Homebody is something utterly new in the landscape of body swap movies, a child-centred exploration of what it means to be free to explore and learn without adult judgment. Homebody is awaiting a UK release date.
Body-swap comedies have been a staple of filmmaking ever since the dawn of cinema, with early examples including The Man Who Changed His Mind (1936), Turnabout (1940) and Goodbye Charlie (1964). However, it was not until Freaky Friday (1976) that the body-swap comedy truly found its feet. Following its success, the gates were well and truly opened, with a plethora of body-swap comedies arriving in cinemas throughout the 80s, including Vice Versa, Big, Dream a Little Dream, and many more.
However, how many of these actively explored gender identity or sexuality? It’s an interesting question, as we would expect themes of gender identity to sit at the heart of any body-swap comedy involving males and females. There are, of course, a few examples, including It’s a Boy Girl Thing (2006). However, generally, body-swap comedies steer clear of gender identity and sexual orientation by focusing on same-gender swaps based on age. Therefore, Homebody is not only a groundbreaking leap forward in body-swap comedy; it’s a tender, warm, beautifully written, performed, and directed joy.
Homebody started life as a short film called I Was in Your Blood, about a little boy who idolised his babysitter and wanted to be her. Most of us, as children, have had this thought, wish or desire. Sometimes, this is due to hero worship (I wanted to be Marty McFly, aged 9), and sometimes, it’s out of curiosity as our imaginations explore what it must be like to be someone else. But what if that desire to be someone else is rooted in the early stages of discovering your gender identity or sexuality? There is no doubt in my mind now that I wanted to be Marty McFly as a kid because Michael J Fox held a strange, undefinable attraction in my young mind. I didn’t know these feelings were the early stages of discovering my sexual orientation. Director Joseph Sackett clearly understands that self-discovery and identity take many years to form, but they begin in childhood through imaginative play.
Nine-year-old Johnny (Tre Ryder) lives in Brooklyn with his mum, but due to his mum’s busy career, Johnny spends much of his time with his babysitter, Melanie (Colby Minifie). Johnny loves Melanie dearly, but this love is difficult to vocalise as he collects a box of memorabilia, from Melanie’s lipstick to hand-drawn pictures and letters. Of course, Melanie loves Johnny too, but her new career and training mean she will soon have to say goodbye to the boy she babysits.
For Johnny, the prospect of Melanie leaving is too difficult to contemplate, but what if he could find a way to keep her around? And what if he could spend a day as Melanie, exploring the world through her eyes?
There are so many things to love in the short one-and-a-quarter-hour journey we take with Melanie and Johnny. Homebody’s humour is beautifully sensitive in its construction, never resorting to simplistic stereotypes or judgements. Here, we are encouraged to view the world through Johnny’s innocent eyes as he inhabits Melanie’s body, trying on her makeup, dressing in his mother’s clothes, and eating copious amounts of sweets. Sackett keeps the tone light and loving throughout as we explore the world anew through Johnny’s eyes. His innocence, honesty, and optimism are beautifully brought to life by Minifie’s stunning performance.
As we embark on the unique, delicate and humorous journey Sackett, Minifie, and Ryder create, we are wrapped in the warmth of Ariel Marx’s score and the gloriously bright cinematography of Laura Valladao. Some may describe the resulting film as a queer take on Being John Malkovich or a gender identity-conscious Freaky Friday. But for me, Homebody is something utterly new in the landscape of body swap movies, a child-centred exploration of what it means to be free to explore and learn without adult judgment.
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