Rodina Singh’s “Dreamboi” is a trippy exploration of how trans women use fantasy as a survival mechanism, as writer-director explained during a talkback after one of the screenings. Its lush visuals (with cinematography by Malay Javier) juxtapose a neon-lit, oversaturated erotic dreamscape with the dull, grayish tones of the protagonist’s real life. In one reality, the protagonist, Diwa (EJ Jallorina) battles the everyday challenges a trans woman faces in order to be seen, heard, and accepted, grappling with issues involving the use of public restrooms and violence in the streets. In the other reality, beyond the dirty, heavily vandalized labyrinthine steps to the level six basement where she is offered the use of a restroom that no one else uses, Diwa finds herself one cubicle away from Dreamboi (Tony Labrusca), an audio-porn star whom she subscribes to and is the center of all her erotic desires.
“Dreamboi” is not your typical film that sets the main character on a journey toward a goal. Instead, Singh’s movie is an exploration of the psyche of a trans woman who navigating and surviving an unwelcoming world through fantasy. It is not enough that she has her tribe, a group of trans women who serve as Diwa’s found family, in a bar in Barangay Pag-asa run by a mother figure played with such verve by Iyah Minah. It is not enough that Diwa has an officemate, Maki (Migs Almendras), who showers her with affection and flirts with just the right amount of tenacity as to not become a stalker. Dreamboi becomes a symbol of Diwa’s strength and sense of self. Her proximity to him, whether it’s through the CDs she orders and listens to on her headphones or in the blurred lines of fantasy and reality within that basement level restroom where they see each other through a dirty mirror as Diwa relieves herself and Dreamboi pleasures himself, this becomes a coping device that allows Diwa to keep moving forward.
Jallorina is a force of nature. She manages the tension that is pulling at Diwa, allowing her to be soft and vulnerable when she’s around her found family in Barangay Pag-asa, and equal cold and stern when confronting a bully in her office (Meanne Espinosa). She even bends this a little when around Maki, whose flirtations she does not dismiss outright but keeps him at a distance – Is it caution? Is it self-preservation? Does she not want to ruin the friendship? It’s a different character altogether but inherently still Diwa.
Jallorina gives Diwa a full range of character that makes her fully nuanced and textured. The most powerful of which is when she allows herself to fully break down when her world crashes around her, showing a vulnerability that is captured wonderfully through the camera.
“Dreamboi” is far from your usual, run-of-the-mill movie. It’s weird and it’s not afraid to be weird. Singh skillfully balances multiple genres, portraying the trans woman’s life as horror, comedy, light romance, moving drama, and hard-hitting erotica. The dynamic music by Silas and the sound mixing and design by Immanuel Verona and John Buquid never allows the audience to settle. The caution and apprehension Diwa feels at all times punctuates the soundscape, and Singh never fully brings the film into the genre of comedy so as to not underplay the constant threat of danger. But “Dreamboi” does have its funny moments.
As part of Sine Silip, “Dreamboi” also has its sexually charged scenes. But in this film, as Tony Labrusca and Jenn Rosa (who plays Lilith, Dreamboi’s partner) throws themselves into the film’s sex scenes, what we see is Diwa’s psyche taking physical form. Here, sex becomes power and the more Diwa imagines it, and eventually imagines herself a part of it, the film’s erotic scenes then become a trans woman’s reconciliation of her own empowerment. All the indignities she suffers, she pushes through as she finds it in herself to believe what she knows is true, no matter how hard others try to take it away from her.
“Dreamboi” is more than just a movie. It’s a trippy, erotic fantasy that blurs the line between fantasy and reality to depict some of the survival mechanisms at play in a trans woman’s life. It’s a powerful film that doesn’t play by the rules and why should it?
My Rating:
Step into the surreal world of “Dreamboi” a bold, rule-breaking film, now showing in cinemas. Check showtimes and buy tickets here.
