Nerds That Geek Movie Review – ‘Donna: Stronger Than Pretty’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains some spoilers for motion picture, ‘Donna: Stronger Than Pretty’. 

When we are young, we are taught that we need to accomplish two key things in life, in order to find fulfillment and happiness. In that, we need to have a dream to chase and capture and we also need to settle down and find someone special and start a family, and it is understandable as to why those two notions are embraced by so many. Because a dream does indeed fuel us and keep us going when the days are long and the nights are longer and of course, having someone we love and having a family around us… grounds us and gives us more reason to chase our dreams. So that we can provide for them and feel satisfaction in knowing we did something special for them, and this is why so many of us chase those two concepts with gusto the instant we head out into the world.
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But while it is worthwhile to chase all of those things, our desire to obtain them quickly can bring about some unpleasant surprises. Because our focus to snag them over anything else, leaves some important lessons about the chase and its end results, out of the mix. Such as the fact that our dreams don’t always happen overnight and that can wear on a person, and also learn, that sometimes… the love of our life is not who we thought to them to be. In fact, they can harbor some real darkness and make our lives difficult when they indulge in said darkness and well, those surprises tend to leave us lost and listless and unsure of how to proceed in life since there is no clear-cut guide as to what to do, when everything we ever wanted, falls to pieces before our eyes. But while there is no specific blueprint on such matters, there is hope and there is inspiration to be found in the stories of others who survived these dark times and it just so happens that this reviewer had the opportunity to watch a film that offers a way forward in Donna: Stronger Than Pretty.

Now in this particular film, we are introduced to a young woman named Donna, who cannot wait to finish her schooling and become a teacher. But as she grows older and becomes a mother to a son, she realizes her priorities have to change and the dream will have to wait so that she can provide a better life for her baby boy. Something that becomes a reality when a charming man named Nick comes into her life. For he comes from money and he treats her and her son well, and the incredible love affair that comes about, makes marrying him an easy decision. But shortly after they tie the knot and begin to build a family of their own, Donna comes to learn that Nick is not what he seems. In fact, he’s an abusive and angry man that believes he answers to no one… and that horrible revelation leaves Donna lost and unsure of how to proceed in life since she now feels trapped. But eventually she comes to realize that sticking around is dangerous and unsustainable and that motivates her to do the impossible and cut ties with the once love of her life, in order to give herself and her children, the healthy and stable environment they so deserve and to give Donna a chance at finally living her life, her way.

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So, the first thing you’ll probably notice about this particular film, is that the plot feels eerily realistic and incredibly detailed and there is good reason for that. Simply because this is a movie based on the life and times of the mother of the director of the film and her experiences with domestic violence are something Jaret Martino felt the world needed to see and understandably so. Because Donna handled this difficult aspect of life in the bravest way imaginable, by standing up to her attacker and by never letting him bring her down and for her efforts, she was able to accomplish her goals and give her family peace and a healthy environment to live in. And to top it all off, she was able to chase her dreams and finally achieve them later in life, which makes this a supremely inspirational film for certain, since it really does offer hope and direction to folks that are stuck in or know of someone, in a similar situation. For if Donna was able to figure out how to escape this rotten situation and find a positive way forward in life, so can others.

But while that alone makes this movie worthwhile and moving for certain, we would be remiss to not point out the fact that this is also a supremely brave and visceral motion picture. Simply because it does something that few stories are willing to do when it comes to the portrayal of domestic violence and present it here in the raw. Which means we are privy to some extremely uncomfortable and downright terrifying moments when Nick lets his anger and fury loose and well, it’s about damn time a motion picture put the horror of that on full display. Because this is a topic that is about as taboo as it gets in modern America, since we seem to want to avoid the fact that this kind of stuff is happening right now, but it needs to be spotlighted and talked about, so that it can come to an end. Because no one deserves to be abused in a relationship, in any manner and hopefully this movie’s decision to put this awful aspect of everyday life on display gets the conversation going and builds awareness around a topic that’s been in the shadows for far too long.

In the end however, this really is quite the unique and brilliant film. For not only does it do an incredible job of bringing a dark and uncomfortable topic to light, but it also accomplishes something that is a tough task in cinema. In that, it truly captures the essence of life, and the wonder and heartbreak that comes about from just being a human being. A feat that it pulls off by presenting us with realistic and genuinely intimate moments with its characters, the kind that allow us to feel what they feel in that moment and that also offers up moments of great beauty in this story. Since we are able to see exactly how much Donna did love Nick early on, and how much she cares for her family. Something is likely attributed to the fact that Kate Amundsen loses herself in the role of Donna, and truly brings this pseudo-character to life in an earnest fashion that quite frankly is worthy of every acting award imaginable out there and well, all of these elements make this a movie a must-see, when all is said and done. Because this is one that will move you to tears and cheers and stay with you, long after it has come to an end.   

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