About Ray

source: About Ray

As if being a teenager was not hard enough this is the story of Ray who was born Ramona and is trying to change that but needs the permission of both her parents. One played by Nomai Watts seems supportive as a single mother raising Ray all by herself. The other is absent due to a series of events that need to be unfolded so that Ray can be normal. I like Elle Fanning in the movie, she was good. She plays Ray as that typical emotional teenager, but mature and driven enough that it did not annoy me. Although, her performance did not make me believe that Ray is a heterosexual teenage boy that she was trying to pass him off as. It could be that I'm missing the point. Maybe, or maybe there is a reason Hilary Swank won an Oscar for playing a woman living her life as a man in Boys Don't Cry. The movie is a bit of an emotional roller coaster, which is good, but I've definitely been on way, way better roller coasters based on less sophisticated topics. You are suppose to feel something in this type of movie. For me it felt mostly like the film wanted me to have a side on the topic, and then see what happens once all the cards are on the table, but it did not touch me like they were hoping it would. I saw in another review someone stated that 3 Generations could have been much more. I don't know the more it could have been, but I'm guessing that's what's lacking from this ride. Based on the subject matter, I don't know enough about women going through the process of becoming men to know what's missing to make this story pop. I just know it does not have it. I do know that the movie is not just about the hot button topic as the title suggest. It's primary story is about (Or should be about) 3 Generations of women in one house. That overall plot may work better as a sitcom with today's episode being about how Ramona wants to live her life as Ray. With the movie's focus on Ray's plot they did not leave that much room for the 3 Generations overall plot, starring Susan Sarandon as the 1st Generation, who owns the home and is a Lesbian living with her life partner (As they are of that generation that could not get married), and is confused about the whole Ray situation, which seems Ironic, but when you watch the movie you'll see it's not, and Elle Fanning is the 3rd generation who was born a woman but is a man inside. Then there's Naomi Watts who plays the second Generation. Perfectly placed in the middle. By traditional standards her problems and hang ups seem normal compared to her mother, who she is nothing like and her son, who she is nothing like. Give credit to these fine actors that I even have a small notion of what you would expect from a film called 3 Generations. I never fully got the joust of who Sarandon was supposed to be playing other than a woman who owns the home, and Ironically Watts character was 2 dimensional, even though the movie revolved greatly around her. I'm thinking the movie should have been like Little Boxes. Not a similar story, as that movie was about the day-to-day effects of racism, but similar in the sense that the comedy of the Dramedy, comes from the family dealing with their issues as a family. I see them attempting this in 3 Generations but it's not done well enough to pull the strings. http://cinemagardens.com/

This film is too talky, as the scenario is built around a string of long conversations that typically degenerate into chaos. Lost in the shuffle is the human portrait of young Ray (née Ramona), who is a sixteen-year-old who is contemplating gender confirmation surgery. The three generations of the film include your Ray, his sensitive mother Frances (Naomi Watts), and the crusty lesbian grandmother Dolly (Susan Sarandon). At the heart of the film is Frances, who struggles with signing the release form for the surgery of her son and tracking down the father, who also must be a signatory. The performances are excellent, especially Watts, whose character struggles with a secret that is eventually revealed. When young Ray learns the truth about his mother, the implications may be shattering. The characters talk up a storm to the degree that the narrative line is very thin. By contrast, one of the strengths of "The Danish Girl" was the complex and smoothly developed plotting. In the case of "3 Generations," one of the unresolved issues is who precisely is the father of young Ray. The filmmakers could have been tidier in wrapping up such details, which undoubtedly would have been of great importance to Ray. While the numerous verbal interactions were long-winded and repetitive, there was a touching scene in a Japanese restaurant that was the most emotionally satisfying in the film.

Very clearly a cis person who doesn't know much about trans people who thinks they know a lot about trans people's interpretation of what being trans is like. They never talked to a single actual trans person to create this film. It had potential but they ended up doing almost everything wrong and low key transphobic. If it was a play there is a 40% chance I would boo. Boo!

