We Can Be Heroes

SXSW Documentary Feature Competition

Reviewed for FilmFactual by Abe Friedtanzer

Directors: Carina Mia Wong and Alex Simmons

Screened at: Critics’ link, LA, 3/5/24

Opens: March 9th, 2024 (SXSW)

Everyone likes to escape real life and indulge in fantasy every once in a while. For some, it’s a needed way to feel like they can truly be themselves by pretending to be someone else, getting so into being in a comfortable space that allows them to simultaneously hide who they are and to truly express themselves. Live action role play (LARPing) is a particular way in which some people choose to spend their time, and the documentary We Can Be Heroes shows how rewarding it can be, especially for those who don’t feel like they fit in anywhere else.

The subject of We Can Be Heroes is The Wayfinder Experience Summer Camp, a LARPing camp for teenagers in upstate New York. Campers arrive and learn the rules, and the film follows them in their daily – often awkward – interactions while also showing them engaged in LARPing. Connections emerge and others fail to spark, and each of the campers has the chance to realize what matters most to them and how communicating through a role like this in a safe space can be both therapeutic and rewarding.

LARPing is surely something that hasn’t made its way into the mainstream and as a result will seem quite odd to some unsuspecting audiences previously unfamiliar with it. But in reality it’s not all that different from acting, and professional performers receive praise and accolades on a regular basis for dressing up in costume and reciting prewritten lines. This volunteer activity which requires actively opting in (and paying) and choosing to spend time this way is also more commendable in some ways, and it has the ability to allow people to connect with characters who couldn’t be more different from them and come to understand them from a young age.

Carina Mia Wong, who directed the film with Alex Simmons, describes it as “a love letter to anyone who is or ever was a teenager.” Fortunately, that should encompass all possible audience members, even if many of them have had no exposure whatsoever to LARPing before this. Checking in with these kids as they have what for many may be their first successful social experience is a very worthwhile and heartwarming endeavor. Not all of it is happy or easy, but that’s also just part of life and its expected ups and downs. This isn’t a comprehensive look at their entire lives but instead a snapshot of formative moments that they’ll surely remember for years to come.

Showcasing the actual LARPing adds another dimension to the story, both from an information-gleaning standpoint to see how these kids behave but also to see just how vivid and real it feels while it’s happening. The entire film runs just eighty-six minutes, and devoting substantial time to seeing the campers in their elements is very worthwhile. It’s the most informative possible glimpse into what it can feel like for someone watching who could never imagine or comprehend it. That may be this film’s biggest success, coupled with its heartwarming depiction of a number of talented and exceptional kids.

86 minutes

Story – B+

Technical – B+

Overall – B+