2022 Entry #024 02-02-22 “Alaska is a Drag” is a 2017 drama film which was written and directed by Shaz Bennett, who also wrote and directed the short film of the same name that this feature remakes and expands on. The story follows an aspiring drag superstar named Leo (Martin L. Washington Jr.), working in a fish cannery in Alaska as he’s forced to defend himself from bullies with the support of his cancer stricken twin sister (Maya Washington).
I loved the short version of this story and was excited to see the feature length version, but somewhere between the two, it went a bit off the rails. It’s not horrible. But it’s not great. I think I’m just disappointed because the short was so good! They definitely try to expand on what they started with, but these new facets are often left unexplored. The most developed is the twin sister, who wasn’t featured before. But there’s a weird thing about their father being gay, which I’m left wondering if I fell asleep and imagined it because it really didn’t go anywhere. Then the bully is revealed to have basically been a past lover or could-have-been lover for the lead – which is fine – but the way they get over all that at the end is rushed and wholly unbelievable. And much of the drama caused by the bullying is so over-the-top and poorly written that it just pulled me out of the movie for long stretches at a time. There are good moments here, which are mostly just remakes of the short, but the bad outweighs the good for me.
I recommend watching the short 2012 version.