Anything's Possible Review
Streaming Review - from the archives
Note: I’m going to occasionally post some old reviews here, particularly of movies that maybe didn’t get a lot of buzz, or movies that feature not cishet white men either in front of or behind the camera. Thanks for reading and sharing!
Being a teenager is tough. You’re not a kid anymore, but you’re not an adult. You’re in the process of figuring out who you are while being asked who you’re going to be. You’re discovering who you find attractive and learning how people react to that. These are all true for everyone who experiences adolescence, but these changes can be amplified for transgender teens, and Billy Porter examines that in his directorial debut, “Anything’s Possible” streaming on Amazon Prime.
Kelsa (Eva Reign) is a high school senior who happens to be a trans girl. On her YouTube channel, she asks why she would want a boyfriend when she has two best friends, Em (Courtnee Carter) and Chris (Kelly Lamor Wilson). She and Em both have a crush on Khal (Abubakr Ali) and rumors circulate that he likes Em, so when he gives a bouquet of wildflowers to Kelsa, it causes some drama between the trio of friends.
The story of Kelsa and Khal dating is cute. Several times through their interactions Kelsa asks, “Why are we so awkward?” giving voice to what most of us experienced when we went on first dates or experienced first kisses. But it is fraught with some difficulties that are less common. Kelsa just wants to live her life, but dating Khal becomes a political issue, pushing her transness into the spotlight, something she does not want.
The movie balances the typical ups and downs of teen romance well with the atypical ups and downs of a romance involving LGBTQ people. Writer Ximena Garcia Lecuona is a trans woman herself, so she understands how to weave those narratives together and she accomplishes that well, showing some of the trauma that can come from those relationships while refusing to dwell on it.
Billy Porter shows a deep love both for his hometown of Pittsburgh, as well as a love for romance. The movie has a dreamy quality about much of it, and the way he uses social media throughout the movie feels fully authentic.
The performances from the young cast are all delightful. Reign and Ali have a wonderful chemistry and it is a joy to watch them on screen together. The dynamics between the various friends all play beautifully, whether it’s genuine love for one another or those awkward moments when your friend does something you don’t like and you don’t stand up to them.
In one scene, Kelsa’s mother (Renee Elise Goldsberry) tells her, “What is unique about you does not make you hard to love.” What I loved about this movie is that while this line is said to a trans girl, it applies to all of us. And that’s what a good movie should do: help us see ourselves in the characters, even if they don’t look like us. Art that helps us to see both our differences and our commonalities is something to be celebrated.