Yet another autism trope that seems to indicate autistics don't ‘read the room’, which is at best incorrect.
A few seconds later as the building landlord comes in, Music indicates she IS aware something is wrong with her ‘mom’. Music seems to be at the beginnings of a meltdown and starts hitting herself.


00:09:43 - “Don't worry Music, she's just sleeping!” More infantilization.


00:10:10 - ‘Mom’ is dead, being hauled out in a bodybag on a gurney. Music seems upset, which is expected.


What's NOT expected is this neighbor saluting her body as it passes by his door. Why is he saluting? Is he former military? Was she? Can we get some context please?!?

No one is talking to her, just at her - and now no one is talking to her at all. A police officer and the landlord talk about her in front of her like she's not in the hallway.

Okay so now what hap-

00:10:40 - Scene change! It's Zu (Kate Hudson) in smiley-face knee socks snoozing in a folding chair! Might be AA or rehab, but we again don't quite know. Takes a phone call - her grandma died. I assume that's Music's motherly figure that just died, so that's her grandmother as well...?


00:13:39 - Zu's character arc begins as she enters Music's apartment, having a coarse conversation with George the landlord. Clearly the movie is trying to make us hate Zu so that we can watch as she is...transformed...by Music.


00:14:19 - “I'm goin' home. Rough day.” Probably the most enjoyable line in the movie so far.


00:14:52 - Hard to criticize because I assume this is supposed to demonstrate how NOT to treat an autistic, but still cringey watching Zu take off Music's headphones without permission and try and force eye contact.


OOOHHHH ZU IS MUSIC'S OLDER SISTER!


00:15:15 - Zu calls L.A. Dept of Mental Health and asks “Do you do pickup?”, starting an exchange which is slightly funny, especially due to the unfortunate fact that it's highly likely social services in multiple states has had this same conversation. The realism splits away when the person on the other end of the line hangs up on Zu, which is very much against Dept of Mental Health rules in any state.


00:15:28 - Her name is Kazu. Her NAME. IS KAZU.

MUSIC and KAZU.

Is this some sort of nod to Frank Zappa's children? Is Frank the father?

(sighs)

Well at least we see the will - excuse me, The Big Book Of Music, with glitter and stickers. The letter written to Zu isn't much better, apparently with no information about Music's schedule, accommodations and needs. No case worker, no service coordinator - Music is left in the care of her sister and...that's it?

00:17:10 - That guy with the green and white striped polo is shining a flashlight into Music's window from across the street as she's settling down to sleep. Another music video starts; a sad song but...happy face??

Is he her friend? Who IS this guy? Why is he doing this? Music is faced away from the window, he can't see her reactions, so why does he shine a flashlight into her window?

Strobe effect as he turns it on and off. Again, no context for this.

What's with the dog? Does the dog represent the special interest or someth-


00:19:10 - Scene change, keep up audience, it's morning! Second underwear shot, but Zu this time.

Music comes in to a sleeping Zu, and says quietly, “make you eggs” twice, then YELLS it - more echolalia but not explained to the audience. Was the breakfast routine not mentioned in the Big Book Of Music?

Zu cooks some eggs, then Music says “braid your hair”. Zu replies, “I don't have hair” - which doesn't follow the context clue of “make you eggs”, so either Zu isn't listening, or is just being a jerk.


00:20:15 - Music goes from saying “braid your hair” to full-on autism imitation meltdown in literal seconds, a clear attempt by the movie to scare the audience into thinking Music is violent and unstable. Zu was responding, talking to Music, but that doesn't seem to prevent it (which is not in line with actual autistic meltdowns).
Now, if the eggs were done incorrectly and other factors weren't taken into account, a meltdown would make sense - but we don't get that context. Instead we get Music hitting herself, throwing off her headphones (which goes against assumptions made about Music and...well, music being a calming stim for her) and hitting Zu.
Third underwear shot, Zu again! Why, pray tell, do we get a butt shot of Zu in her underwear in this scene? What purpose does it serve? We already know she's only wearing it. No need for this shot.


00:20:43 - Saluting neighbor (Leslie Odom Jr.) makes another appearance after knocking on the door of the apartment, and Zu just letting him barge in.


Uh, hi, who the hell are you, and why did Zu just let you in?

We're not told, but he immediately walks in and grabs Music, picks her up and then pins her to the ground.


