Shinjuku Boys | Documentary Recomendation!

About: Shinjuku Boys is a 1995 film by Kim Longinotto and Jano Williams. It explores the lives of three transgender men who work at the New Marilyn Club in Tokyo, Japan. 

Language: Japanese & English

Subtitles: English

Watch on archive.org here!

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I really enjoyed this documentary detailing life as a trans man, or Onabe / おなべ, in Tokyo, Japan in the 90s.

It shows their struggles with general life as well as the struggles that come from being trans. 

The video starts with Tatsu getting a haircut. Him and his barber talk about how his hormone injections are going and the changes that the barber has noticed; thicker hair, maybe a mustache soon. It's a very pleasant conversation with the barber. It just warmed my heart to see <3

There's a later scene with Kazuki being really nervous about calling his mom, who is unaccepting of his lifestyle. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, and really felt a kinship through such a common queer experience. 

My favorite parts are when the boys are interviewed individually and they really open up about how they feel about their identity and how they identify themselves. The documentary is worth watching for that alone.

Some of the boys are on hormones, some don't want to be. They all talk about their experiences and opinions and they all have their own perspectives. Even so, across time and space, so much is similar in experience and feeling to many queer experiences today. I know I sure as hell related a lot to them. 

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I always love seeing the complex identities queer people have. We're currently living in an era where both queer and straight people seem insistent on forcing queer people into a label with it's own set of restrictions. I'm nervous to mention it, but the debate as to whether a trans man can still be a lesbian comes to mind. I feel like if people better understood queer history/experiences outside their own, or even cared to listen to perspectives such as those shown in Shinjuku Boys, they would better understand how close lesbian and trans masculine experiences are and how silly these debates based on semantics are. You don't need to understand to be accepting and kind towards those who are different than you. 

The second labels stop being helpful descriptors and become rules to how you are allowed to exist, is the second labels stop serving a purpose and instead become a tool for fascism. Sorry to throw around the big f word haha Maybe a tool for discrimination would have been a more agreeable statement. 

Anyway, WATCH SHINUKU BOYS! It's great! It feels like a time capsule while still being relevant to modern audiences!