Written and directed by stars Harry Dodge and Silas Howard, Shy is a transgender man who leaves his small town after the death of his father, and heads to the big city to live a life of crime. Along the way, he encounters Valentine, a quirky adoptee, in search of his birth mother. An immediate kinship is sparked between these men, and they become partners in crime. Also starring: Stanya Kahn, Cash Askew, Misha Klein, Christine Odera, Carina Gia and with an appearance from Joan Jett.
Put simply, if you have any interest in queer cinema and the history of Trans people appearing on screen, then you absolutely need to watch By Hook or by Crook. This is such a seminal piece of queer cinema, because of its home-made, personal, vulnerable, open style. It’s all about the Trans experience while rarely having to talk about it directly because they translate that conversation into every element of the film. So, if you’re willing to pay attention and listen, you can learn a lot, even when they’re not saying anything at all.
The style which Harry Dodge and Silas Howard create is so intensely raw, it’s clumsy and real, nothing is polished or performative, it’s plain and very far from simple. This is bursting with complex emotion, which again is something they don’t spend very much time at all engaging with directly, it primarily comes through between the lines of the performances from Dodge and Howard. Each of their actions, and stumbling through this hectic time together, is edged with trauma, mental health, coming to terms with their identity and trying to be their authentic selves.
However, that’s not at all to say that By Hook or by Crook is in any shape or form a dour, depressive or serious piece of cinema. It’s fun, it’s charming and it’s goofy, these two character are filled with such unique personalities and energies and they burst off the screen. Dodge’s Valentine is so shy and sweet, it almost hurts your heart to think of the people who are so quick to want to cause them pain, especially knowing how close that plays to reality in the film’s era. While Howard’s Shy has a suaveness, their confidence is endearing and watching them try to watch out for Valentine creates this utterly enthralling, darling friendship.
The visual style takes things right down to the basics, it leans so hard into the home-video or even music-video, feel of the era. It’s simple but effective, that sort of unabashedly indie spirit is infectious. To have that very nostalgic, scaled back style working with the strong emotional undercurrent to By Hook or by Crook then added to its crime spree, is such an enjoyable combination.
By Hook or by Crook is necessary viewing as a part of queer cinema history. It comes from such a vulnerable, sweet place and you can truly feel that while you’re watching. Harry Dodge and Silas Howard create incredibly charming characters who build a lovely, supportive friendship. It has a goofiness to it which is a lot of fun, and watching their bumbling attempts at crime is a good time, but it’s also moving and intensely vulnerable at times. Ultimately, it’s much less about their miscreancy than about finally finding someone to be there for each other, and how meaningful and powerful that is.
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