A promising victim of a system where I ask for accessible screeners and don’t get them. I did a short review for Good Boy a while back, which I struggled with, after getting a screener for that with no audio description. Now I’ve been offered the film AGAIN (I shit you not) as part of IFC’s FYC campaign, and it still isn’t accessible, and their reps will not respond to my email to save their lives. When you say “audio description”, I might as well be speaking High valerian. I reviewed another film recently which I enjoyed very much, and did try to get an accessible screener. Not the first time. I bring this up, because I’ve written a lot of shitty reviews recently, trying to describe what I did or didn’t like about a film that actually does have available audio description, but they just refuse to provide an accessible screener. Striahgt up, I was told by an indie distributor that the links they send out are not accessible. it wasn’t so much a confirmation that their titles didn’t have audio description, as it was a giant fuck you. I know every film doesn’t have it. I see some indie films all the time that the big critics don’t have time for, especially during awards season.
that brings me to this film,I Wish You All the Best. I got a screener for this almost a month ago, and I did a soft review for Youtube with quick thoughts (which I didn’t post until now due to embargo), and it openly admits I didn’t have audio description, but perhaps someone will slide in clutch. Briarcliff initially gave me a copy of Stitch Head with no AD, and then managed to make it happen. I never know with these reps and studios because it is so deeply inconsistent.
from what I got out of this film, it is right up my alley. And unlike films that are good on paper, I at least sat through an English language film long enough to make an informed decision on whether or not you should check this out. It is being released Friday with audio description, much like my early thoughts on Good Boy. this is an LGBTQ coming of age film that instead of featuring a lead actor who comes out as gay, really comes out as more gender fluid/non-binary, and is immediately kicked out of the house. A tried and true formula for queer cinema because we write what we know, and this is still the story for many kids today. I know someone in my life right now in this age bracket who had to leave their house due to being non-binary. This is a real thing for kids trying to figure themselves out, and when parents immediately bring down the hammer, it destroys this relationship.
But, our protagonist has a sister to turn to, who he hasn’t seen in years, and who has her own past with their parents over a choice in her life.She’s now married, with a baby, and their parents are not a part of her life. So, she agrees to take on the job of parenting her teenage younger sibling, getting them into a new school, where they can make new friends with their new identity, and find out more about who they are, and who they want to be.
Even without audio description,it was a film that was endearing enough to me I couldn’t see me giving it a negative review. From what I could tell,the performances were strong across the board, the runtime is effective and short, and it may follow a rather cookie cutter coming of age structure, but it has a little flair that makes it different. I’d love to see this again at some point with my accessibility, but since this film is opening Friday, and I can’t imagine it is headed for a major opening against the new predator film, I wanted to get something out there.
The message now is so strongly against the LGBTQ community, because it had finally just started to be able to breathe a bit, and suddenly we’re throwing proverbial stones again. Once again, it takes bravery and courage to come out, and not every kid is met with love and acceptance. Since it is very possible to be non-binary or gender fluid and also blind or low vision, or be parents of someone who is, I hope this thoughtful story reaches the right audience. I can’t speak to the quality of the audio description track, but I could say that about too many movies this year.
I Wish You All the Best is heartfelt and earnest in its messaging, and timely for its target demographic. Often time decides which coming of age stories reverberate across decades, but regardless this is still a wonderful choice for right now.
Fresh: 7.0/10
