''Cheerleader Queens'' (; aka ''I'm Lady'') is a 2003

Thai film The cinema of Thailand dates back to the History of film, early days of filmmaking, when Chulalongkorn, King Chulalongkorn's 1897 visit to Bern, Switzerland was recorded by François-Henri Lavancy-Clarke. The film was then brought to Bangkok, whe ...

directed by

Poj Arnon Poj Arnon () is a Thai film director. He is best known for his 2007 film ''Bangkok Love Story'', that won him the Grand Prize (International Competition) at the Brussels International Independent Film Festival. Biography Career Poj began his ca ...

Plot

Four

kathoey ''Kathoey'' or ''katoey'' (, ; , , ; ; , ), commonly translated as ''ladyboys'' in English, is a term used by some people in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand, whose identities in English may be best translated as transgender women in some cas ...

—Mod, Som, Kam-pang and Wa-wa—move from a rural town to attend St. Mary's High School in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

. Once there they try to join the school's

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense Physical exercise, physical activity. It can be performed to motivate s ...

team, only to be rejected because of their sexuality. Instead they join the school's struggling

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

team, making friends with the other team members after they score a number of tries in an important game. Toey, another kathoey from the boys hometown, comes to Bangkok with the idea of forming a new cheerleading team, which they name "The Queen". From the start the boys have to face a number of problems, but with the help of their friends on the rugby team they manage to get to the finals of the national cheerleading competition.

Reception

Ronnie Scheib of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' reviewed ''Cheerleader Queens'' at the 2004

New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival NewFest: The New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival, put on by NewFest (legal name The New Festival, Inc.), is the largest LGBTQ film festival in the United States and one of the most comprehensive forums of national and inte ...

. He described the film as, "A fun date flick for all persuasions, with sexual content limited to a few chaste kisses and endless eye-batting innuendo, kitschy curio should perform cheerily on the gay fest circuit."Scheib, Ronnie.
Cheerleader Queens
. ''Variety'', 29 June 2004. Retrieved on 2 February 2009.

References

External links

* 2003 films 2003 LGBTQ-related films Cheerleading films Kathoey Thai-language films Thai LGBTQ-related films Transgender-related films Rugby union films Films directed by Poj Arnon LGBTQ-related sports comedy films 2000s Thai films {{LGBT-film-stub