Dope Queens

Grafton Doyle’s Dope Queens is a beautifully shot piece of drama. This new feature film depicts three characters who come back together after a period spent in prison. A lot of the plot is based around the dynamic between Goldie (Alexandra Grey) and Angel (Trace Lysette), sex-workers who feel short-changed by the new life they’re leading. Blake (Pierson Fodé) completes the trio as a paranoid loose-cannon. All three are possessed by a kind of numbness. They long to escape this emptiness, which they only manage to do through drugs, dance and connection with others. The narrative thrives on its lack of judgement; but in its final moments, a slightly moralistic attitude and over-the-top event unbalances the coda’s tone.

 

Many will point towards Sean Baker’s work as inspiring this piece – not only thematically but also aesthetically. But in one description, the picture is described as “a fluorescent, action-packed romantic thriller”. I must take some issue with this. There is such little action, and the ‘romantic’ elements are more related to a feeling of longing for freedom as opposed to any one person. Truthfully, this is a slow, insular film – it holds an almost arthouse, mumblecore sensibility, and features only a handful of locations. In some ways, this summary is more of an indictment on the state of advertising in independent cinema: it’s so challenging to get your film out there in a big way; and thus, focusing in on superficial genre-elements is one technique used to reach a wider audience.

 

Let’s discuss the gorgeous cinematography, which helps to elevate Dope Queens to a high level of expression. The visual approach can be characterised by a consistent use of steadicam and shooting in an anamorphic format. This is all incredibly cinematic. Yet arguably the strongest aspect of the filmmaking is the editing, combined with the director’s restrained sense of blocking. There are some wonderful examples of multiple camera setups within the space of an unbroken take; and dialogues that go on without the interruption of a cut. Techniques such as these suit the scenario effectively. These are aimless characters, waiting characters – but also characters who must frantically look over their shoulders in case of a looming threat.

 

Angel is the saddest and most intriguing character of the story, and is the main focal point of the film’s finest shot: her solemn, docile face – off-centre – positioned behind a group of young party-going girls who are ignoring her in an elevator... this is really the deepest, most poignant characterisation we get. A sobering moment such as this is frequently followed or juxtaposed with a fluid transition or surreal implementation of style – in that way, it’s a film containing many aesthetic layers. What separates this movie from something like Anora are a series of lovely moments in which the characters transcend the confines of their social and temporal existence: for instance, a slow-motion walk through an overhead aquarium. Not every moment has to be defined by a relentless realism, and this critic admires that.

 

Dope Queens screened at the 2026 Palm Springs Film Festival.