Gurl (2020)

• 90%
• 2020
• Drama
• Mika X.
• Jay Tewake
• Mika X.
• Regan Taylor

A musical fantasy with a surprisingly tender love story at its heart, GURL takes place one frantic night as a beautiful young sex worker waits for her salesman lover to whisk her away from her last night on the strip to live happily ever after. But it's 1975 and she's a Maori Drag Queen, he's not the "white knight" he said he was. Written and directed by Maori entertainer/cultural activist Mika X, GURL is deliciously immersed in the Maori Trans underworld of the 1970's New Zealand, creating not only a gritty authenticity but also a warm tribute to a friend, Carmen Rupe, NZ's infamous Maori Drag Queen, pioneering brothel owner and gay rights activist. It's a story of shifting realities. At first, we see GURL through Carmen's eyes - a vibrant, sexy young version of herself. But look in the mirror poses more than an intriguing question. Carmen lives her life as a fantasy, forever believing that her white knight in shining armour will sweep her off her feet and take her away. In reality, this 22-year-old is already in her late 60's, sashaying through life believing she is still a young pretty girl she was in the past and still searching for love in all the wrong places. The story of Carmen and Ed, a former professional rugby player (All Blacks), plays out in the mid-70s gay nightclub scene where "Coffee" is a code for every sensual delight imaginable with the price of entry a toasted sandwich. Carmen's "Coffee" lounge is a vibrant, harsh world of colour held together by courage and humour under constant that from a savage, moralistic society. A haven for all who felt they didn't fit in. It was "coffee downstairs and sweets upstairs". The Beautiful drag queen carmen preside over this erotic world. She performs her services with aplomb while mentally calculating her grocery list: "eggs, baked beans, coffee, milk". A tender love story at heart, GURL is a unique blend of Mika's authentic Maori voice, fantastical vision and poignant tenderness pulsating with his original music, production. energy and aroha.