Odom: “I'm going to compress you and make you feel safe”
Zu: “You're hurting her!”
Odom: “No I am not, I am crushing her with my love”
Zu: “...oh okay”

Wasn't this one of two scenes of restraint that were supposed to be REMOVED from this movie, Sia? Wasn't there an outcry about how WRONG and UNETHICAL and HARMFUL it is to portray this kind of restraint as an autism treatment to audiences?

“Crushing her with my love” is how autistic kids get hurt or even killed, not comforted or de-escalated. This is NOT - I repeat, NOT - help an autistic child become more calm; on the contrary, restraint ESCALATES the meltdown.

00:21:30 - Ah, Leslie Odom's character is named Ebo. Finally we get a name after traumatizing Music with restraint, and all she wanted was her hair braided, not to be aggressively pinned down.


And now we know grandma's name - Millie.

Ebo's not a case worker, not a service coordinator - just a neighbor that tackles her and pins her down. At least the film isn't depicting a trained professional doing this.


00:23:13 - Apparently we've gone back in time, as meltdowns are called ‘episodes’ by this film. I wonder what other widely-used terms in the autism and autistic communities have been swapped out for what Sia has written in?


Great research, Sia. Even Autism $peaks uses the term meltdown.

Also another underwear shot of Zu - number four.

00:23:55 - Zu: “Her whole life's a schedule” Uh, everyone's life is a schedule; this isn't a new concept - most people schedule their lives, either through a to-do list or a calendar.


At least Ebo seems to expect Music to have autonomy, despite admitting that, yes, the entire neighborhood coordinates around Music every day.

Ebo then reveals he had a younger brother who he also restrained the same way when he was having a meltdo- excuse me, ‘episode’.

00:24:31 - BEST UNINTENTIONAL JOKE OF THE FILM:


Ebo: “He liked to be held to feel safe”

Zu: “Where is he now”


Ebo: “...He is dead now”

DID HE SUFFOCATE WHILE BEING PINNED DOWN?

Ebo: “Special needs are not well-understood by my country. In fact, in my village, it was considered a curse”

I feel like I need to apologize to Ghana for this borderline xenophobic line. I don't know the level of care for disabled persons in Ghana, but I'm sure this is a gross simplification at least.

This writing is seriously godawful.

00:25:26 - Bed-wetting reference, yet another autism trope. Zu confesses to wetting the bed four months prior in comparison to Music not wetting the bed in over two years.


People do this to autistics all the time, so while it's not surprising to see in the film, it's disappointing. “Oh, you have [issue]? I have that too! We're all a little autistic!"


00:25:56 - SERIOUSLY WHO IS THIS GUY IN THE GREEN AND WHITE STRIPED POLO FOLLOWING MUSIC AROUND?!?


00:27:00 - NOW HE'S CHANGED SHIRTS?!?


00:27:15 - This is the first time I've heard the term ‘people pound’. Is that actually a term people use?


At least Odom's reaction is the same one I had in response.


00:27:58 - The green/white striped polo guy finally gets some focus; apparently he works with his family at the dry cleaners. Yes, his parents are Asian, and yes, we've once again flirted with borderline racism. The dad wonders aloud why they adopted him.


Found out his name's Felix, but that's only after turning on the subtitles. When would the movie have told me otherwise? It's a mystery.


00:30:06 - We're back at the apartment and it's nighttime. Zu digs through a closet and finds some childhood stuff (toys, clothing, etc), and in the excitement runs back in and bothers Music - who's watching a show.
Zu immediately turns it off in a demand for Music's attention, with little regard to Music's time, preferences or even consent. I know it's just a TV show, but try doing this with your friends or someone you love and see how they take it.


00:30:39 - Music apparently has seizures!
Zu, recalling her dead dog Raindrop, mentioned it had seizures ("Just like you, Music").
Adding to the list, along with echolalia and other symptoms. So the flashlight and the whole ‘crushing with love’ thing are even MORE dangerous than initially perceived.


00:31:02 - More backstory. Apparently their (Zu and Music's) mom was a drug addict and carelessly left the door open, and the dog Raindrop got hit by a car.
Music, sticking to her schedule, leaves to go to bed, but Zu fails to recognize the time and again respect Music. The film makes Music look disinterested, not listening, not caring instead of framing Zu as the problem here.

00:31:30 - Zu's at a wig shop...? OH my mistake, it's a drug dealer's place. A creepy drug dealer that refuses to acknowledge boundaries, but with good intentions and half-assed flamboyance. This is where we also find out what Zu does for money - she deals prescription drugs.
Yet another underwear shot. We're at 5.


