As a straight male, I don’t know exactly what does or does not make an ally to the LGBTQ community. Does Nick Sasso count? What Sasso pulled off with “Haymaker” is absolutely tremendous, regardless of the quality of the movie (spoiler alert: pretty decent, read on, reader). Sasso, a visual effects specialist in Hollywood, wrote, directed and starred in “Haymaker”, AND he plays an MMA fighter, so he’s rather jacked aside from being an incredibly-accomplished multi-hyphenate. Additionally, in this film he represents a cis white male who romances, and is romanced by, a transgender woman. Who is the last writer-director-star to try something like that? YOUR MOVE, BEN AFFLECK.
Sasso plays Nick, a former brawler who has retired from the fighting grind. Now a bouncer, he seems to move listlessly through his days, a quiet, introspective presence who merely keeps the door peaceful, nothing more. At the club, he finds himself stepping in the way of overaggressive goons who want to harass Nomi (Nomi Ruiz), the night’s musical performer. I wasn’t certain if Nick knows at this time that Nomi is transgender, but he is definitely just doing his job at first. It’s a movie, though, so his job isn’t “bouncer”, it’s “stoic badass”. We love those, they’re very popular.
Nomi recognizes the gesture and offers Nick a job as her personal bodyguard. Yes, you know where all of this is going, but so what? Nick accepts, touring the world as the unglamorous muscle while Nomi powders up every night and hits the stage to adoring audiences (sporting impressive beats too). Among all of his efforts, Sasso is most lacking as an actor, and Sasso the director doesn’t push it. Befitting the need for an intriguing coming-out arc, Nick is someone who bottles up his emotion, so his growing fondness for Nomi is portrayed as clumsy and shy. He pines for this glamorous woman, representing the opposite of his basic caveman lifestyle. Can a woman like this ever love him? In many ways, it seems like perhaps he’s over-exoticizing her. It hits a bit different when coming from a character who seems as if he’s never exoticized anyone before.
Nick of course dips a toe into this world. Then he pulls back. Then he goes ankle deep. Then he freezes. Then it’s all the way back out again. It’s not exactly linear progression. You sense that Nick feels he may simply be unmoored by traveling from city to city. Maybe it’s just a phase. Maybe it’s Nomi’s beats! Interestingly, Nick isn’t seen to have much of an insular life, not many friends, particularly not from the hetero-coded background in MMA, which is still probably the most non-hetero of all the sports if you ask me. But I am entirely outside of the experience of this film. Does it objectify Nomi, or is this merely Nick’s story, Nomi being a less-developed romantic interest to power his journey? Are we diminishing Nomi’s journey by placing her within what has previously been an accepted uneven distribution of characters within a certain narrative framework?
A superficial reading of “Haymaker” describes a fairly boring movie. Nick is not very expressive or articulate, and his wordless longing is initially met with bemusement from Nomi. But as the director, Sasso’s storytelling is relaxed, thoughtful, measured. Nomi is depicted sensually and erotically, possibly problematically, though it’s easy to see how someone so shut-off from the world might gravitate towards her beauty, glamour and sensitive sincerity. Nick’s obvious journey throughout this movie isn’t into Nomi’s arms, but back into the ring. Is it a comeback, or is this a new Nick, one who understands the longings he’s hidden inside? I’m interested to hear if anyone views the eroticism of “Haymaker” as tasteful or limiting. I lean towards the former, but I’m probably the last guy anyone would ask. Let me know.
Initially, I wasn’t going to review “Haymaker” — it seemed too cheap, low-budgeted, a niche title among streaming niche titles. But I admit I was swayed by the names involved. D.B. Sweeney shows up as a former trainer, and the great Zoe Bell ends up in Sasso’s corner. And then there’s the appearance of The Immortal Udo Kier, a net gain no matter what the movie is. Sasso’s direction is clear-cut, competent, clean. But there’s an inviting smokiness to Nomi’s musical sequences, which are one of the film’s highlights. I don’t know much about Nomi Ruiz, who seems like she’s got popstar chops, but I’d like to see more of her and Sasso sometime. The movie’s got a certain low-budget aesthetic and a few pulpy story elements that may let the movie languish in streaming obscurity. Don’t let that happen.
I served time with a few transgender inmates. Not many, but enough that they were all very different people. Some were sex criminals, some had drug charges, and a few were fraudsters. Nonetheless, there were no cars that accepted a transgender member. They were treated like anyone who had “bad paperwork” – e.g. a sex criminal or a snitch. So they had their own independent interests or lifestyles. I was friendly with some of them, but to be honest, it’s not as if we had much to discuss – the transgender inmates still had to cope with a lot of attention being sent their way. No one talked about it, but it seemed as if they were protected, they were valued. None of my business.
I don’t know what the circumstances were beyond that, as far as politics. Obviously there are legal battles involving transgender medical care in prisons, this coming from a political party who won’t recognize transgender people as human but somehow recognize Donald Trump as an alleged “Serious Person” and not one big human-sized stack of garbage. I remember hearing an introductory speech at one institution by an associate warden who had been kicked out of their previous position at another institution. A transgender inmate openly asked him about their own status, and I’ll never forget this backwoods goon with a badge coldly telling them, in an obnoxious twang, “As far as I’m concerned, if you’re here, you’re a man.” It was during a q+a, and after receiving that answer, that particular inmate quietly sank in their seat. Didn’t see them much after that incident.
Will be seeking this one out asap, will offer a take post-hence.
Anyway, when I was recovering from one of my surgeries in the hospital, one of the other patients in my wing was a prisoner, and was always accompanied by a correctional officer. Other than that, she was like any other patient; could go outside in the yard to get used to walking again, could have visitors freely come and go, what have you. This is in Canada.
I never spoke to this person during our overlapping stays, but I always wondered what must have followed for her in terms of out-of-hospital aftercare, which requires a lot of clean space and hygiene and upkeep and physical caution. Surely the prison wasn't the site of her aftercare, right? Beyond that, I always go cold at the thought of post-op trans women inmates being in an all-male prison for obvious reasons.
That's what angers me so deeply about J. K. Rowling's rhetoric; regardless of how sincerely she thinks she's protecting cis women, not an ounce of thought is ever spared for the trans people that her wishes would displace and subsequently endanger. Her messaging, in essence, boils down to "make sure it's the tranny that gets raped." How about pushing for a solution where no one is at risk of getting raped, Joanne? Or would that humanize us too much for your following's liking?
I enjoyed this read and now want to see Haymaker… which I will..and once I do, I will provide you with better feedback, D.
My line of reasoning leans itself to advocate for transgender people because I have enough of a medical background under my belt to simply say Transgender people are reclaiming their rightful sexual identity not forcing or electing themselves into a new one on whim.
The thought of transgender people being incarcerated into gender specific prisons because of what sex has been plunked down on their birth certificates just makes me cringe.