A Monkey movie review

I confess, I am besotted with the young Argentine actress Ines Efron.  I first became aware of her a few months ago when I watched her in The Fish Child.  And now after seeing her in XXY I am ready to do her bidding no matter what the cost.  Want me to rob a bank Ms. Efron?  No problem.  Will bringing peace to the Middle East ease your ennui and get me in your good graces?  It's done.  Need someone to rub your feet after a long day on the set?  Tell me when and were I need to be and I'll be there.  But enough of my creepy old man crushings on a lovely young Latin actress, on to the movie review!

XXY is about a few momentous days in the life of a family that has an inter-sexed teenaged daughter named Alex.  Alex was born with a vagina and a penis and has been raised as a female by her parents but now that she's going through adolescence her penis is becoming an issue with her, her teenage peers, her parents, and the whole small coastal town in Uruguay where the film takes place.  Into the lives of this family come, at the behest of Alex's mother, a surgeon who specializes in plastic surgery, his wife and their teenage son.  Things get complicated when the kids fall for one another and the adults pressure Alex into deciding whether she is going to keep her penis and become a man or have it cut off and continue to be a woman.

This film is a very sweet melancholy story that's tastefully told.  It's sensitive to all parties concerned.  They don't go for easy solutions and they let the story play out with a minimum of histrionics and with a maximum of emotion.  Ms. Efron is brilliant as the tortured young woman with a little something extra and in her silences she says more than many actors twice her age and experience level.  Most things of a delicate nature are just talked about or hinted at, you never seen the penis/vagina in question, but Ms. Efron is topless quite a bit, which didn't bother me but I can see how it would others who watch this film, especially considering the fact that her character is supposed to be 15.

On another level this film is also about South American reaction to and acceptance of transgendered people in particular and gay folks in general.  Years ago it would have been unthinkable for the characters in this film to be so accepting of someone like Alex and the hinted at homosexuality of another character, now most all the characters not only accepted Alex and her situation, they were ready to support her if she kept her dick or had it cut off.  Only one character has a problem with homosexuality, the rest accept it as a part of life.

I really enjoyed this movie and I especially enjoyed Ms. Efron in it.  Being a former awkward teen who felt like a fish out of water in that backwards area I spent my teenage years in, I could not help but feel for Alex and what she was going through.  I imagine that being a teen is tough enough in today's world and being one with both sets of sex organs would make it tougher to the extreme. 

I recommend this film most highly. 

More movie reports

I finally saw this last night:
Yes, it was visually stunning. Yes, it was bloody and violent. Yes, it was homoerotic. And yes, it was racist. Over all, I give it a 'meh, see it if you want' rating.

This film from Uruguay is at times sweet yet maddening. You want to root for the big shy lunk of a guy, lord knows I did because I used to be like him, and sometimes you want to slap him upside the head for being such a shy doofus. This film moves to it's own rhythms and takes it time getting to where it needs to go. I enjoyed it but I can see how others might not.

I'm Running Away (a vintage kid's book remix)

"I've had it," thought Joan to herself. "I'm trapped in this freezing wasteland with husband who sports a comb-over and an underachieving son. I'm glad I found those nice Uruguayan dock workers who like to eat lots of meat and drink beer all day long and who want to hang out with a mom from the USA. It will be hard breaking the news that I'm running off to Uruguay City to be them but my husband and son will get over it in time."

Just then her son Billy came home from school.
"Hi mom!," said Billy. "I'm starving after that long walk home from school. It must be forty below zero out there. Can I have a snack and some hot cocoa?"

"You can have anything you like son. In fact, go upstairs to daddy's special fridge and get us both a beer and a pickled egg. Trust me when I tell you you're going to want to get hammered after I tell you my news."

Billy said, "What's up with you mom? You're acting funny."
"Am I pounding down a big ass can of Bud in between bites of pickled egg yet Billy? No? Well, the reason for that is you haven't done what I asked you to do then. Now hop to it and get us both a beer!"

