As an obsessive fan of all things RuPaul’s Drag Race and FX’s legendary drama series Pose, I am ashamed to say that I still have yet to watch 1990’s acclaimed cult hit, Paris is Burning. The unique documentary broke new ground for telling queer stories, with reverberations in LGBTQIA+ culture still felt to this very day. One of its biggest breakout stars, Venus Xtravaganza, would not even live to see the film’s release. Tragically, this trailblazing trans Puerto Rican Italian was murdered and left for dead—to this day, her case still remains unsolved. Director Kimberly Reed’s fiercely moving portrait of a ballroom icon and her family’s quest for revitalizing their sister’s legacy posses a heartbreaking power in its story of resilience.
For the most part, we follow the three Pelagatti brothers as they revisit old family stomping grounds and reminisce about their sister, Venus. Refreshingly, every brother refers to Venus as a female, and none mention her deadname whatsoever. Their intention here extends far beyond simple nostalgia. They want real answers for what happened to Venus: who killed her? Why was this swept under the rug? Why have other members of House Xtravaganza also been killed? How can they change Venus’s legal name posthumously, or help their childhood home become a historical landmark? They meet with lawyers to help reopen her closed case files, hoping against hope that some new DNA evidence may have come to light. Their eventual answers are more surprising than one would expect, but this is no murder mystery doc. I’m Your Venus celebrates who Venus was and she stood for, tracing her influence up through the modern House of Xtravaganza which still blazes strong.
Reed structures her documentary with plenty of archival footage, vintage photographs and audio recordings, and wonderfully crisp re-edited excerpts from Paris is Burning. The juxtaposition of classic, late 80s ballroom culture against its evolution today becomes further emphasized by including House of Xtravaganza in the mix. Their house mother attends most of the meetings with the Pelagatti brothers; one can tangibly feel the catharsis in the brothers observing an out and proud trans woman, living the way Venus never could at the time. Conversely, the house mother mentions how much she owes to Venus. It is a surreal simpatico circle, injecting vitality and relevance into Venus’s already engaging story.
To be honest, I’m Your Venus first caught my attention when I spotted Mother Elektra herself, Pose’s Dominique Jackson, as one of the executive producers. She does end up making one appearance late in the film, but her involvement comprises not even a portion of the relevance. The Pelagatti brothers really take a stand in shining light on Venus and her unforgettable persona. Kimberly Reed handles difficult subject matter with relative ease, blanking out deadnames and finding unique ways to explore forgiveness and grief through her subjects. A heartbreaking, complicated documentary featuring a score as moving as its focus, I’m Your Venus has an impactful resonance that many people need right now more than ever.
I’m Your Venus debuted at 2024’s Tribeca Film Festival.
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