1st Sgt. Charles Monroe King, before he is killed in action in Baghdad, authors a journal for his son intended to tell him how to live a decent life despite growing up without a father.
“A Journal for Jordan” starts out slow and builds into an endearing and heartwarming story about relationships, careers, and lasting legacies. Based on a true story, Michael B. Jordan stars as 1st Sargeant Charles Monroe King, a soldier who develops a relationship with a couple and on one of his visits to see them, he gets to meet one of their daughters and slowly forms a friendship and then a romantic relationship with Dana (Chante Adams) who is a New York Times editor. Charles is newly out of a relationship and Dana has yet to find anyone who seems worthy of her heart. They slowly get acquainted with one another while also getting the approval of their friends and family members and before too long, they form an unforgettable bond. When Dana invites Charles to New York to see how she lives, she is soon smitten and realizes that Charles’ loving and caring ways are something she could really get used to.
As they fall in love with one another, both realize that their dedication to their careers is not something they are willing to compromise on. Dana fights hard to be respected for her work and dedication to it, while Charles is always going to be there for the soldiers under his care, regardless of what is going on at home. When Dana becomes pregnant with Charles’ child, they start planning for a future, but many times she is disappointed that his troops seem to have gained a higher level of commitment from him than she. When learning of his deployment to Iraq, Dana gifts Charles with a journal and asks him to write to his son, everything he would need to know about growing up and being a man. After Charles loses his life in a tragedy of war, the journal takes on new meaning as the blueprint for Jordan’s (Jalon Christian) life.
While the film spends a lot of time focusing on the relationship between Dana and Charles, it was vital in developing the backstory which shows that Jordan was created from a place of love, respect, and devotion. While both Dana and Charles were married to their careers, they sacrificed their own marriage while they yet built a relationship of trust and respect for one another. Dana’s relationship with her son was equally important as she always let him know who his father was and what he represented, and when he was older, through the journal, he was able to understand how the love of his parents, even in his dad’s absence, build a solid foundation for his success in life.
In Denzel Washington’s fourth production as a director, he was able to construct a great adaptation of the 2009 memoir by Dana Canedy. For those used to seeing Michael B. Jordan in bolder and more uncompromising roles, this was a welcome change, seeing the softer side of his understated sexiness and compatibility. Chante Adams, too, was a seamless match that brought clarity and integrity in her role as a dedicated journalist and an even stronger woman. In the end, “A Journal for Jordan” teaches all of us invaluable lessons about how to make the most of our lives as well as how to unselfishly set the stage for those who follow in our footsteps.
In Theaters Saturday, December 25th
