Tangerine – An Independent Blockbuster

Written by Colin Morley

Much More Than A Chase

The screenplay of Tangerine closely builds on both the whodunnit and cat-and-mouse plot devices of blockbusters past and present. In a typical blockbuster, this device involves one character, the cat, pursuing or chasing another, the mouse, often repeatedly nearly catching them before they escape again.

In the introductory scene, Sin-Dee, newly released from prison, meets Alexandra at a coffee shop where she learns of her pimp Chester’s infidelity. She spends the remainder of her day scouring the streets of Los Angeles to find the mystery woman. As she travels through the city, Sin-Dee reacquaints herself with many of her fellow sex workers, pimps, drug dealers, and addicts. Each new character reveals a piece of information that brings Sin-Dee closer to her goal and keeps the viewer guessing about the outcome of her search. For example, one woman tells Sin-Dee that Chester is with a woman called Desiree; however, another says her name is Destiny. Similarly, a pimp tells her the woman is at the food line, but a different man says she is on Vermont Street. Moreover, by making these interactions short and varied, Baker and Bergoch give the viewer a sense of Sin-Dee’s relentless determination, evoking the same suspenseful quality of Hollywood chase films.

As the audience follows Sin-Dee and Alexandra through the city for clues, they are exposed to the circumstances and personalities of the poor and LBGTQ communities in Los Angeles. For instance, when Sin-Dee goes to the food line during her search, she talks to a recovering drug addict trying to stay clean by avoiding Chester and prostitution. Nevertheless, despite these challenging conditions, the viewer also gets to see the humorous and joyful nature of Sin-Dee. Alexandra and their friends. In this way, the chase and whodunit devices are used not just for entertainment but as a way to circumvent the stereotypes audiences have come to expect in depictions of sex workers and the LGBTQ community on film.

Specifically, they showcase how trans women are fully-fledged human beings with personalities and feelings of happiness, rather than simply sorrowful victims defined by their work. The best example of this representation of trans women in the film are scenes involving Alexandra as she follows Sin-Dee on her quest. After Sin-Dee interrogates each of her friends, clients and coworkers, Alexandra hands them a flyer to her upcoming singing gig at a local club. As the audience later learns, Alexandra paid the club with the little money she has in order to be allowed to sing. These scenes show aspects of Alexandra’s personality outside her work, as well as her hopes and dreams for a life beyond what she has. This contrast between personality, aspiration and circumstance, in turn, demonstrates how the persecution of trans women has forced them into sex work of out necessity rather than choice.

Humour, Action, and Humanity

Much like viewers have come to expect in movie star led superhero and action films, Tangerine effortlessly blends humour and violence to engross its viewers. However, unlike these films, the physical confrontations in Tangerine have an element of darkness and tragedy that reminds us of the inherent physical danger trans women and sex workers face. This is evident in a scene where Alexandra performs a sexual service for a man who refuses to pay her. Alexandra easily overpowers the man and starts to chase him, giving the scene an element of humour and absurdity that maintains its levity. The scene mimics the overall chase structure of the film, eliciting the same entertaining energy. Although, at the same time, Alexandra’s preparedness and ability to use self-defence shows her awareness of both the bodily harm and financial risk she faces each time she enters a client’s personal space. This reality is emphasized further when a police officer comes to stop the fight and mentions that they have “worked” with Alexandra in situations like this before, revealing to the audience that this is not the first time Alexandra has had to resort to violence to protect herself (25:17). At first viewing, Alexandra’s interaction with the police is also humorous as she struggles to explain why the man owes her money. However, the officer’s unsympathetic response also showcases that not only are trans sex workers threatened by their clients but by broader social institutions that fail to provide them security and accountability. A reality made all the more poignant by the realization that sex work is often one of the only sources of livelihood for marginalized LGBTQ women like Sin-Dee and Alexandra.

Baker and Bergoch use comedy as an entry point for the viewer. It is a way to get to know Alexandra and Sin-Dee for those who do not know what it is like to live in their world. In the film’s first scene, the audience bonds with the two as they reunite and make jokes at a coffee shop after Alexandra has been newly released from jail. Humour lets the viewer discover who Alexandra and Sin-Dee genuinely are. It shows us their pain, such as when Sin-Dee makes a joke about how cruel it is that God gave her male genitals (10:07). However, it also shows us their love for each other, which can be seen in a scene where Sin-Dee drags the recently captured mystery woman to the club to hear Alexandra sing.

Alexandra and Sindee

In Tangerine, the laughter, action sequences, and the chase all provide a gleeful candy coating to the film’s central theme: the comradery of trans women of colour in the face of almost insurmountable adversity. This message is exemplified at the end of the film when transphobic men unexpectedly assault Sin-Dee, and the viewer is left with a final image of Alexandra holding her hand to comfort her. In this moment, Baker and Bergoch show us that Alexandra’s enduring support of Sin-Dee in her chase is ultimately a metaphor for how love and friendship can triumph over injustice.

Works Cited

Tangerine. Directed by Sean Baker. Magnolia Pictures, 2015. Film.