TA N G E R I N E
IS A TASTY TEMPEST OF TRANS TENSION, TAXIS, AND TREACHERY IN TINSELTOWN
PHOTO BY RADIUM CHEUNG
FILM
AFTER ITS WORLD PREMIERE AT THE SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL, INDIE FILM TANGERINE IS COMING TO NEW YORK CITY THIS SUMMER WITH A SURPRISINGLY ENGAGING STORY OF TWO TRANSGENDER SEX WORKERS, AN ARMENIAN CAB DRIVER, A CHEATING PIMP/BOYFRIEND, AND THE MANY DENIZENS OF WEST HOLLYWOOD’S LOWER CLASS.
The most amazing technical aspect of the film? It was filmed entirely using the iPhone 5s with an anamorphic lens attached. “We realized it could be good for shooting first-time actors because it wouldn’t intimidate them and the extras we were grabbing off the street,” said Sean Baker, Director. “It allowed us to shoot clandestinely.” The result is a very immersive sense of the community and intimate shots of confrontation in crowded spaces. TANGERINE IS OPENING IN NEW YORK CITY ON JULY 10 AT ELINOR BUNIN MUNROE FILM CENTER AND SUNSHINE CINEMA 5. 112
PHOTO BY SEAN BAKER AND RADIUM CHEUNG
The third star of the film, Karren Karagulian, plays Razmik, an Armenian taxi driver dealing with both the ridiculous and routine of transporting a series of entertaining characters around Los Angeles on Christmas Eve. The movie eventually works his story into that of the trans sex workers and brings all the major characters together in an explosive confrontation at the same donut shop where it all started; here, the Armenian immigrants, sex workers, pimps, and beleaguered donut shop employee all have to deal with the consequences of infidelity and betrayals.
PHOTO BY SEAN BAKER AND RADIUM CHEUNG
All of that falls away the moment Sin-Dee, having learned her boyfriend Chester (James Ransone from The Wire) has cheated on her with a cisgender woman storms out of the donut shop and begins fuming down the street, accosting people along the way for more information about Chester and the woman he’s been seeing. For the next 80 minutes Rodriguez and Taylor fully inhabit and sell their roles as their stories weave in and out of each other. While Alexandra tries to make some money on the street and drum up an audience for her Christmas Eve show, Sin-Dee tracks down Dinah (Mickey O’Hagan)—the “fish” who slept with Chester—and physically drags her around town.
PHOTO BY SEAN BAKER AND RADIUM CHEUNG
The opening scene of the film is deceptive—the acting a little stilted. The transgender actresses Mya Taylor (Alexandra) and Kitana Kiki Rodriguez (Sin-Dee) share a donut on Christmas Eve. The pace is slow and the dialogue is a bit forced as exposition drips out. We learn that Sin-Dee is back from a 28-day stint in jail and her best friend, Alexandra, is catching her up on the news from the block.