The ways Sydney Freeland balanced the stories of these three Indigenous people and reminded us that all of their lives are complex and there is no such thing as a typical experience as a person of color. I gravitated more towards Felixia and Nizhoni’s stories, but SickBoy’s story is also great and without spoiling, how these three stories overlap is brilliant. It may not be the best acted film or have the highest budget, butDrunktown’s Finest was powerful!

After watching and enjoying Sydney Freeland'sDeidra and Laney Rob a Trainlast week, I decided to check out her earlier film,Drunktown's Finest. I think I can safely say she's one of my new favorite directors, because I really enjoyed this film, also. Very little in this film relates to me. And that's probably why I enjoyed it so much. The characters feel like real people. A wide assortment of situations and plots befall everyone. I was always curious to see more and still am after its conclusion. Give this film a chance if you can!

Sydney Freeland really is such a lovely filmmaker that needs so much more recognition for her work. Her Story is an incredible web series and while the two features I've seen now aren't exactly on my wavelength, they're still really good movies based on real people that we don't get a lot of stories about which sounds like trite BS everyone writes, but this is a story by a trans Navajo woman about Navajo people and a trans woman, like??? What other film can you point to? There are three central stories and each feels authentic and nuanced, never forced. Some acting is a little wooden, and clearly not a ton of movie can be thrown at this, but that's not a big hindrance. Lovely film, much recommended.

need a spin-off sequel on Felixia’s gay friend

Not a good movie in the slightest but it's New Mexican and directed by an Indigenous trans woman starring a doll who acts exactly like my good sis so it's actually the best movie of all time. I love films like this — B movies that are so steeped in a specific place and culture that, even if they're not technically *good*, they're all the better for it. I'm reminded of another Diné production — Klee Benally'sPower Lines (which is so obscure it's not even on here). Like Freeland's film, it's so poorly made and acted, but you come away with it in awe that this film got made in the first place. Love it when filmmakers are gonna make a movie at all costs...even if the budget is $3 and there's no camera.

you know what, hell yeah 

that was not how my adoption story went that’s fs

I watched this because it was the directorial debut of Sydney Freeland, the trans woman director behindHer Story. And, as expected with many debut features, it’s not great and rough around the edges. I think what might hold this film back the most art the performances. I like Jeremiah Bitsui inBreaking Badbut his lead performance is bad in here. Morningstar Angeline is also not great - both fumble key emotional moments.

However, and I swear it is not my bias, but Carmen Moore is the best actress in here. She is a trans woman IRL, her she plays a trans woman trying to get a modeling position which also feels like the most genuine plotline in the film. Her emotional displays are much more nuanced than other performances.

I also think the score is generic and overused to a fault, and the film is shot fine but is nothing visually interesting.

Is actress Carmen Moore (Felixia) deceased? Her Letterboxd description talks about her in the past tense :(