Runs In The Family Movie Review (2023)
A heartfelt indie about a trans son and his father who take a journey across South Africa to retrieve the estranged bio-mom, Runs in the Family finds its greatest strength in the loving, imperfect relationship between the men, with a warm message about acceptance, forgiveness, and always trying.
One of the things that I love about independent films is that they tend to be passion projects. Someone has a vision, brings other people together, and makes the movie happen. They are often character-focused because budgets are small, but just because there aren’t a lot of funds to work with doesn’t mean the impact is any different from that of something backed by a major studio.
Runs In The Family is about twentysomething River, a trans man who was raised by single father, Varun. They have a loving relationship, with Varun supporting River in everything he does, but there is some awkwardness as father works to make choices that his son will be comfortable with. When River’s estranged mother and Varun’s ex-girlfriend contacts Varun, asking him to pick her up in a South African town a road trip away, River agrees to go with Varun as long as he is back in time for a potentially life-changing drag performance. If he wins, it will allow him to get the gender affirming surgery he has been dreaming of and saving for.
Written by and starring Gabe Gabriel as River, and directed by his father Ian Gabriel, this film is a passion project with a lot of heart. Addressing things with the trans experience, like dad not being sure if it’s appropriate to still kiss his son on the forehead as he did before his son’s transition, there are some extremely important moments that I haven’t seen in film before.
The story itself is fairly predictable, with a mother who doesn’t initially accept her son and various hijinks on the road, but there is quite a bit that I didn’t see coming. That was a pleasant surprise.
The meat of this movie is the beautiful father-son story, though. I was here for every moment of dad trying and making mistakes, River explaining things or answering questions, and the two of them loving each other deeply. There is a compassion that hangs over everything, as River sees the supportive, genuine man who would do anything for his son.
That’s not to say that the movie doesn’t have its laughs. There are some very cute moments throughout the film, but one of the best is the drag show itself. Watching Varun’s dedication at the show, as well as some excellent music and River’s performance – that happens in stages – as he quick-changes from traditional female costuming to traditional male costuming (with a nonverbal nod to surgery in the middle), it’s a really fun and joyful sequence.
Runs In The Family is a feel-good movie that had me both smiling and choked up at various times. To quote Varun, “There’s nothing mixed up about you. You always knew exactly who you were and you did something about it. That’s not something most of us can say about ourselves.” If only everyone could have a dad who truly saw us for who we are. Good for River.
Runtime: 106 minutes
Motion Picture Rating: Not Rated (I would say this is around PG-13 for some sexual content and language)
Languages Spoken In The Film: English
Should You Watch It? Yes
Did I Cry? I got choked up
My Rating: 3.25/5 Stars
Available: Free on Netflix
