Educational Media Reviews Online

This autobiographical work is more a piece of performance art than a cohesive film about the filmmaker’s struggle with gender identity. The film meanders between shots of what one presumes is the young Montague at the edge of puberty and shots of the adult Montague binding her breasts and lying naked on the floor. Other images pass by, but there is no context for the viewer to interpret them. In voiceovers, some of which seem to be conversations between Montague and her mother, Montague reveals the frustration she felt growing into a female body and how she was incorrectly diagnosed as bipolar as a teen and treated with high doses of lithium. The images and sound throughout the film are distorted, mirroring Montague’s mental state and creating a similar one for the viewer. One can’t help but feel Montague is hiding behind the confusion. She never comes out to identify herself or let us know that this is an autobiographical piece. Without the film’s packaging for guidance, the viewer would be completely lost. The film isn’t close-captioned, a silly oversight that limits the film’s usefulness in academic settings. This is a subject that needs further exploration in film, but it also needs to be explored in a way that is honest and forthright and doesn’t intentionally alienate its audience. Not recommended