Don't Call Me Son

Teenaged Pierre (Naomi Nero) is a trans musician whose mother (Daniela Nefussi) seems tolerant of her child as he negotiates life in his working-class Brazilian neighborhood. But then the authorities determine that Pierre and his younger "sister" were stolen at birth, and so Pierre must be returned to his biological parents. Class and culture shocks accumulate for Pierre; his parents are upper class and boggled by his appearance. Nefussi also plays his biological mother, who is decidedly more grudging about Pierre's gender expression than her now jailed counterpart. Writer/director Muylaert's decision to double the roles for Nefussi underscores the dynamics of nature vs. nurture, as well as that of genders both assigned and chosen, and makes for a film refreshingly free of single-noted didacticism. Kudos to cinematographer Barbara Alvarez for her incisive, restless work.