This intriguing debut feature from writer/director Danielle Lessovitz is a journey of discovery of a confused 20 year old youth who runs away from his troubled life in Pittsburgh to try his luck in NY.
However when Paul (Fionn Whitehead) arrives at the Port Authority, half-sister Sara (Louisa Krause) who he had hoped to stay with, is a no show. He ends up sleeping the night in the Subway , which results with him being roughed up by a couple of thugs.
Thankfully he has a shining knight of armour in the form of street-smart Lee (McCaul Lombardi). Not only does he rescue Paul but he gets him a space in a homeless shelter on the Lower East Side . He also recruits him into his small crew who doing shady work for local landlords such carrying out evictions and property repossession which are barely legal.
Also living there in the Shelter is Tekay (Devon Carpenter), a gay black guy who Paul had spotted as part of a street dance group he had watched whilst waiting outside Port Authority. Paul actually follows him one night to an East Harlem ballroom practice session. Unfortunately as the only white person in the room, he sticks out like a sore thumb and is told he is not welcome.
However once outside and about to go home he is joined by Wye (Leyna Bloom) who was really the reason he had come.in the first place. They had previously exchanged glances back at the Port Authority and now the two flirt over pizza, and she ends up inviting him back the next week to see her rehearse.
Wye is part of Voguing House and all its 8 members illegally share an apartment that is leased to just 3 people. The other members of the ‘family’ soon accept Paul as Wye’s friend when the recognise that she really likes him. However both of them are harbouring secrets which will have a major impact on their new relationship once they are discovered.
Paul is happy enough to share that he is still on probation for some trouble he got into back in Pittsburg, but he doesn’t want Wye to know he is living in the Homeless Shelter. So he breaks into his half sisters empty apartment and invites Wye over and pretends this is where he lives.
Wye on the other hand has not shared with Paul that she is transgender, assuming that he would work this out on his own. All credit to a shocked Paul who has no experience of this at all ….”I’m NOT gay” …… and rushes off, but who eventually comes back to Wye appreciating how much he actually loves her.
This however is not going to be their happy ever after for soon after Paul as part of Lee’s crew ends up on Wye’s doorstep to collect back fees and possesses items of value from their landlord.
Kudos to Lessovitz for not resorting to melodrama in telling this unusual gentle love story. It all felt very authentic and realistic with such a perfect chemistry between the two lead actors. Whitehead is exceptional experienced for his age having being the leading actor in Christopher Nolan’s Academy Award Winning Dunkirk, but for Bloom a transgender actress, this was her sophomore movie
Plus lest we forget the scenes of the underground ballroom dancing gave such a whole energy to the piece.
This is a great wee addition to the continuing dialogue about the trans community especially as deals with it so calmly and almost matter-of-factly