00:34:07 - LOOK EVERYONE, A SIA FILM IN A SIA MOVIE - SIA-CEPTION!


00:36:02 - Ebo is shown on the phone desperately trying to procure some sort of medication; apparently he has some sort of medical condition, but we don't get to know or find out. Is he...diabetic? Does he have...MS? Surely whatever he has won't be a stereotype of his skin color!

Next day Music and Ebo are seen, with Music learning to utilize an AAC tablet. She hits “I am sad”, which prompts Ebo to respond with dismissal and instructing her to hit “I am happy”. This isn't how you teach such usage.


00:36:15 [roughly] - Finally get to a scene that's used in the trailer - the kiddie pool scene.
Ebo to Zu, leaning out the window: “What are you doing, sister?”

...seriously, this is some dogshit writing.

Zu to Ebo: “I'm CELEBRATING!”


What are we celebrating? Why? No idea, and the film wastes none of its time explaining the details.

But at least Music finally gets the chance to communicate her wants/desires/feelings. Progress, right...?


00:37:07 - In a rare moment of autonomy and respected decision-making, Music's given a choice, and Ebo not only addresses her directly to ensure consent - he also defends and reinforces her decision against Zu's unceasing persuasions and requests.


It took over 30 minutes, but there it is: a tiny, tiny bright spot in this film.


00:40:39 - FELIX IS IN THE BOXING GYM!


Another disability trope: pretending to put the disabled person ‘in charge’ or, in Music's case, “sit here and let the fighters know what they're doing wrong”.


00:41:34 - Poster of Ebo's boxing days hangs on the wall. We finally learn what his last name is.


Odom. Ebo's last name is Odom. You know, like the actor...Leslie Odom Jr.


If this is the only main character in the film that shares the same name with the actor, it's going to be very hard to not see this as vaguely racist. Was it that hard to not give him a different last name?

00:42:01 - The film continues to bait & switch on acceptance/understanding and ableism, where it will get SO FUCKING CLOSE to understanding, but each time takes a hard turn just before getting there.


Ebo states Music may want to change, but “can't change”, as in being autistic. An acknowledgment of the fact that Music is and will always be autistic, but doesn't differentiate disability from personal growth.

Ebo: “Each change comes with a barrage of new stimuli." YES! Correct! This is true!

“The headphones. It's called audio filtering” *facepalm* No it isn't, no one - not autistics, not academics, not even Autism $peak$ calls it that. Seriously, not part of the terms they use.

“Her hearing is so sensitive she can hear whispering up to two rooms away." Ooookay, this may be true but is devoid of context that would explain that, as an autistic with such hearing, you pick up EVERYTHING - even stuff others cannot hear.
For many of us, we can't just pick and choose what comes through.

“She can understand everything you are saying to her.” Again, yes! Thank you! Presumption of competence!

“Maybe not right then. How it works is she hears it, she files it away, and then sometimes it is returned to her main system three weeks later.”

WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!? No. Incorrect. That's not how that works AT ALL.
Where the hell are these definitions and claims coming from? I'm not a fan of Autism $peak$ but even THEY don't spew this level of bullshit.

“You know how she looks at you, and then looks away quickly?” Oh no, where is this going? Please be about eye contact, PLEASE be about eye contact...

“She has taken a snapshot.” OH COME ON SERIOUSLY

“If she didn't look away, it would totally overwhelm her.” Right conclusion, absolutely wrong reasoning.

3 years of research and this is what Sia gives us.


00:44:00 - Hey, remember that restraint scene in the park so many of us were justifiably upset about? Yep, still in the film. You know, despite the fact that Sia said she was removing it.


Music is overwhelmed by a group of noisy kids running past, and starts hitting herself, taking off her headphones and tablet.


Zu: “Come on Ebo do that thing.” That thing, by the way, is what was done at 00:20:43.

Ebo: “I'm not climbing on top of a small screaming white girl in the middle of this park." Oh, so Zu's going to be the one ‘crushing’ Music with her love.

Zu pins Music to the ground, face down. Despite the fact that they're in a park, there's room to move, and letting Music move through being overwhelmed would be a safer alternative.

Ebo:“Tell her she's safe” No, that's not how this works.

Watching this just makes me feel exhaustively sad.

The technique used by Zu isn't safe, it wouldn't make ME feel safe, and the way she's wrenching her arms, it's likely causing damage.

