Come As You Are

Three young men, each disabled for different reasons, set off for Montreal with a carer and a rented van. Their aim is to find a brothel that serves disabled clients. The trip, which they hide from their families, becomes less about sex than about independence. Richard Wong directed, from a screenplay by Erik Linthorst. The cast includes Grant Rosenmeyer, Hayden Szeto, Ravi Patel, and Gabourey Sidibe as the driver. It is the American adaptation of the 2011 Belgian film Hasta la Vista, which itself came from a real person's story. What the film gets right is refusing to present the characters as objects of pity. All three are selfish, difficult and at times unpleasant; rather than normalising them it makes them ordinary. The humour is crude and direct; despite the delicacy of the subject the film does not perform seriousness. The road movie template works as expected and the ending is emotional. Who it is for: viewers who like road comedy and films that handle disability differently. Who it is not for: anyone wanting subtlety; the jokes often sit on the line.