Just Charlie

Harry Gilby is a revelation!

There's a meme going around on the Internet (I know, I know, I'm down with the kids!) ... "If someone shows you who they are, believe them". It's usually used in a negative sense; i.e: 'if someone displays negative traits, then don't doubt your instinct' ... but I say that this maxim can also be turned into a positive - if somebody TELLS you who they are, believe them. It doesn't cost the individual anything to accept people as they describe themselves, even when that means disregarding how society thinks they ought to be.

I felt a little bit queasy about the film seeming to use violence as some kind of 'twist' - and even somewhat angry that I as a viewer had been manipulated into feeling emotion, only to have the rug yanked out from underneath me... It seemed cheap, in a way that the rest of the film wasn't, and to my mind, represented a late miscalculation in what is otherwise a fantastic film

I first became familiar with Gilby while watching "Tolkien" where Gilby plays the young JRR Tolkien. To say that Gilby is stunningly good looking, even pretty, is putting it mildly. He also is quite charming.

I opted to watch "Just Charlie" after seeing Gilby in "Tolkien". As a gay man who came out 52 years ago, I was curiouis. Not being fully familiar with the central them of "Just Charlie", I was at first surprised. At one point I considered simply not continuing to watch the movie. But, my inner voice said "give it a chance".

Gilby's portrayal of a teen transsexual, MTF (male to female) is superbly acted / played. Our world continues to be challenged with the widening diversity of the human experience. Being "locked into" a body that is the wrong gender for that body must be extremely challenging and even threatening.

Gilby gets five gold stars for his performance. I gave it eight.

There is a lot to like in this spunky English film about the T in LGBT. And while there are all of the tropes you've seen so many times, there is enough that is different that keeps the movie from sinking.

A majority of the acting is ho-hum, but the actor who plays Charlie does break out quite a bit. Also fascinating is their best mate.

The main thing this film has is a whole range of reactions to the realities of What Charlie is declaring to the world. That's invaluable because viewers can pick out who they see themselves as and also why they may ought to become someone else.

This movie I presume gets an R rating for language and that's a shame considering the audience who needs to see it. Teens.

This is one of those movies that I saw on streaming without ever having heard of it. I am so glad I watched it. The story is believable and I found the acting superb. This certainly deserves a higher rating than its current 6.9: please don't tell me people rate this movie so low because of transphobia.

Knowing a transgender person myself, I think the feelings portrayed in this movie are absolutely realistic. As are some of the shocking (and fortunately sometimes heartwarming) reactions by people. Oh how I wish every child and every parent saw this movie.

I'm just going to touch on the ending. Many people say it shouldn't have been included, but I disagree. Whilst I didn't like it, I think it was necessary. A young person in a similar situation may see this film and learn from it. Without that ending, they may make the same mistake. Kids can be cruel, and that shouldn't be overlooked.

I think it's a very well written film that shows the day to day problems a young trans person may face.

I was in a very dark place when I was younger, and watching 'Beautiful Thing' changed my life. This film is a gem, and I hope it will do for others what Beautiful Thing did for me.

10/10