Juanita (2019)

Fed up with her deadbeat grown kids and marginal urban existence, Juanita takes a Greyhound bus to Paper Moon, Montana where she reinvents herself and finds her mojo.

Director:

Clark Johnson

Writers:

Roderick M. Spencer (screenplay), Sheila Williams (book)

Stars:

Alfre Woodard, Bonnie Johnson, Jordan Nia Elizabeth

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alfre Woodard	...	Juanita
Bonnie Johnson	...	Ms. Berman
Jordan Nia Elizabeth	...	Bertie
Acorye' White	...	Rashawn
Blair Underwood	...	Blair Underwood
Michael Jones Sr.	...	Man on Bus Bench
Marcus Henderson	...	Randy
LaTanya Richardson Jackson	...	Kay-Rita
Anthony Matheson	...	Conga Drummer
Katie Killacky	...	Ticket Seller
Taborah Johnson	...	Passenger
Brian K. Landis	...	Bus Driver
Ashlie Atkinson	...	Peaches
Lindsley Register	...	Candice
Donald 'Spec' Campen Jr.	...	Old Guy (as Donald 'Spec' Campen)

Storyline

Fed up with her deadbeat grown kids and marginal urban existence, Juanita takes a Greyhound bus to Paper Moon, Montana where she reinvents herself and finds her mojo.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

8 March 2019 (USA)

Also Known As:

Χουανίτα

Filming Locations:

Petersburg, Virginia, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Homegrown Pictures, Mandalay Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

All of the scenes set on Ohio and Montana were actually filmed in Virginia.

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Quotes

Peaches: Juanita, I gotta ask you something. Why did you get on that bus in the first place?
Juanita: 'Cause if I'd have stayed, I'd end up hating the people I'm supposed to love.

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Soundtracks

Stick Game Song
Performed by Eagle Calf Singers
Traditional

User Reviews

Touching, but lacks pace and drama

Juanita (Alfre Woodward) is stuck in a rut: her grown-up kids are serious wasters and her husband is long gone, leaving just her imagination and the elderly patients she nurses for company. When one patient dies, she takes the decision to change her life completely by buying a one way Greyhound ticket to nowhere - well nowhere she's ever actually heard of anyway. She finally lands in a hamlet called Paper Moon and is instantly pressed into service cooking for a Native American at his struggling and theoretically French restaurant.

This story perhaps works better as a novel. The pace is slow and the plot holds few surprises. As another reviewer says here, the movie lacks oomph. Everything is competent - nothing is special. At times it's quite funny and at times uplifting, but never exactly exciting. 6/10