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The Garden Left Behind

Play trailer 1:47 Poster for The Garden Left Behind 2019 1h 28m Drama LGBTQ+ Play Trailer Watchlist
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91% Tomatometer 67 Reviews 88% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
A Mexican trans woman struggles to build a life for herself as an undocumented immigrant in New York City.
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The Garden Left Behind

The Garden Left Behind

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Critics Consensus

The Garden Left Behind draws on one immigrant's journey to offer graceful, thought-provoking commentary on timely sociopolitical themes.

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Critics Reviews

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Cath Clarke Guardian First-time actor Guevara's performance as Tina has a radiant quality, soulful and touchingly gentle, though her line readings are a little stilted at times. Rated: 3/5 Jul 26, 2021 Full Review Monica Castillo RogerEbert.com There's a secondary plot in The Garden Left Behind that's dizzyingly misguided. Rated: 1/4 Aug 28, 2020 Full Review Randy Myers San Jose Mercury News "The Garden Left Behind" will break your heart; a film of utter grace, poignancy and deep understanding. Rated: 3.5/4 Aug 27, 2020 Full Review Alessandra Rangel InSession Film The Garden Left Behind is a worthy entry in the rather scarce filmography about the lives of trans people. With a sensitive touch, this movie addresses issues of identity, immigration, and acceptance. Rated: B- Mar 13, 2023 Full Review Cody Dericks Next Best Picture There's a fine line between a sympathetic portrait of someone and an almost exploitative look into the life of a socially marginalized person, and this film struggles at times to find a balance between these two qualities. Rated: 5/10 Jul 5, 2022 Full Review Jason Shawhan Nashville Scene The Garden Left Behind is vibrant and visceral, and packed with sincere and affecting performances. Sep 10, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Trans l L Amazing movie and I'm only 22 minutes in❤️ Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/31/23 Full Review Audience Member This film was fantastic! It packs such an emotional punch and allows the viewer into a world that is not often authentically represented on the screen. The writing, directing and cinematography were nuanced and moving, making for a must-see film! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review dave d While the film isn't revolutionary, it does plant a seed by allowing dozens of trans actors, and behind the scenes personal to make a movie. That fact should make you smile. We get Ed Asner for crying out loud. One of the loudest progressive voices out there, Asner has done a lot of voice acting of late. Seeing him here, even if the scenes are brief brings an energy and class to the picture. Flavio Alves has written and directed four shorts, but this is his first feature length venture and it was funded in large part by EBAY. Yes, you read that right. Michael Madsen may have star billing, however he is in two scenes, probably filmed over a few hours. Carlie Guevara is the star and while the story has heft, we have to talk about the elephant in the room. Guevara is a novice at best and is often distracting. I appreciate how trans characters are played by trans actors. While there is still a long way to go, this film is a giant step forward from the ways trans characters were portrayed in the past. All that said the final few scenes had a power thanks to Alves. It's heartening to know films like this can be made. Final score: 6.5/10 Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member One star because these are important stories and topics that need to be told. However, the script dialogue is horrendous. The acting atrocious. Riddled with lgbt cliché's: Main character not only struggles transitioning, but also health problems, immigrant status, financial woes, AND a jerk boyfriend. I'm honestly surprised she didn't die of AIDs in the end. No that'd be too easy, let's bludgeon her in the streets. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Audience Member A perfect story about being human. It's urgent and important film. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Audience Member A film with true staying power. Alves and Rotondo deftly maintain a sense of suspense and trepidation for the protagonist that keeps you invested the entire time. What a heartbreaking, but incredibly important, story to tell. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Garden Left Behind

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Cast & Crew

L'animale 88% 78% L'animale Watchlist The Surrogate 92% 61% The Surrogate Watchlist TRAILER for The Surrogate Tu me manques 100% 60% Tu me manques Watchlist Falling 66% 63% Falling Watchlist TRAILER for Falling Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis A Mexican trans woman struggles to build a life for herself as an undocumented immigrant in New York City.
Director
Flavio Alves
Producer
Roy Wol, Shea Diamond
Screenwriter
Flavio Alves, John Rotondo
Production Co
Autonomous Pictures, Queens Pictures
Genre
Drama, LGBTQ+
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 8, 2020
Runtime
1h 28m
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