Orlando, My Political Biography

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Orlando, My Political Biography

2023

1h 39m

Documentary

LGBTQ+

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

51 Reviews

75%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

"Come, come! I'm sick to death of this particular self. I want another." Taking Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando: A Biography as its starting point, academic virtuoso turned filmmaker Paul B. Preciado has fashioned the documentary, Orlando, My Political Biography, as a personal essay, historical analysis, and social manifesto which premiered and took home four prizes at the 2023 Berlin Film Festival. For almost a century, Woolf's eponymous hero/heroine has inspired readers for their gender fluidity across physical and spiritual metamorphoses over a 300-year lifetime. Preciado casts a diverse cross-section of more than twenty trans and non-binary individuals in the role of Orlando as they perform interpretations of scenes from the novel, weaving into Woolf's narrative their own stories of identity and transition. Not content to simply update a seminal work, Preciado interrogates the relevance of Orlando in the continuing struggle against anti-trans ideologies and in the fight for global trans rights.

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Critics Consensus

A playful documentary with a poetic spirit, Orlando, My Political Biography uses a seminal novel as the framework for an exploration of personal identity.

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Jonathan Romney

Financial Times

Throughout, the film provides a compelling platform for the diverse people Preciado has encouraged to present themselves to the world through the guise of Orlando.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 5, 2024

Full Review

Esmé Holden

Little White Lies

Orlando: My Political Biography is a dive into the collective trans consciousness, a discussion between Orlandos across time and place, an attempt to discover new ways to understand and express ourselves.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 3, 2024

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

The film might occasionally feel a bit self-conscious, but in a way this is a by-product of the film’s experimental nature.

Rated: 3/5

Jul 3, 2024

Full Review

Anya Couture

Geek Vibes Nation

This is an excellent film that enlightens and entertains, from its brilliant performances and narrative voice to its eclectic and electrifying soundtrack that argues history can and should be told by those subdued by reigning authorities.

Rated: 10/10

Aug 9, 2025

Full Review

Clotilde Chinnici

Loud and Clear Reviews

Overall, Orlando, My Political Biography is an important documentary that I hope reaches the widest audience possible

Rated: 3/5

Sep 14, 2024

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Calum Baker

Radio Times

The sense of solidarity that Preciado conjures between himself, his participants and, implicitly, the viewer makes for an experience as moving as it is playful.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 30, 2024

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Paul B. Preciado

Director

Paul B. Preciado

Writer

Victor Zébo

Cinematographer

Clara Deshayes

Music

Yaël Fogiel

Producer

Laetitia Gonzalez

Producer

Orlando, My Political Biography: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

"Come, come! I'm sick to death of this particular self. I want another." Taking Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando: A Biography as its starting point, academic virtuoso turned filmmaker Paul B. Preciado has fashioned the documentary, Orlando, My Political Biography, as a personal essay, historical analysis, and social manifesto which premiered and took home four prizes at the 2023 Berlin Film Festival. For almost a century, Woolf's eponymous hero/heroine has inspired readers for their gender fluidity across physical and spiritual metamorphoses over a 300-year lifetime. Preciado casts a diverse cross-section of more than twenty trans and non-binary individuals in the role of Orlando as they perform interpretations of scenes from the novel, weaving into Woolf's narrative their own stories of identity and transition. Not content to simply update a seminal work, Preciado interrogates the relevance of Orlando in the continuing struggle against anti-trans ideologies and in the fight for global trans rights.

Director: Paul B. Preciado
Producer: Yaël Fogiel, Laetitia Gonzalez, Annie Dekel-Ohayon, Farid Rezkallah
Screenwriter: Paul B. Preciado, Paul B. Preciado
Distributor: Sideshow / Janus Films
Production Co: Arte, 24 Images, Les Films du Poisson
Genre: Documentary, LGBTQ+
Original Language: French
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 10, 2023, Limited
Box Office (Gross USA): $37.5K
Runtime: 1h 39m

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