“Lesbian space princess“; An animated sci-fi musical Comedy with perhaps the best name of the times, begins by claiming that this is “the love story about Kiki and Saira.” It is, until Kiki tells Saira the two words that no one wants to hear: “You are dumped.” It is even worse when that bomb is unexpectedly dropped, as is the case with Saira. Just two seconds earlier, the titular princess went through a clipboard that she had made of the couple’s relationship and said “I know we in our hearts will be together forever and ever.”
Of course, that is no longer the case, but their story does not end there, and that is because it is no longer a love story. Or at least not the one you can expect. Because when Kiki is suddenly kidnapped by the straight white grinds, who will otherwise save Saira’s “hot as hell (ex) partner” than Saira himself, daughter of Lesbian Queens of Planet Clitopolis?
Subtly this film Isn’t, but that’s a lot of point. Immediately after Sair’s dumped words “She is a lesbian, she is in space, and she is also a princess – oh, and she is very sad” calls out in the song and lets the audience know exactly what they are in. That absurdity performs when this heavy-in-Kind adventure takes Saira out of her comfort zone in more ways than one. To deliver the ransom, her royal Labrys, the titular princess has only 24 hours to reach the straight white mills and hand over the most powerful weapon known for the lesbian type. Along the way, Saira has to fight with a problematic ship (I see what you do there) and Willow, a Gay Popstar Runway whose acoustic song can put you under her magic formula (See what I do there?)
If you are also equally obsessed with ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer“As I am, you will see what I do, because you will watch that one of Willow’s songs starts with a guitar riff that deliberately evokes” under your magic formula “… yes, to Lesbian Love Song Sunge by Willow and Tara in the show’s groundbreaking musical episode, “again with feeling”. It is a small detail that will fly under the radar for most people watching, and the same goes for countless more that probably flew past me on the first clock as well.
This attention to details and layers of gags within GAGS evokes “Wallace & Gromit” of all things, such as a DVD entitled “Raiders of the Lost Dyke”, not to mention countless other visual jokes that are narrowing into Clitopoli’s world And then. Yet the animation is literally worlds away from Aardman Studios, inspired instead of Anime Like “Sailor Moon” as well as psychedelic hand -drawn cartoons such as “Adventure Time”, “The Midnight Gospel”, and to a lesser extent, “Rick & Morty”. It is miraculous that South Australian co -authors/directors Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese handle this on what the press notes describe as an “almost impossible budget” and creates a heartfelt candy letter to lesbians in a galaxy far, far away.
The charm with their animation, serious and a little rough around the edges, also extends to the characters themselves. There is a touch of “Scott Pilgrim vs the World” that is going on here with our hero to save their ex, but this time the green -haired bisexual is not ex at all. Instead, she is the manic Pixie dream girl who is fighting for our hero’s attention. Gemma Chua Tran, of “Heartbreak High” fame, however, that stereotype exceeds with a little sought -after shade while Shabana Azeez takes the “boring royal (which is voted for by the people)” and actually makes her quite interesting.
In fact, Saira’s ongoing struggle with anxiety is one of the film’s strengths, with the help of the unlimited range to embody mental illness in a very physical and related way. The journey itself is also realistic because Saira does not automatically overcome her fear with ease simply because she is the protagonist and is obliged to do so. Still, some of the influence is lost in the middle of the chaos because there is simply too much happening at once, too many gags and side assignments that fight for your attention. It is beautiful and bright, yes, but there are risks of flying too close to the sun.
“Lesbian Space Princess” proudly boasts his many different genre elements and includes everything from drama and comedy to sci-fi and musical theater, all filtered through a rainbow lens. Of course, this is part of the film’s appeal, and in the beginning this ambition pays off. But as more and more jokes fly us, the hit frequency begins to vary as if Saira herself is trying to make us laugh but sometimes tries too hard when she can say that it does not always work.
Our first meeting with “straight space” outside Saira’s usual “safe space” is particularly huge, but from that point other Jabs (rightly) aimed at the straight white male majority sometimes flat. The straight white maliens are especially on the nose, and it’s a shame because they didn’t have to be. The majority of the audience that comes to a movie such as “Lesbian Space Princess” does not require handset when it comes to making fun of the actual people that these villains represent because we are already more than familiar with them in real life. It was here to be a little smarter and go beyond the obvious, which may have been lost a bit in the movie’s commandment to do so much at once.
Where “Lesbian Space Princess” stands out – which you can expect and hope for – is in the way it explores yourself. By presenting this world as a rare queer utopia in fantasy and sci-fi, the film differs as a story that viscerally feels like it was made by and for queer people. Our stories are still a relative rarity in genre prices like this, even less films that are actively pleased to eradicate people who are not queer. Queer —alegorin about not belonging to Saira’s struggle for power as a meeting of the legendary Labrys. There she feels broken and unworthy, in ways that queer people often can, without recycling the usual tired stories of oppression and self -hatred. Being queer is the norm here in all its inter-gay-lactic glory.
So yes, this is a love story, but it is “the love story of Kiki and Saira”, which we first led to believing. Refreshing enough, it is not necessarily the love story about Willow and Saira either. Instead, it is a story about loving yourself, or at least learning to love yourself, which is very necessary in this day and age, even if messages are a bit clumsy in places.
Rating: B-
“Lesbian Space Princess” premiered at 2025 Berlin International Film Festival. It is currently seeking US distribution.
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