There's a major difference between feeling safe by being confined (squeeze boxes, weighted blankets, etc) and being pinned down.


00:45:30 - After the restraint Music is given a snow cone and apparently everything is just fine.


Now back at the apartment, we get more of the ‘playful’ flirting, with Ebo telling Zu she's closer to her autistic sister in emotional age in contrast to actual age. How old is Music? How old is Zu? If this film mentions either, they've both been forgotten.

Zu then calls Raindrop her spirit animal, because of course she does.


00:47:42 - Apartment gets hit by a blackout. Ebo tells Zu about his failed marriage and how his wife is marrying his brother (not the autistic one, he's dead, remember?). There's apparently more, but despite a blackout, Ebo's holding the rest for later.


Hey, where's Music? Oh, just chillin' out on the couch with her tablet. It's a wonder she was visually even in this scene, like an accessory of Zu.

00:51:04 - Next morning, Zu is at a pawn shop talking about relationships. Arguably the best character in the film, the Pawn Shop guy, makes a brief appearance, and says “If I didn't know any better I would swear that you were coming to me for love advice."


If you have to watch any portion of this film, this is probably the least problematic and most well-acted part. It lasts 14 seconds. You're welcome.


00:52:05 - After a brief scene of Zu and Music laughing over a table (don't ask why, you won't find out), Ebo's at his gym, making children flinch for some reason after giving some odd speech.


00:52:21 - It's Felix again! Ebo talks to him, calls him an artist - Picasso - which, again, makes no sense without CONTEXT.


00:52:56 - Felix leaves the gym and happens upon some sort of dance exercise class. Then he watches dancing at home, so now it's clear that Felix would rather dance than box. I assume that Felix will be one of the many characters that Music will magically transform (using her inspiration) into the dancer he so desperately wants to be.


His dad tells him he's got a big fight tomorrow, but his mom slips him a note that reads: “I love you, keep going”.

FINALLY the plot is beginning to be established. 50 minutes in.


00:54:18 - Music is literally set dressing, as the film tries to really force this romance between Zu and Ebo. What's she creating? The film doesn't show you, and thinks you won't care. She's out of focus and off to the side.


Zu is singing a lullaby written by her grandmother about Music. Now's the time for a music video, but it never comes; unfortunate because this seems obvious.

Ebo keeps calling Zu ‘sister’, and it makes us very uncomfortable.


00:56:20 - Speaking of Ebo, he got an invite to his ex-wife's wedding, where she's marrying Ebo's brother - and he's going to attend! Is he going to stop the wedding? Start a fight? Disown his brother?


Nope, it's to ‘wish him well’.

Zu then decides “We're going to be your dates” - and by ‘we’ she means her and Music. Music apparently has no agency and is not allowed to voice her objections to attending.

00:57:23 - Watching her with envy because we can't do the same, Music gets up and leaves for bed, as usual for her personal routine.


Zu: “I think she's trying to tell us something.” Yeah, that she's going to bed, not trying to help you get laid.

What is Music, the Hunchback from Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame?


00:58:46 - Leslie Odom Jr. finally sings in a very confusing music video with big-ass suspenders and pants, and....a bible coffin? What does the bible have to do with this? I get Ebo is sad but it still feels very obtuse and nebulous.


Zu falls asleep and Ebo leaves the apartment. No one gets laid.


01:00:59 - Zu tries to palm Music off onto the landlord George because she has to go do work or something. Is Music okay with that? We don't know, as Music once again is little more than scenery.


01:01:12 - Zu, taking Music with her to a drug deal: “Can we try not to have one of your freak-outs up there, all right?”


So now instead of calling meltdowns ‘episodes’ like the film did earlier, they're now ‘freak-outs’. Lovely.


01:01:45 - In the most unrealistic drug deal ever conceived, Zu manhandles Music when she gets into various art pieces, and eventually sits her down on a couch.


01:02:16 - No. Noooo. No No NO WAY. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?


Zu: “Is that a Sia wig?”


Is Sia seriously this vain to star in her own fucking film?!?

At least Stan Lee had the thoughtfulness to always be an extra where you had to TRY and find him. Something tells me that's not happening here.


01:02:22 - That something was correct.


Sia: “Drug Dealer, is that you?”

That line alone is bad - almost campy if you squint your ears - but what follows is either the most brilliant idea by the most stereotypical stoner, or the jankiest and overly obvious duct-taped scenario to have Sia star in her own movie.

