Israel Luna‘s exploitative revenge comedy Ticked-Off Trannies With Knives is the perfect example of why you should never not see a film based on the trailer alone. The trailer (which is at the bottom of this post) is god awful and did little if anything to encourage me to see this. The motivating factor for me here was when someone told me it was shot in the tradition of classic 70′s grindhouse and outshines both Tarantino’s Death Proof and Rodriguez’s Planet Terror. Okay, I was sold, now I was just hoping that my anticipation in seeing something fresh and new in this particular genre wouldn’t end up in disappointment.
No worries here, for disappointing is one thing this movie is not. The film pays homage to the great low-budgeted exploitative revenge films that were being shown in grindhouses throughout much of the 70′s and 80′s, and does it without relying solely on obvious sight gags ie, missing film reels, purposeful bad editing, interruptions from theatre management etc. What makes Trannies with Knives stand out amongst all other exploitative films is its funny script, strong acting performances, the satisfyingly fun violence, and its smooth transitioned tonal shifts.
In fact, it’s perhaps the tonal shifts in the film that I enjoyed most. Well, that and the knifes. The first half of the film is heavily dialogue driven, then a certain incident happens, a film reel goes missing, and the next thing I knew, I was watching a straight up comedy, after which I finally get to see the ticked-off trannies, knives and all.
Apparently there’s some controversy over this film, started by GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) who are complaining about the characters being written as caricatures ”written as drag queens” and of the use of the word “trannies”. I’m not going to get into a whole essay on the differences between art and reality in this review, but I feel it must be said that Ticked-Off Trannies knows exactly what it is trying to be and I find it both extremely humorous and sad that so many people can be offended by something so outrageous as this. Anyway, there’s my two cents on the controversy. As far as the film itself is concerned, I can’t wait to see it again, this time in a crowded theatre.
Showtimes for Ticked-Off Trannies With Knives:
7/22/10 Thursday 7:00 PM Roxie Cinema (3117 16th Street)
7/23/10 Friday 9:00 PM VIZ Cinema (1746 Post Street)
two of the girls are gonna be there too. we’ll have liquor in our purse. come say hi!