Tangerine

An electrifying comedy centering on two transgender sex-workers, "Tangerine" isn't just one of the most subversive films of the year, it's one of the best. Director Sean Baker has crafted a visceral, enthralling work of cinema that's simultaneously raucous and slyly empathetic towards its array of queer and multiracial characters. There are no heavy-handed morals, no pandering to the audience and no emotionally manipulative drama, just a non-biased outlook of several people who are marginalized in our whitewashed, heteronormative society far too often.

Set entirely during one chaotic Christmas Eve in Los Angeles, the film stars real-life friends Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor as Sin-Dee and Alexandra, two trans prostitutes who begin the day by celebrating the former's release from prison. Upon hearing that her pimp and boyfriend, Chester (James Ransone) has been cheating on her with a white "fish" (biological woman), Sin-Dee sets out to confront both of them, resulting in a series of rambunctious antics throughout Tinseltown. Meanwhile, the film also focuses on the life of an Armenian cab driver named Razmik (Karren Karagulian) whose seemingly episodic tangents begin to tie in with the arcs of our feisty protagonists.

Based on the fact that it was shot entirely on an iPhone, one may expect "Tangerine" to look cheap, but Baker and co-cinematographer Chris Bergoch craft each composition with rich textures. The radiant glow of the Southern California sun provides the film with a gorgeous visual style, and is the likely inspiration for the film's title (in addition to a clever gag involving an air freshener). Baker's rapid-fire editing also amps up the vibrancy of the film, invoking a sense of drug-addled intensity.

For all of its boisterously vulgar set pieces, though, at its heart, "Tangerine" is all about the friendship between Sin-Dee and Alexandra, resulting in a final scene that's one of the more compassionate conclusions of any film in recent memory. In an age where women, people of color and members of the LGBTQ community are consistently sidelined for the sake of providing straight, white male characters with a sense of catharsis in contemporary culture, this isn't just a provocative picture, but an insanely important one. It's as hilariously inventive as it is poignant, and you owe it to yourself to seek it out.

The bonus features include three fascinating featurettes; one that focuses on Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor, another that centers on the ensemble cast, and a third featuring the crew discussing the story and production of the film. There's also a short visual style test, the film's theatrical trailer, and advertisements for other releases from Magnolia Pictures.

"Tangerine"
Blu-ray/DVD
http://www.magpictures.com/tangerine/
$22.99