Sia explains that she's not buying the drugs for a party, no - she's buying them to deliver via her private plane to Haiti. Due to the earthquake, the Haitian children's bones were dislocated; due to a combination of red tape and inability of even the Red Cross to get there, they barely have acetaminophen.

Sia's solution is to fly illegally obtained prescription drugs to Haiti to use on children.

She calls it “Popstars without borders”.

There is not enough room here to unpack how batshit this is - but honestly a more interesting plot than this entire film.


01:03:25 - We turn back to Music, and in yet another autism trope, the candies from the large bowl on the coffee table have been laid out in lines separated by color.


01:03:48 - Another music video; the lyrics seem to be the main statement of what Sia's trying to say with this film. The implied message is that autistics are ‘magical’ and that Sia's love will make us ‘sparkle’ and ‘shine’.


She's trying to be positive but fails to understand WHY this is a problem.


01:06:30 - Back at the drug dealer's place, Zu gets handed a package of Triomune, some anti-HIV drug, to deliver to someone.


Bet it's to Ebo, because of course it is. The mysterious illness is HIV.

Why. WHY. WHY IS THIS FILM GIVING THE ONLY CHARACTER FROM THE CONTINENT OF AFRICA HIV?!?

At this point, how can we NOT call this film both ableist AND racist?

Please, SIa, prove me wrong, don't make Ebo be HIV positive.


01:08:11 - Yep, Ebo has HIV.


Zu seems to deliver the package, but then just...leaves. No one says anything. No explanation, no understanding, no resolution.

At the very least it doesn't seem to be homophobic, so the film has that going for it.


01:09:23 - Zu and Music are back in the park, and they stop for snowcones. As Zu orders the snowcones, we see Music get down on her back and eat gum off of the bottom of a park bench. Despite the fact that the movie has told us Sia has gum in her fanny pack she wears.


Why are we shown this? Why does Sia want people to think autistics pick gum from the bottom of benches?

Zu demands Music spit it out into her hand as though Music were a dog.


01:10:26 - So apparently the bench gum-eating was a setup for Music to get stung by a bee, which as we were told earlier in the film, Music is allergic to bee stings. Zu doesn't seem to remember, but FINALLY SOME CONTINUITY!


Zu decides the best thing to do is to carry her to the hospital instead of calling an ambulance.


01:11:00 - Ebo's holding his child boxing tournament, and Felix is in it. Apparently Felix really doesn't want to fight, and instead of fighting he just...hugs the other kid. They both seem to start crying - do ANY of the kids in this thing want to box?!?


01:12:03 - Apparently Music had an epipen in her fanny pack. Oh, and Zu left her drugs behind at the park, which sends Zu into a panic. Zu tosses stuff around, screams, hits herself - but no one pins her to the floor to calm her down.


01:13:26 - Music's first unprompted, unguided use of her AAC device, telling Zu she's scared. Instead of acknowledging it, Zu responds with “We're all scared, Music”.


01:19:00 - Felix is seen applying for a service dog; his parents are arguing loudly. Suddenly his dad becomes very violent and hits him while choking his mom - and he falls back, hits his head on the floor and dies.


What the hell? Felix didn't get one single word and gets killed off? What's the point in this seemingly unnecessary death?

This is getting dark, and not in a good way.

01:21:10 - Oh, at least Felix gets a music video. And his suit matches the wallpaper. He dances with Music, then he and Music's grandmother (yes, she's also dead) ride in some sort of pedicab.


Then, for some reason, he puts a blanket over Zu as she falls asleep on the couch (after Zu got drunk and hurt herself), despite not being alive. I'm confused and sad but for all the wrong reasons, and I'm just exhausted with this film.


It's clear that this is NOT a film about autism, nor really about an autistic named Music.

01:28:25 - Another music video mixed with regular film shots; small clip of Music possibly having another meltdown, but it's implied that Zu is able to calm her down without pinning her to the ground.


The montage seems to be wrapping up the film, but we don't get much of any resolution (what about the drug dealer who lent the pills to Zu for that ‘popstar without borders’? Speaking of, did they ever get to Haiti with the pain meds for the kids with dislocated limbs? Is Felix's dad arrested for involuntary manslaughter? We'll never know!)


01:30:04 - Yet ANOTHER depicted meltdown of Music, with a LOT of Zu being hit. How many more of these scenes are we going to get?


