Lingua Franca

2019 Directed by Isabel Sandoval

Olivia, an undocumented Filipina immigrant paranoid about deportation works as a caregiver to a Russian-Jewish grandmother in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, NY. When the man she’s secretly paying for a green card marriage backs out, she becomes involved with a slaughterhouse worker who is unaware that she’s a trans woman.

Isabel Sandoval Lynn Cohen Eamon Farren Ivory Aquino Lev Gorn P.J. Boudousqué Andrea Leigh Leif Steinert Jake Soister Roman Blat Megan Channell Shiloh Verrico Mark Nelson Daniel Danielson Bryan Webster Dean Temple Ari Barkan Deema Aitken Christine Spang Ian Harmon Matthew James Ballinger

95 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Sean Baker 7

Written, directed, produced, edited, and starring Isabel Sandoval. Pretty damn impressive. And looks beautiful... shot by Isaac Banks, his first feature narrative DP credit!
Array gets distributor of the year in my book. Acquiring and releasing films that would barely have a chance at distro until now.
Watched on Netflix.
Review by Willow Maclay 3

In Isabel Sandoval’s newest film Lingua Franca, a Filipina trans woman named Olivia (Sandoval), is in search of the stability of a green card. Olivia is ensnared in the red tape of documentation that is all the more fraught when considering the trans status of the character. Her passport lists her as male, with an old name, and collides in direct contrast with her body. She is post-operative, and Sandoval makes sure to include a scene of dilation to state that Olivia is a trans woman who has been out a long time. It isn’t rare for trans people to let things like passports and government identification to rot with misinformation, because to gain the acceptance of the government is…
Review by laura ★★★★ 3

isabel sandoval’s touch breathes so much into this, and you can feel how deeply each piece of it belongs to her. but there is also a looming presence that blankets the whole film — in this juxtaposition of olivia taking care of others in a country that is not taking care of her.
hope this film can reach more eyes, because it’s definitely one of the most honest & thoughtful films to come out of this year.
Review by airwreckuh ★★★★½ 4

"You're safe now. You're here with me."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
We never see trans Filipina women in movies. Netflix is changing that with Lingua Franca— and we👏🏽 love 👏🏽to 👏🏽see 👏🏽it. In the philippines, the concept of trans women in particular almost always portrays them as being “Barbie-types”, “hyper-feminine”, and sometimes quite “flamboyant” and, in Lingua Franca, we see Olivia, a trans women character that’s not just that. You know? That was fully fleshed out and three-dimensional. She’s also a daughter. She’s also a breadwinner. She’s also a caregiver. She’s much more. This slice-of-life indie is an absolutely crushing film, with its atmosphere of anxiety and its characters trapped in cycles. Sandoval is not working in…
Review by muriel ★★★★½

isabel sandoval captures and says so much not only with her acting but with her direction and writing, all in an incredibly subtle and simple way. both her and the film are so wonderful.
Review by claira curtis ★★★★★

"Please, let me fix this."
I can't properly express the amount of emotions I experienced while watching Isabel Sandoval's latest. I am not speaking hyperbolically when I say that this might be one of the most honest, tender films of the year. At times achingly raw and at others deeply heartbreaking, Sandoval has delivered a personal, beautiful story of love, longing, and desperation.
Every element of this story was very clearly poured over with the utmost care and intention. Shots are delivered in unique sequences that balance bringing us face to face with the reality of our protagonist and grounding us in the background as a silent observer. Exterior shots feel almost like a breath of fresh air, giving us…
Review by Ryan Daniel ★★½

I like the message behind this film and the themes that push it forward, but they’re both a little too spoon fed. But, this is a very personal story, and I respect the hell out of the fact this film was made.
There’s some really nice moments in this movie, but they’re spread out between some very overly long scenes that didn’t really enhance the story in any way. A lot of it felt like style over substance.
I love the transgender representation though, very rarely do you get to see that in movies.
Review by Jaime Rebanal ★★★★½ 1

It can't really be understated how much love can be felt into telling a story that feels so personal, but if there's anything else that's to be picked up from watching Lingua Franca, it's that Isabel Sandoval is a filmmaker that just about anyone should be looking out for within the future.
But in addition to being the writer and director of this film, Sandoval's own work in front of the camera is just as revelatory. You feel everything she feels coming forth as a result of her character's own living conditions - creating something more evocative and timely. It feels so claustrophobic, but also very empathetic, with the framing of New York City only creating something all the more beautiful forthcoming.
52 Films by Women, 2020: #50
Review by theironcupcake ★★★★ 2

