Writer/Director Tracie Laymon’s feature filmmaking debut Bob Trevino Likes It opened at the 2024 SXSW film festival and won the Narrative Feature Grand Jury Award and the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature. For some reason, it’s just making its way to audiences now in limited release. And it’s just the kind of film festival darling that I could see making a big splash with audiences if it were given the proper release and had enough money behind it to tell audiences what this movie was. Bob Trevino Likes It is an emotionally intelligent, wondrously authentic and deeply heartfelt story about the power of human connection and chosen family.

Lily (Barbie Ferreira) is a young woman in rural Kentucky who works as a medical aide for a young woman with a disability (Lolo Spencer). Lily presents as an extroverted people pleaser, but has a lot of festering trauma as a result of being raised by her emotionally abusive and narcissistic father Bob (French Stewart). One day, he cuts off contact with Lily for no good reason, leaving her emotionally stranded. She tries to find her father on Facebook, and finds many people with the name Bob Trevino. She sends one (John Leguizamo) a friend request, and the two start to connect. And before long, Lily begins to see this man as a mentor and perhaps a father figure, as she begins to emotionally confront some of the trauma that has held her back in life.

Bob Trevino Likes It starts out as a character study about someone dealing with an emotionally stunted parent. It becomes this story about the power of connection and the meaning a friendship can have in a person’s life, and ultimately leaves you with this lovely message about chosen family. I had been experiencing an emotional reaction to this movie for the first two-thirds or so, because I definitely saw a lot of myself in the character Lily. I tend to bottle up my emotions and internalize the behavior of others in a way that I know is not healthy, but I do anyway, because that’s the easiest way to get by. And I have a friendship not unlike this in my life, and it’s someone I’m so thankful for. Honestly, I think this film can be emotionally devastating for just about any viewer, but especially if you relate to anything going on here. Just enter this film with the expectation that you might have the same emotional response I did. You may not, but if you will, I think you’ll know pretty early on.

Barbie Ferreira is best known for the HBO series Euphoria, and her performance here is absolutely dynamite. The amount of detail and emotional truth in the character of Lily is astounding, and it’s my favorite kind of performance, one where you could swear the person you’re following is either a real person you know, or a version of yourself, and you have to leave the film knowing she’s going to be okay. Her repartee with John Leguizamo is terrific, and this film gives him a different kind of character to play from what he usually does. I absolutely adored both of these people, and the way these actors brought them to life is nothing short of incredible. 

The few supporting players here also get adequate real estate in the emotional context of this story. Rachel Bay Jones has made a name for herself in many television roles over the last decade, but she’s a well regarded Broadway actress who I saw once in 2017 in her Tony winning performance in Dear Evan Hansen (a show I will defend until my dying breath), where she also reduced me to a puddle of tears. And Lolo Spencer, who I had not seen previously, has a few very nice moments as Lily’s employer, who gradually becomes a close friend. French Stewart could also be giving you cartoon villain, but adds a lot of specificity to his role, and a lot of his behavior struck me as very familiar, as someone who has dealt with a person like this before.

Writer/director Tracie Laymon based this story on an experience from her own life, and has spoken in interviews about it. And I did not go into this film knowing that, and when the film tells you this, it makes the whole experience even more of an emotional gut punch. The fact that she was able to take all of this, which could be so difficult for a person to relive and experience on the big screen, is kind of incredible in its own right. And the way this script unfolds shows a great understanding on the filmmaker’s part for the nuances of pacing and character development. I was never not on board for Lily’s journey and her relationship with Bob, but the way Laymon’s script keeps you emotionally invested is a sign of a really gifted filmmaker. Every piece of information we learn about the characters means something and every plot beat has a purpose. I can’t wait to see what Laymon makes next.

So overall, Bob Trevino Likes It can initially seem like yet another film festival darling that might feel a bit too quirky or cutesy at the outset, but the more time we spend in this world, and with these people, the more all of this begins to mean. And by the time the lights go up, it has dawned on the viewer what a profoundly cathartic emotional experience this has all been. It’s a tribute to the healing power of human connection and the good things social media can do, but it’s also an expertly crafted character study that just about anyone can recognize the emotional truth in. And it’s boasted by some fantastic performances and a stellar screenplay. Having not seen a ton of advertising for the film, I was unprepared for the emotional wallop this movie holds, but I’m so glad I experienced it. Bob Trevino Likes It is an emotional marvel, and one of the best films I’ve seen so far this year.