“The hardest part of my day is knowing everybody still sees me as a girl,” says Ray (Elle Fanning) in a new trailer for Gaby Dellal’s “3 Generations.” While Ray is part of a progressive family — he was raised by his mother, grandmother, and his grandmother’s partner in New York City — the transgender teen’s decision to transition is still met with some resistance. “Why can’t she just be a lesbian?” his grandmother Dolly (Susan Sarandon) asks. As his mother, Maggie (Naomi Watts), is forced to remind her, Ray’s not a lesbian — he’s a boy.
Maggie supports Ray’s journey, but the single mom needs to track down his biological dad (Tate Donovan, “Damages”) to get his legal consent to allow Ray’s transition. “She’s a kid. What if she changes her mind?” Ray’s dad questions.
“About Ray” has been given an “R” rating by the MPAA. The Weinstein Company is challenging the classification. Dellal commented, “As a mother and a filmmaker, I want to speak to kids, to parents, and to grandparents everywhere in a common language of love and inclusion about a subject matter that is not only real and complicated, but one that is important and alive today. There are kids all over this country that are still too fearful to speak out and to step out; they’re too alone to fight, lacking the kinds of support that would let them feel free to be themselves,” she observed. “Our story wants to humanize this family experience, and to take the mystery out of the secrets. I hope the MPAA will reconsider this ‘R’ rating and encourage children to see this story and feel connected.”
The project has been met with mixed reactions since it was announced. While many are happy to see a film centered on a trans character, the fact that a cis-gender actress was cast for the role of a trans boy received a lot of criticism.
Dellal’s previous credits include “Angels Crest,” “On a Clear Day,” and “The Ride.” She co-wrote “3 Generations” with Nikole Beckwith (“Stockholm, Pennsylvania”). The film hits theaters May 19 and will open the Bentonville Film Festival May 2.