Billy did as he was told and after he drank his can of horse piss, aka Budweiser, he went back to his room and contemplated his existence.
Just as he was about to have a philosophical break through his mother shouted up at him, "Billy you better be looking wistfully out a window like kids in After School Specials do or I'm going to be pissed."

"Okay mom, I'll get right on it." And then Billy did as he was told because he knew his mom meant business.
After looking out the window while screechy violins and disjointed keyboard music played in the background Billy sat back down on the carpet in his room and he thanked his lucky stars that he didn't have to wear corrective shoes and that he wasn't named Herman.
His mom staggered into his bedroom and drained the beer she was drinking. She said to Billy, "Look kid, I've had it. I'm running away. Mommy still loves you in her own way but she just can't live here any more. I'm moving to Uruguay because they eat lots of meat and they speak Spanish there. It's been my dream to eat lots of meat amongst Spanish speakers since I was a little girl and since I'm not getting any younger I've decided to go now before you and your father rip the last few good years I have left from me."

Billy ran to hug his mother and he began to cry. He also began to pee his pants because he could not hold his beer like an adult can.

"Billy!" His mother was very cross towards her son. "You pissed all over my shoes and my slacks!" She peeled him off her leg. "It's a good thing all my shoes and slacks look the same, now go pack some in a bag for me while I polish off another one of your dad's beers."
Billy did as his mother asked and he also put some of his things in there in the hopes that she would think of him when she ate all that meat with those lusty Spanish speaking Uruguayans. He heard her stagger downstairs just as he finished packing his things in with hers so he ran down after her.
"Okay Billy, hand over the bag and let mommy inspect it. I'd hate to find out that you put some of your shit in there in some lame ass attempt to make me feel guilty about leaving you." She opened the bag and did indeed find all the extra stuff Billy packed and she tossed it out. "Not cool dude," she said as she drained another beer.

Billy's dad pulled into the drive way and Billy woozily ran out to greet him with the news.
"Dad! Mom is leaving us! She's running away to Uruguay to eat meat, drink beer, and speak Spanish!"

As they went inside, Billy's dad said, "Holy shit Billy, you smell like a brewery. Have you been drinking?"

"Mom made me."

"Really? That doesn't sound like your mother. Let's get her in here and I'll get to the bottom of this. Joan! Where are you?"

"I'm right here Dave," she said as she walked into the living room.

"Billy said you made him drink beer and that you're leaving us to go eat copious amounts of meat and drink lots of beer in Uruguay. Is that right?"

Billy looked at his mom. His mom looked at him and then over at her husband. "He's a liar! I never told him that. He's making it all up." She whispered loudly to her husband, "I'm pretty sure he's off his meds today honey, look, he pissed his pants again."
In his drunken state Billy thought, "Meds? What meds? Is my mom crazy? Or did I make all this up in my head?"

As those thoughts swirled around in Billy's huge head his mom let out a huge burp and the smell of stale beer filled the room. Then she began cackling like a mad woman. "I'm just fucking with you Dave, the kid's right. I'm out of here. I'm going to eat pork stuffed with beef sausage and other meat abominations while I wash it down with beer after beer. You can take care of things here while I go have some fun and clog my arteries whilst I converse in Spanish with my Uruguayan dock worker pals. Now Billy, give your dad your coat so you won't chase after me."

Once more Billy did as he was asked and as soon as he did he watched his mom disappear into the cold winter night.

Two weeks after she left his dad brought home a stripper who he met in a chat room and they married soon after that. She bought Billy a Nintendo Wii and she let him have a snack with his hot after school cocoa every day.

Billy's mom was never heard from again but around campfires on the Uruguayan docks, stories are told of a wild drunken female gringo who speaks broken Spanish and who will steal your meat and gobble it down as she howls at the moon.

Uruguay is up

No, it's actually down.

Unless you're standing at the bottom of South America then it's up.

Well, if you're going to split hairs then I'm just going to shut up.

Good, you be quiet and go read my first full fledged country post on Missy's Belated Geography blog. I promise you that you will not find this gratuitous photo of Uruguayan actress Barbara Mori over there:

Nor will you see this one over there:

Howver, I can make no such claim about this photo of her:

Go, read, learn more about the other countries of the world.