Oftentimes, when films like Kiss of the Spider Woman, Boys Don't Cry, Transamerica, Dallas Buyers Club, The Danish Girl and Girl are made, they lead to accolades for the cis actors who are considered "brave" for playing trans characters. It makes such a tremendous difference to see a story about a trans character that was actually crafted by a trans performer. Filipina filmmaker Isabel Sandoval brings us that with Lingua Franca (now streaming on Netflix), in which she wears many hats as the star, writer/director, co-producer and editor. The film recalls the slow-paced, moody atmospheres of Wong Kar Wai and Rainer Werner Fassbinder, but it is also clearly a product of modern times.
Olivia (Sandoval) is an undocumented worker, employed…
Review by kevinyang ★★★

Plenty of beautiful, tender moments throughout, but too often they're interspersed with scenes that drag and lean a bit too much into the aesthetic over story. But I do appreciate the subtlety and sincerity with which Isabel Sandoval tells this story, never engaging in the sort of sensationalism that another director might have. She is very talented and assured behind the camera, definitely keep an eye out for her.
GRADE: B-
Review by claira curtis ★★★★★

Yeah ❤️
Review by nick fury ★★½ 1

"You're safe now. You're here with me."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
Isabel Sandoval clearly laid some understated commitment in this immigrant drama film featuring the story of an undocumented trans Filipino caregiver in the US trying to secure her green card. The film is less expressive, considering that it tackles a significantly heavy, yet overlooked, social issue. It also struggles to hold its focus to the point that it gets emotionally stale. I still commend Sandoval's insight about the subject matter, although it's not that well-established here.

Recent reviews

Review by Vincen Gregory Yu ★★★½ 1

Very Filipinex--yes, FilipinEX--without being too fussy about it, which I think is the highest compliment this film can receive from homelanders like me. And Filipinex in a way that isn't grating, unlike, say, some English-language Fil-Am poetry. But somehow it sputters just when it's already breaching very, very interesting, quietly nerve-racking territory.
Review by Sunil ★★★½

I wanted to like Lingua Franca, a film about a trans Filipina immigrant written, directed, produced, and edited by and starring a trans Filipina, a lot more than I did, but I appreciate a film that puts a human face on an intersectional population who's had it particularly rough in Trump's America. Olivia is a caretaker for an elderly Russian woman, and she's trying to marry someone so she can get her Green Card while constantly living in fear of ICE. Enter her charge's fuck-up grandson, Alex, who's trying to stay sober and hold down a job while not having to worry about ICE at all. Multi-hyphenate auteur Isabel Sandoval gives these stories almost equal weight; hell, it almost feels…
Review by Haʻaheo Auwae ★★★★½

This was such a good movie. Literal masterpiece.
I loved how tender, emotional, and raw this felt. Visually striking and beautiful. It felt so poignant and a refreshing take on what’s going currently with immigration. All I gotta say is please watch this you won’t regret it.
Review by Victoria ★★★★½

this is literally a better movie than we deserve
Review by tia_tiananmen ★★★★

Will write about this later
Review by Bruno Santiago ★★★★

Mais espaço pra diversidade fazendo filmes, por favor!! Que filme honesto e real. O tanto de coisa que ele diz...
Review by worldtraveler ★★★

Good performances, solid story, unique perspective and story about an immigrant who happens to be a transgender woman.
Review by Cressa Beer ★★★★

The world needs more voices like Isabel Sandoval. Deeply felt and naturalistic.
Review by taurusvenus ★★★½

Mostly understated and very lived in. Distressing and realist, but not hopeless.
Isabel Sandoval has a very good ugly-crying scene; it’s beautiful.

Edit: Magda 💗
Review by david_bruner ★★★★

Definitely got some Akerman vibes off this, and it has what I’m sure are probably the best sex scenes in any movie released in 2020.
I always think political works play better when they’re grounded in character and relationships, and this is no exception. By presenting Olivia’s life and her relationship to Alex as it happens, the film says all it needs to.
Highly recommend seeking this out, as it seems to have gotten a fanfare-less Netflix release.

Also RIP Lynn Cohen!
Review by osisubis ★★★½

A little rough around the edges, but over all a solid film.
Review by struanpo ★★★★

during the closing moments of the movie, i felt like i didn’t get as much time as I’d like to have gotten to know Olivia better. But I feel like this is intentional, even still, I loved her so much.