This fictional film is split into 10 chapters titled: Discovery, Observation, Assessment, Negotiation, Presumption, Revelation, Persistence, Misdirection, Culmination, and Coalescence. A talky film with animations illustrating the dialogue the two protagonists have.
Priya Sura (Poorna Jagannathan) invites Nick (Casey Thomas Brown), to work together as partners in the (illustrated?) book she is going to write about him. He arrives in checkered red and black pajamas and stays at her place for two days and one night.
She proposes an interview, he proposes a dialogue instead, reciprocity, to give and to take. Information and animations begin on topics like early sexual memories during bath time with friends of his parents (that advise the child not to talk about the experience), his homophobic father, how she lost her virginity, sex and trauma, consent vs. rape, the pansexual revolution, how magnetic is to engage oneself with the world, pregnancy as a transgression, physical and emotional masochism, spanking, violence, rooted fractures… There are questions like how trauma demolishes human personality. And there are issues about betrayal and integrity, all garnished with wine and soft drugs, indoors and outdoors.
During the 140m the two characters engage in a dialogue and interact accordingly, with animations providing the action and color for their conversation. There is chemistry in the communication between Priya and Nick that helps to deal with the interaction until the end of the movie. Although they exchange inner feelings and important information flows, there is still something that is missing and does not help to make the film a memorable one. It is not a boring film either.
Directed by Megan Griffiths / Animations by Neely Goniodsky / Illustrations by Jem Milton
P.S. I’ll Show You Mine is screening at NEWFEST in NY
Review by José Mayorga , Guatemala, Central America lawyer and notary public, visual artist, and editor of El Azar Cultural, lives and works in Guatemala City. Cinema lover, curious about the possibilities life brings and eager to live the experience.