The montage continues and it feels like we're having to make up for lost time somewhere; scenes fly by with little explanation, and the audience just has to make up its own mind rather than follow the story.
We've lost count of how often we see Zu in her underwear.


01:30:56 - Due to having relapsed and only recently getting clean - and realizing she's not a good caregiver - Zu hints at needing to get Music ‘used to the facility’ before she leaves during a farewell conversation with the landlord. So Music's going to the people pound, I guess?


Oh, and despite alluding to him knowing Music for years, he doesn't even say goodbye to her - or acknowledge her presence. Music could've physically been absent from the scene and it wouldn't have changed.


01:32:06 - We see the facility, which looks like a nursing home or hospital wing. I'm hedging my bets that the budget for the film was running low at this point instead of the assumption that Sia doesn't know what group homes or other assisted living facilities for disabled persons looks like.


01:33:09 - As Zu is unpacking Music's things (does Music know she's being moved here?), Music says “Don't go” - the first thing she's said that isn't echolalia. Then Music reaches out and grabs Zu's dog pendant (in honor of Raindrop) and says again, “Sis don't go”.


Despite not establishing at all that Zu genuinely cares about her sister beyond ensuring she stays alive, the film pretends that it has, and that this moment is supposed to be really sweet and vulnerable - but it comes off so fake, so infantilizing, so...plastic.


01:34:11 - IT'S A BREAKOUT! Zu busts open the double doors of the hospit - sorry, facility - with Music in tow. It's way too dramatic, since Music wasn't locked in or restrained there, and Zu hadn't left.
Where are they going? Why, to Ebo's brother's wedding, of course!


01:34:30 - Yep, the budget is running out - this wedding seems to be hosted at a local motel that got a great deal on a surplus amount of wallpaper. The wedding itself is...minimally decorated, but does have the Ghanaian national flag on the wall - because all weddings feature the couple's origin country flag, right?


Ebo is wearing a tuxedo, but the newly married couple is dressed in garb that strongly hints of a google search using the words ‘traditional Ghana wedding'. He's giving a speech as the film builds to its climax.


01:35:51 - Zu and Music burst into the Motel 6 conference room and interrupt Ebo's speech.


Zu tells Ebo: “I almost gave Music away to strangers today.” Like she's some sort of object, not a person.


She continues: “I'm gonna help her like she helped me.” HOW DID SHE HELP YOU, ZU? You just told Ebo that ever since you busted your face falling down drunk, ever since that night, you've been clean and sober. What part did Music play in your rehabilitation?


01:37:00 - “We should do the song”, Zu says to Ebo, referring to the lullaby from earlier in the film. Why not, you've already crashed the wedding, and until Ebo introduced you, no one in attendance was really paying attention anymore.


01:37:25 - Ebo starts to play the song, and before Zu sings, guess who's finally singing?


Yep, Music. In a very quiet, shy, barely audible way. Everyone in the audience is smiling and/or nodding their heads. One would think there would be more....diversity of emotion when a wedding is crashed, but clearly we're just mistaken.

I wonder where Sia got the inspiration for this scene: an assumed non-speaking autistic child, suddenly singing to a crowd rapt with attention and praise - ah, yes, the ‘research’ of watching the numerous videos of this same situation strewn across the web!


01:39:00 (roughly) - After a fade to black, we fade in to a morning with Zu, Ebo and Music. There's a knock at the door! Who could it be? Why, it's a delivery for....

Music Gamble!

It's a service dog! Felix was ordering a service dog for Music - right before he was killed!

No one questions the delivery, no one steps in to assist in orientation for how this dog is to be utilized - just YAY A DOG MUSIC LIKES DOGS HAHAHAHA HAPPY ENDING

The film ends with one final music video where the entire cast comes together to dance the end credits out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There's a lot to discuss here - and all of it will be brought up in the next podcast episode, to be released very soon - but one thing surprised me the most about this film:


It's not about autism, and it's really not even about Music.


Despite being promoted, packaged and even described as a movie about an autistic girl, Music is inconsequential to this film's plot. I was expecting typical entertainment ableism and all its tropes; I was expecting, as Sia described it, “Rain Man the musical, but with girls” - and was absolutely denied that in my viewing.


Rare does a movie disappoint me, but this disjointed, disoriented, incongruent, context-lacking trash pile didn't even properly follow through on its presumed ableism. And that is a sentence I didn't think I'd be writing in my lifetime.