Being the first in anything might be a momentous achievement, but it also comes with the baggage and burden of representing a whole group of people. ForMarlee Matlin, that burden came at the tender age of 21, when she became the first deaf actor to win the Academy Award for her performance inChildren of a Lesser God. Now, almost 40 years later, Matlin looks back at her life, career, and the progress of deaf actors in the industry. DirectorShoshannah Sternlooks closely at Matlin’s life with the actress and chronicles the highlights and low points of her career alongside family members, friends likeHenry Winklerand interpreterJack Jason, and colleagues likeTroy KotsurandAaron Sorkin. In Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore, we get an intimate look into Matlin’s perspective on the span of her career, her reaction to her life-changing Oscar win, her relationship with the deaf community, and her learning how to leverage her stardom in recent years.
No One Could Have Made ‘Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore’ Like Shoshannah Stern
Perhaps that statement is an over-exaggeration, but the fact is thatShoshannah Stern takes a unique approach to the documentary.As a deaf filmmaker, she sought not only to approach the documentary from an accessibility angle but also emphasized that scenes where subjects are signing could be completely silent. There are moments where we hear things from Matlin’s perspective when she’s in a full room where we are distinctly aware of what it’s like in a deaf person’s shoes when at a party where everyone is verbal. It’s a perspective you might not expect from a documentary, but it offers the type of insight only a deaf director could show. That same perspective also comes with Stern discussing Matlin’s role asSarah inChildren of a Lesser Godand the stereotypes attached to the character that seemingly every deaf actress has had to play. There’s a keen understanding that there weren’t that many opportunities for deaf actresses, especially after looking closer at Sarah’s problematic aspects.
Stern’s questions and guidance come from a place of expertise and experience. Not only that, but her behind-the-scenes look at how production is conducted while filming gives a glimpse behind the curtain of how the film came to be. It’s also clear that Matlin is very comfortable talking to Stern, and that, in turn, gives us more access to Matlin’s personal thoughts on her experiences. Notably, although the documentary very much talks about deafness and being a deaf person in the industry, it also highlights Matlin’s unique circumstances. It is not focused solely on a message but does more to showhow much one actress could represent a community and her growing pains of being pushed into Hollywood at such a young age.
Stern Highlights Marlee Matlin’s Impact on the Deaf Community and Progress
One of Not Alone Anymore’sfocal points is the change in public perception of Matlin in the late 1980s. She was adored by the deaf community when she won the Academy Award for Best Actress forChildren of a Lesser God. She then made great strides in pushing for closed captions, becoming a fierce advocate and using her popularity and growing fame to ensure that it would be a part of standard broadcasts.But everything changed afterthe 1988 Oscars, when she decided to use her speaking voice rather than sign when presenting the award for Best Actor.Matlin reflects on this as a moment where no one really told her what was right and wrong and what would or wouldn’t be accepted by the community. At 22, she was flying by the seat of her pants, but overnight,the deaf community turned on her. While the situation is unique to Matlin, it’s also notable how things like this happen all of the time when it comes to marginalized groups.
Best Marlee Matlin Performances, From ‘Children of a Lesser God’ to ‘CODA’
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When you have one person representing an entire group, that person becomes a paragon and a figurehead. They aren’t allowed to misstep, and for Matlin, speaking during a public event rather than signing was seen as a betrayal. At the early stage in her career,Matlin had no idea of the stigma that came with being verbal when representing the deaf community.At many points in the doc, Matlin expresses how lost she felt. But the fact is that the community should be asking “where are our other representatives?” Matlin’s experience as a “first” of the deaf community put every action she made under a microscope. Rather than regarding the group as a monolith, it feels more vital than ever to have more roles and stories told by and for deaf people. Not every deaf person looks or sounds like Marlee Matlin, and though her achievement was major, she shouldn’t have had to represent all deaf actors. Just having one winner is not enough. Matlin remained the sole deaf actor to win an Oscar until over 35 years later when herCODAco-starTroy Kotsur won for best actor.
Although Matlin says that after the 1988 Oscars, she backed away from the deaf community, she continued to advocate for fellow deaf actors and when it came time to cast forCODA, she was able to use her star power to demand that a deaf actor play her character’s husband rather than a speaking A-lister, and the role eventually went to Kotsur. Matlin’s experience is unique to her, but it’s an interesting throughline in the film that reflects Matlin’s loneliness for those three decades. For so long, she was the only one and, therefore, wasburdened with the responsibility of representing an entire group of people. By the time ofCODA’s historic win, she felt robbed of not getting to say her piece on stage, wanting to thank the film for the fact that she wasn’t alone anymore. So much of Matlin’s journey seems to be plagued with a sense of loneliness that is only now slowly dissipating.
‘Not Alone Anymore’ Offers a Unique and Intimate Look
InNot Alone Anymore, Matlin touches on multiple significant points in her life. She talks about her intense relationship with actorWilliam Hurt, who she met while filmingChildren of a Lesser God, and discusses the abuse and toxic relationship she had with Hurt. She also discusses her problems with addiction and the sexual trauma she faced as a child, which was detailed in her bookI’ll Scream Later, and we hear from the people who are closest to Matlin to get insight into her journey in life.
It’s all standard fair for a documentary about a singular person, but what is startling is howmuchlife Matlin had to live to get to this point. In particular,her relationship with Hurt is excruciatingly detailedas she describes the first time Hurt hit her and the extreme feeling of fear she had walking up to the stage to accept her Oscar from him. She describes being shaken in his presence, knowing that he was furious that she won the award, and that although the relationship was intense and passionate, it would not be one she would ever want to repeat.
Matlin is incredibly candid with Stern as she details her past, but also reflective on how past events — celebrations, losses, mistakes, wins — have shaped her as a person. Stern lays out how manygroundbreaking moments Matlin has had throughout her career. But the documentary allows her the space to discuss the fear and uncertainty that came with success as well as the continued struggles she faced moving forward and not being seen as a “sympathy vote” or a one-hit wonder. By the end ofNot Alone Anymore,it’s clear that Matlin is far from a star who burned too bright once, and her light has not dimmed at all. If anything, she’s been working steadily and surely and despite the years of solitude, thanks to her creating the path forward, she is not alone anymore and won’t ever be again.
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymorepremiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore is a stirring and intimate look into Matlin’s life and career filmed with a careful eye by Shoshannah Stern.
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore delves into the life of Marlee Matlin, the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award. The documentary explores her groundbreaking career, personal challenges, and enduring advocacy for the Deaf community.
