Intimate mapping of transidentity, at 61, Harper Steele sets off on the roads of the United States with her friend Will Ferrell after beginning her transition. Spotlight on the touching documentary “Will & Harper”, available since September 27 on Netflix.
Famous screenwriter for Saturday Night Live, at 61, Harper Steele decides to become the person she has always been. “I will transition to live my life as a woman” she announces in 2022 in an email sent to several of her friends. Among the recipients, the famous actor Will Ferrell. They have known each other for almost 30 years and to conceal this friendship, the duo undertakes a 17-day road trip. From New York to Los Angeles, Will and Harper cross the United States and their moods a little too. The opportunity for Harper to revisit the places that formed him before his transition and for Will to be at the bedside of his friend’s confidences.
Unveiled as a grand premiere at the Sundance festival last January, the reception of “Will & Harper” in Salt Lake City was met with thunderous applause unusual for the festival and, what’s more, for a documentary. “I am absolutely overwhelmed by the love these two friends have for each other” had also declared the director Josh Greenbaum during a Q&A. At the wheel of their very cinematic Jeep Grand Wagoneer, the filmmaker, although renowned for his unconventional comedies (“Backstreet Dogs”), captures with great sensitivity the story of Harper, his still gaping suffering, and the harmony that she has found since her transition.
Will Ferrell et Harper Steele
© 2024 Netflix, Inc.
“We are comedy writers, we had a lot of bad ideas at the beginning. (…) Then finally, we said to ourselves, let’s take the car and see what happens” had also declared Harper Stele. There is indeed a palpable authenticity as Harper attempts to reintegrate into society since her transition. A free format where emotions on edge mingle with the threatened freedoms of LGBTQIA+ people in Republican states, in Indiana in particular while Will and Harper meet the governor Eric Holcomb (which has just signed anti-trans decrees), or even in Texas where their visit to a steakhouse triggers a surge of hatred on social networks.
Aware of the world, with severity, but humor, “Will & Harper” also sets out to meet other transgender people, particularly in Peoria, Illinois. Carried by the radiant nature of its protagonists and the necessity of its message, “Will & Harper” can also be seen as a work about friendship and tolerance in addition to being a personal and intimate story about transidentity. And although some imperfections can be noted, we hope that the conversations which will follow the viewing of “Will & Harper” will be as caring as this undeniably honest and touching documentary.
Available on Netlix since September 27.
4/5★
Trailer for “Will & Harper”
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