‘I’m Your Venus’ Film Review – Not As Flamboyant And Eye-Catching As Its Subject, But Still Very Inspiring [LFF 2024]

On the 21st of December 1988, the world of House of Extravaganza was shaken to its core. One of its glamorous members, Venus Xtravanganza, was strangled to death just because of who she was. The star took the world by storm in Paris is Burning with her wonderful, eccentric, but also down-to-earth personality. The 1990 documentary by Jennie Livingston was and is still considered groundbreaking as it depicts the New York City ballroom scenes, transgender people and the LGBQT+ community for the very first time.

While the feature was filled with big, bold personalities from all over the world, it was Venus who was the Cinderella of the ball(room). She instantly became an inspiration for both the LGBQT+ community and for every person embracing who they are. Sadly, Venus never saw how brightly she shone in that documentary as her life was tragically cut short before the release at the age of just 23.

However, her three brothers (John Pellagatti, Joe Pellagatti and Louie Pellagatti) and director Kimberly Reed (Dark Money, Prodigal Sons) want to keep her dreams, spirit and legacy alive, and that’s how I’m Your Venus came to be. Alongside criticising Venus’ unsolved murder – even after thirty-six years, no one has been charged with the crimes – the wonderous documentary also shows us what an immense impact Venus had. In this work, the audience follows Venus’ two families: the biological family, the Pellagatti’s, and her transgender family (represented by Gisele Xtravaganza). The former looks back on Venus’s life and relationship with her brothers while still finding justice for her sister. At the same time, the latter mainly reminisce about the massive effect Venus had on their lives and the entire LGBTQ+ ballroom scene in New York.

The Pellagatti’s story is the main one in this documentary. The brothers want to take a look at the official autopsy report to find out indeed who strangled their sister to death at the obsolete Fulton Hotel in New York City. While the NYPD never named any suspects, they do have the killer’s DNA. However, without a match in the DNA database, the brothers might never find justice for their sister. That’s why they demand the re-opening of Venus’ case. With the new technology, a match might be found. Will they finally get answers after all these years? To try and give Venus even more justice, they also start legal procedures to change her name posthumously on both government documents and on the gravestone.

Reed’s focus on the Pellagatti’s quest for justice is a blessing and curse for this documentary. It’s eye-opening to see the impact someone being transgender has on family relationships. You hear how Louie certainly is the one who, by all accounts, accepted Venus the most. John, who sees himself as the family’s leader, admits that he has difficulties understanding why Venus was who she truly was. While the testimonies of the brothers are certainly enlightening and emotional, sometimes the camera lingers a little bit too long on one of the trio. This results in awkward silences, almost staged-looking interviews and emotions, and a decrease in the authenticity and sincerity of this feature.

Shining a much brighter light on the other family, the ballroom family, would have benefited both the documentary and the trans-community. Venus lived during an era when the word ‘transgender’ didn’t even exist. Transgender people were often misidentified as cis-people, especially if they haven’t undergone gender affirmation surgery. Back then, Venus and her fellow dancers and transgender people faced a lot of racism, transphobia and slur words. While times have changed (for the better), there’s still much to do. By focusing more on LGBTQ+ people and allowing them to appear on-screen, I’m Your Venus would have given them a much louder voice and more representation in this work and society.

While most of the time, you see one family or the other, there are also many inspirational moments during which both families collide. During those heartwarming, genuine, touching scenes, the brothers get to know their dearly beloved sister from a totally different side. They hear who she exactly was to the LGBTQ+ community, but also how broken and alienated Venus felt because of the rejection by certain family members because of her being transgender.

Throughout the 85-minute runtime, Reed combines his shot footage with previously unseen and re-edited footage from Paris is Burning. By doing so, she tells you a powerful, personal, and positive story about finding your true identity, what people from different communities can learn from each other, and how much there’s still to be done for transgenders and LGBTQ+ community. While I’m Your Venus isn’t nearly as flamboyant and eye-catching as its subject, it will still make you laugh, cry and feel inspired by what you see on screen.

I’m Your Venus was screened as a part of the BFI London Film Festival 2024.

Director: Kimberly Reed

Rated: NR

Runtime: 85m