XXY (film)
Encyclopedia
XXY is a 2007
Argentine
film written and directed by Lucía Puenzo
. The film stars Ricardo Darín
, Valeria Bertuccelli
, Inés Efron
and Martín Piroyansky. It tells the story of a 15-year-old intersex person, the way her family copes with her condition and the ultimate decision that she must eventually make as she finds her sexuality
.
XXY has received widespread critical acclaim, winning the Critics' Week grand prize at the 2007 Cannes film festival
, as well as the ACID/CCAS Support Award. It was nominated for eight awards at the 2008 Argentine Film Critics Association Awards, winning three of them including Best Film, and was nominated or won awards at a number of other foreign film festivals. It was chosen to close the 2008 Melbourne Queer Film Festival
. It is distributed within the UK by Peccadillo Pictures
, it had a short run theatrical release before being released onto DVD.
The film's title is a reference to Klinefelter's syndrome
, also known as XXY syndrome, a condition in which males have an extra X sex chromosome
. However, the main character does not display Klinefelter's syndrome
.
features, such as a beard
, and to attempt to have more feminine
features. However, recently Alex has stopped taking her medication.
Alex's parents moved with her from Argentina
to a village by the sea in Uruguay
, to avoid society's negative stigma. Her father, Néstor Kraken (Darín), is a marine biologist who has written a book on sexuality and makes a living treating wounded animals found by fishermen. Her mother, Suli (Bertuccelli), invites friends from Argentina: a surgeon, his wife and teenage son Álvaro (Piroyansky). The purpose, unknown to Néstor and Alex, is to discuss the possibilities of a sex-change operation.
Alex directly tells Álvaro that she would like to have sex with him. Alex seduces Álvaro and begins to have anal intercourse with him (with her as the penetrative partner), but they are interrupted when Néstor catches sight of them through an open door. When Alex later apologizes, Álvaro admits that he liked it.
Three boys from the village forcibly pull down Alex's pants to see her genitals. Néstor realizes that reporting this to the police would cause the whole village to know about Alex's condition. However, Alex decides that it does not matter. Alex also decides that she does not want to resume taking medicines or have an operation.
. Clownfish are protandrous hermaphrodites
: all individuals are initially male, and may later become female. This example of a hermaphroditic organism in nature is repeated throughout the film.
The sea animal motif recurs in the family name Kraken, which is also the name of a mythical sea monster
.
reported that 80% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 40 reviews. Metacritic
reported the film had an average score of 67 out of 100, based on 15 reviews.
The film's U.S. premiere was June 24, 2008 at Frameline 32, the 32nd San Francisco International LGBT
Film Festival.
2007 in film
This is a list of major films released in 2007.-Top grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2007...
Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
film written and directed by Lucía Puenzo
Lucía Puenzo
Lucía Puenzo in Buenos Aires) is an Argentinian author and film director. She is the daughter of Luis Puenzo.She studied literature at the University of Buenos Aires followed by the National Film Institute ....
. The film stars Ricardo Darín
Ricardo Darín
Ricardo Darín is an Argentine actor, screenwriter and film director.Darín is one of the biggest movie stars in Argentina. He played a number of parts in TV series for several years where he became popular as a young leading actor...
, Valeria Bertuccelli
Valeria Bertuccelli
Valeria Bertuccelli in is an Argentine film and television actress.Born in San Nicolás de los Arroyos, Buenos Aires Province, she began her career in experimental theatre, and later worked in the San Martín and Cervantes theatres...
, Inés Efron
Inés Efron
Inés Efron is an Argentine actress best known for her appearance in the critically acclaimed 2007 film XXY, written and directed by Lucía Puenzo....
and Martín Piroyansky. It tells the story of a 15-year-old intersex person, the way her family copes with her condition and the ultimate decision that she must eventually make as she finds her sexuality
Gender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
.
XXY has received widespread critical acclaim, winning the Critics' Week grand prize at the 2007 Cannes film festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
, as well as the ACID/CCAS Support Award. It was nominated for eight awards at the 2008 Argentine Film Critics Association Awards, winning three of them including Best Film, and was nominated or won awards at a number of other foreign film festivals. It was chosen to close the 2008 Melbourne Queer Film Festival
Melbourne Queer Film Festival
The Melbourne Queer Film Festival, or MQFF, has been running continuously since 1991 . It is the oldest queer film festival in Australia and one of the oldest queer film festivals in the world...