So, as a forysomething cis gay prof who sometimes teaches gender studies to college students, I'm watching movie portrayals of trans family experiences, and searching for a trans protagonist whom a majority of those communities could find honestly, acceptably portrayed. If such a character even exists in film, at least when played by a cis person, this film's central figure, Ray, just isn't him. 3 Generations disseminates the melodrama unevenly among grandma Susan Sarandon and partner, mother Naomi Watts and the two brothers she vaguely dated 16 years earlier, and son Ray, who transitions but needs both rents' signatures on a form for gender dysphoria treatment. We spend most of the film waiting for the form to be signed, and the melodrama derives from a grandmother who doesn't understand why Ray can't be cis lesbian instead, a mother who has to go find the paramour whom we're led to believe abandoned girlfriend and child years before, and the long lost father, who's gone on to form a second, more perfect family in the meantime. If you've got all that, you're only beginning to follow this movie's overdetermined, forced, and unfelt twists and turns. Without a real emotional center for all viewers to relate to, we were intended, one supposes, to follow whatever avatar fits with your generation as a viewer. What results is a lot of trans and old-school lgbt sturm and drang, but not a movie that will change many minds, offer any new angles on a struggling middle-age and single mom at the center of what could be a rom-com, or come close to pleasing many in trans communities (as referenced in other reviews). Even the last dinner in the film's final scene feels forced and Hollywood, as none of these characters has viewers anticipating good cheer and camaraderie at this point, especially with this knot of twisted family relationships. 3 Generations was going for something significent, but in my search for transcending trans protagonists, I'll just have to go on looking.

It's a fascinating story about a fragile girl whose only desire is to be a boy and the ramifications this decision has on her family. Ella Fanning displays great teenage angst - throwing tantrums, manipulation, sarcasm, selfishness, it's all there. Naomi Watts is the stand out, struggling to support her daughter's situation while juggling her own interesting relationships with her ex partners and mothers. Everyone performed their parts well, Susan Sarandon has a minimal presence throughout the film yet is memorable. I'd have liked to have seen Ray/Ramona's mental instability addressed in the film as you never really understand why she wants to be a boy other than she's merely wanted it so since she was a little girl. Maybe that's all there is to it?

A great example of Hollywood letting kids be kids... Some of the actors were okay, but the director of this film must be giving his unbridled thoughts of young teenagers and the way they act... Sat all the way through this, and was thoroughly disappointed...

Gaby Dallal directs her own screenplay (co-written with Nikole Beckwith) in what is one of the most significant films abut the gender perception changing world in which we live. It is a very intelligent, humorous, sensitive and wholly entertaining film that has the courage to open the conflicts that face transgender people and their families. Family living under one roof in New York must deal with a life-changing transformation by one that ultimately affects them all. Ray (Elle Fanning) is a teenager who has come to the realization that he isn't meant to be a girl and has decided to transition from female to male. His single mother, Maggie (Naomi Watts), must track down Ray's biological father (Tate Donovan – or his brother Sam Trammell) to get his legal consent to allow Ray's transition. Dolly (Susan Sarandon), Ray's lesbian grandmother, living with her life partner Frances (Linda Emond) is having a hard time accepting that she now has a grandson. They must each confront their own identities and learn to embrace change and their strength as a family in order to ultimately find acceptance and understanding. The entire cast is exceptional and as always Naomi Watts, Susan Sarandon, and Elle Fanning are superb – wholly credible in their challenging roles. But there are also some fine small parts, such as the therapist Dr. Brillstein (Andrew Polk) and Frances (Linda Emond) who stand out as bight lights that enhance the story. All in all an excellent film on every level and one that deserves a very large audience. Highly Recommended.

Gaby Dallel's "3 Generations" drew criticism for the casting of a cisgender person in the role of a transgender character. While that is an issue, the movie itself is worth seeing. It shows how the different family members deal with the news that the daughter is transitioning to male. In fact, the lesbian grandmother has the hardest time dealing with it (I've noticed that a number of gays and lesbians, while fighting for their own rights, have ignored transgender rights). I wouldn't call the movie a masterpiece, but I think that it addresses some good issues. It's the sort of movie that could only get released in the 2010s, when understanding of gender-nonconforming people became widespread. I recommend it. I guess that the distribution by The Weinstein Company now looks unpleasant due to the ugly revelations about Harvey Weinstein, but that doesn't change the movie itself. Really good one. As expected, Elle Fanning, Naomi Watts and Susan Sarandon all turn in fine performances.

Ray (Elle Fanning) wants to transition to being a boy. He's 16 and needs parental consent. His mother Maggie (Naomi Watts) has to track down his biological father. They live in NYC with Maggie's gay mother Dolly (Susan Sarandon) and her girlfriend Frances. Dolly would rather Ray be a lesbian. This is tackling an advanced edgy issue. It needs some better writing. The actors are top notch. The story needs to move but it's stuck in molasses. The dream girl probably needs more screen time and played by someone more charismatic. Quite frankly, she needs to be played by somebody like Elle. Ray's flailing attempts at romance is the most compelling story opportunity. There could be love triangles and unrequited love. The bio dad is not that compelling. Despite any weakness in writing, the actors carry the heavy load well especially Elle.