In her opening talking head, Harper remarks “I love America so much, I just don’t know if it loves me back right now”.

There is so much raw honesty in this two hour flick – what could have easily been a simple roadtrip movie takes on so much meaning and importance in the wake of the politically charged discourse around the lives and bodies of trans people. And even with the tears, even with the heartbreak, there is just so much laughter – these are two hilarious friends on a roadtrip.

I love seeing love stories that are not about romance. Harper’s love of America, and for the American people who she now feels (rightfully) more afraid of is a key theme throughout the documentary. Without revealing specific moments, I will say that I was significantly moved at a moment in a dingy bar in the middle of nowhere.

The friendship-love between Harper and Will is so honest and true, built over years of long hours and many beers, and it is just such a joy to revel in their banter and back and forth. Will is so protective of his friend, and there is a beautiful tentativeness in their early conversations. Harper is so big-hearted and disarmingly charming that she engages without awkwardness in conversations from Will, saying she welcomes these questions from her friends (a key takeaway: she says her friends, don’t assume you can go up to a trans person and ask intimate questions because Harper says it’s ok for her friends to ask her those questions).

What the documentary does so well is show the gamut of what is facing trans people right now. A low level fear permeates so many interactions and spaces, and Harper never hides from who she is as a trans woman. She is misgendered many times in the film, she goes to little lost corners of America with F**K Biden flags hanging on the wall, she does traditionally “guy” things like going to rally car races, and all throughout, she is exactly who she is – sometimes it’s scary, and sometimes it’s a wonderful moment of honest human connection.

What was fascinating was to watch was the extent to which Will Ferrell’s celebrity and good natured sense of humour protects him and Harper, and to what extent it doesn’t. In a dinner scene, Ferrell pulls out a full Ferrell, and Harper laughs uncontrollably. Despite their fun time, partway through dinner Harper remarks that “this isn’t the experience for most trans people”. I think this is so crucial to cutting through the documentary setup – with a camera crew, a famous actor, and camera mounts on the front of their vehicle, Harper is able to do something she loves (driving cross country) with somewhat less fear – but would she have been able to do so without the documentary setup and famous friend?

Overall, this movie reveals a little glimpse into the lives of trans people right now – in a world where their lives, their ability to work, even their ability to relieve themselves in public washrooms are being legislated within an inch of their lives, the power of love – of friendship love, of family love, of community love – that love is what keeps people alive, and able to be themselves. But we, as a community, are better for loving people like Harper. People who have worked hard to bring us joy, people who care about connecting with people they don’t know, people who love where they live and find beauty and humour in every moment and every part of the country. We are all better for having Harper in our lives, and we are better for supporting her in who she really is.

The core of this movie is about two friends who love each other go on an adventure. There’s lots they learn and experience along the way, but what a joy for us to go along for the ride.

Will & Harper plays on Netflix, and in Victoria at the Roxy theatre.