★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
This was my first cinematic experience following the
travesty of Dirty Grandpa, a raunchy
comedy with its focus – to put it mildly – disastrously askew. I honestly
couldn’t have picked a better antidote: here’s a whip-smart, insightful yet
gorgeously mouthy romp that knows how to balance the fair and the foul.
Through the lens of an iPhone 5 (enhanced with an anamorphic attachment), we follow trans sex workers Sin-dee (Kitana
Kiki Rodriguez) and Alexandra (Mya Taylor) across the bleached streets of
sunset boulevard on Christmas Eve. Sin-dee is on the hunt for her cheating
pimp/boyfriend, while Alexandra attempts to draw punters to a gig.
As we encounter the various inhabitants of the strip in
Sin-dee’s wake, there’s certainly laughter aplenty (car washes and donuts will
never look quite the same again), but it’s the small touches of melancholy that
give it the edge over more mainstream fare. Our two leads are shriekingly
amiable, and there’s even some humour to be found in the pitfalls of their clients and nemeses. A stomping soundtrack pelts us through the narrative at break-neck
pace but knows when to fade away for the gentler moments.
The smartphone cinematography looks startlingly brilliant on
the big-screen, with massive implications
for the future of independent cinema, and the wonderful reaction to the starring duo proves once again to the nay-sayers of Hollywood that if you create compelling characters, audiences
will miss their company when the credits roll regardless of gender, sexuality
or race.
Despite star power, a mega-budget and top-of-the-line tech, Dirty Grandpa doesn’t deserve to occupy
the same city, let alone cinema, as Tangerine.
This is a rip-roaring, eye-watering jaunt that shines with wit, relevance
and buoyancy from screaming start to heartfelt finish.