. It is distributed within the UK by Peccadillo Pictures
Peccadillo Pictures
Peccadillo Pictures is a UK based film distributor of art house, gay and lesbian, independent and world cinema. They have provided distribution for many award winning films such as XXY, Eyes Wide Open, Four Minutes, The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros, Transylvania, Cockles and Muscles and Summer...
, it had a short run theatrical release before being released onto DVD.
The film's title is a reference to Klinefelter's syndrome
Klinefelter's syndrome
Klinefelter syndrome, 46/47, XXY, or XXY syndrome is a condition in which human males have an extra X chromosome. While females have an XX chromosomal makeup, and males an XY, affected individuals have at least two X chromosomes and at least one Y chromosome...
, also known as XXY syndrome, a condition in which males have an extra X sex chromosome
XY sex-determination system
The XY sex-determination system is the sex-determination system found in humans, most other mammals, some insects and some plants . In this system, females have two of the same kind of sex chromosome , and are called the homogametic sex. Males have two distinct sex chromosomes , and are called...
. However, the main character does not display Klinefelter's syndrome
Klinefelter's syndrome
Klinefelter syndrome, 46/47, XXY, or XXY syndrome is a condition in which human males have an extra X chromosome. While females have an XX chromosomal makeup, and males an XY, affected individuals have at least two X chromosomes and at least one Y chromosome...
.
Plot summary
Alex (Efron) is a 15-year-old intersex person, with both male and female genitals, who has been living as a girl and using medicines to suppress masculineMasculine
Masculine or masculinity, normally refer to qualities positively associated with men.Masculine may also refer to:*Masculine , a grammatical gender*Masculine cadence, a final chord occurring on a strong beat in music...
features, such as a beard
Beard
A beard is the collection of hair that grows on the chin, cheeks and neck of human beings. Usually, only pubescent or adult males are able to grow beards. However, women with hirsutism may develop a beard...
, and to attempt to have more feminine
Feminine
Feminine, or femininity, normally refers to qualities positively associated with women.Feminine may also refer to:*Feminine , a grammatical gender*Feminine cadence, a final chord falling in a metrically weak position...
features. However, recently Alex has stopped taking her medication.
Alex's parents moved with her from Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
to a village by the sea in Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, to avoid society's negative stigma. Her father, Néstor Kraken (Darín), is a marine biologist who has written a book on sexuality and makes a living treating wounded animals found by fishermen. Her mother, Suli (Bertuccelli), invites friends from Argentina: a surgeon, his wife and teenage son Álvaro (Piroyansky). The purpose, unknown to Néstor and Alex, is to discuss the possibilities of a sex-change operation.
Alex directly tells Álvaro that she would like to have sex with him. Alex seduces Álvaro and begins to have anal intercourse with him (with her as the penetrative partner), but they are interrupted when Néstor catches sight of them through an open door. When Alex later apologizes, Álvaro admits that he liked it.
Three boys from the village forcibly pull down Alex's pants to see her genitals. Néstor realizes that reporting this to the police would cause the whole village to know about Alex's condition. However, Alex decides that it does not matter. Alex also decides that she does not want to resume taking medicines or have an operation.
Themes
Alex keeps aquariums full of clownfishClownfish
Clownfish or anemonefish are fishes from the subfamily Amphiprioninae in the family Pomacentridae. Twenty-eight species are recognized, one in the genus Premnas, while the remaining are in the genus Amphiprion. In the wild they all form symbiotic mutualisms with sea anemones...
. Clownfish are protandrous hermaphrodites
Dichogamy
Sequential hermaphroditism is a type of hermaphroditism that occurs in many fish, gastropods and plants. Here, the individual is born one sex and changes sex at some point in their life. They can change from a male to female , or from female to male...
: all individuals are initially male, and may later become female. This example of a hermaphroditic organism in nature is repeated throughout the film.
The sea animal motif recurs in the family name Kraken, which is also the name of a mythical sea monster
Kraken
Kraken are legendary sea monsters of giant proportions said to have dwelt off the coasts of Norway and Iceland.In modern German, Krake means octopus but can also refer to the legendary Kraken...
.
Critical reception
The film received generally favorable reviews from critics. As of July 19, 2010, the review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 80% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 40 reviews. Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
reported the film had an average score of 67 out of 100, based on 15 reviews.
The film's U.S. premiere was June 24, 2008 at Frameline 32, the 32nd San Francisco International LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
Film Festival.