Port Authority Review: A Beautiful And Modern Love Story

Release date: May 28, 2021
Running time: 102 minutes
Starring: Leyna Bloom, Fionn Whitehead and McCaul Lombardi 
Written and Directed By: Danielle Lessovitz

After getting kicked out of his home in central Pennsylvania, Paul (Fionn Whitehead) arrives to NYC's dizzying central station with nowhere to go.  A momentary encounter with Wye (Leyna Bloom), a trans woman of color, leads him to seek her out. Transfixed by her beauty and confidence, a love soon blossoms. But as the two learn more about each other, Paul's false narratives begin to surface and the double life he lives must be reconciled.

Port Authority has you following Paul down to rock bottom right from the start of the film.  It opens with a brutal introduction to Paul's predicament and also introduces you to Lee (Lombardi) who takes him under his wing.  This film is all about the characters and the character development and the leads all do a great job in this respect.  Whitehead has a charm to him that is tough to explain and although his character is at times unlikeable, he does a great job as a young man coming of age and starting to have new experiences and mature.  But the real star of the film is Leyna Bloom for her confident character who is attracted to--but uncompromising--with Paul.  Her character is such a strong force in this film and it was great to see a strong, represented female lead in a film.  And McCaul Lombardi as Lee is another complicated facet of this film.  His character is likeable at times and downright horrible at others, but Lombardi does a great job in each of these portrayals.  

And the story of Port Authority is a pretty unique one despite the tried and true general idea of following a young man coming of age.  But this film has a different twist as the movie is more about maturity than some other coming of age tales.  Paul is wrestling with what type of life he wants to live and who he feels comfortable with; with the two choices being polar opposites of each other.  And his character has facets of both, making the film a slow burning look at figuring out what you want in life and who you want around you.  The film is a beautiful love story at times and a complicated life story at others.  However, the movie does have a certain idling aspect to it because it seems like Paul doesn't know what it is he wants.  There are some scenes that appear pretty awkward because he is trying to come to terms with himself, but this leads to scenes where not a lot happens.  Additionally, the scene where Paul and Leyna meet is not one that I was familiar with and can be a little confusing if you haven't been exposed to this.  I still did not fully understand after watching the movie, but I was able to get enough of the structure from the context.  And although Port Authority is beautifully shot, the film can sometimes feel more art than substance.  There are some very beautiful scenes involving dance that also don't feel necessary. They have great colored lighting and intricate dances, but they also tend to linger longer than I thought it was needed.  However, what Port Authority does offer is a unique coming of age and love story that feels very modern.

Port Authority is a thoroughly modern coming of age story with complicated lead characters, great acting, and a story that will challenge you.

Rent it.

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Port Authority is available in theaters May 28th and on demand and digitally on June 1, 2021.

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