‘GEN_’ Review – Don Quixote Of The Medical World [Sundance 2025]

GEN_ is the kind of documentary that inspires a better feeling about the world. Director Gianluca Matarrese allows us entry into the magical world of a Don Quixote of the medical world. Dr. Maurizio Bini is anything but conventional, choosing the bold, unsafe route of overseeing patients who want to undergo in vitro and patients who are on their gender transition journeys. It’s not easy in an environment where conservatives constantly attack modernism and the freedom of choice. But Dr. Bini perseveres.

The documentary begins with Dr. Bini’s journey from nature to his clinic in Milan’s Niguarda public hospital. From the moment Matarrese shows him collecting mushrooms and later talking about their “invisible” gender, it is obvious how meticulous the doctor is with his words and methodology. Dr. Bini demonstrates his open-mindedness through his conversations with his patients. His lack of judgment is astounding. He is there to provide a safe space for people constantly judged by a cruel, regressive society. The verité-interview hybrid style creates a more intimate approach to a heavy subject matter and shows the ridiculousness of gender-normative societies in restricting individuals’ freedom to reconcile their bodies with their gender identities.

The documentary is a window into the state of the world. Another universe beyond our perception where babies dictate the name of the game, and it’s sometimes everything that a woman can think about. It’s where doubtful, skeptical individuals seek solace in feeling comfortable in their own skin—all thanks to Dr. Bini and his team of professionals. The director holds the audience captive so that the world outside the clinic ceases to exist during the runtime. Matarrese’s camera is too close to his subjects sometimes, but never intrusive. It puts the viewer in their shoes without losing the presence of a screen that they exist behind. These people become actors stepping on a stage one after the other, each with their set of unique problems, fears, concerns, and hopes. Dr. Bini’s smile and intelligent remarks ease them into receiving therapy without fear or shame imposed on them by an ignorant society. 

Despite the somewhat long runtime, this documentary never has a dull moment. The director allows us a unique scientific curiosity rewarded by authentic, humane stories. People losing their children, at odds with family for choosing to transition to their true identity, or simply mourning a breakup. Dr. Bini’s dedication and concern for his patients is mind-blowing. He represents the sacred side of medicine and treatment, as we read in old textbooks when doctors were true heroes of the past, and money or mega fame at the expense of saving lives weren’t as blatantly obvious goals as they are right now. 

The strongest part of the film is getting across Dr. Bini’s philosophy in life and work. Everyone should have the right to reproduce. Everyone should have the right to choose the identity that they truly specify. Watching the documentary one may think what an absurd world that we live in, that governments, religious institutions, and the media try to control such a simple fact. Whoever decides to act on these needs or desires is not harming anybody else. So where does the global conflict stem from?

GEN_ is an important piece of documentary storytelling. It mirrors the world of people seeking comfort, medical help, and support from highly trained and respected professionals. It’s modernity versus conservatism, freedom of choice versus oppressive traditions, and science versus habitual conformity. Without Dr. Bini as the central character, this unique subject picked carefully by a talented director, this film doesn’t work out the way it does. 

GEN_ had its World Premiere in the World Cinema Documentary Competition section of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.

Director: Gianluca Matarrese

Rated: NR

Runtime: 104m