The Garden Left Behind is a worthy entry in the rather scarce filmography about the lives of trans people. With a sensitive touch, this movie addresses issues of identity, immigration, and acceptance.

| Original Score: B- | Mar 13, 2023

There's a fine line between a sympathetic portrait of someone and an almost exploitative look into the life of a socially marginalized person, and this film struggles at times to find a balance between these two qualities.

| Original Score: 5/10 | Jul 5, 2022

The Garden Left Behind is vibrant and visceral, and packed with sincere and affecting performances.

| Sep 10, 2021

Good intentions do not a good film make. This is the main takeaway from Flavio Alves' New York-set trans drama The Garden Left Behind, which is bogged down by a cloying script and a weak central performance.

| Original Score: 4/10 | Aug 8, 2021

First-time actor Guevara's performance as Tina has a radiant quality, soulful and touchingly gentle, though her line readings are a little stilted at times.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 26, 2021

First-time feature director Flavio Alves depicts his main protagonist's existence as challenging and uncertain, but not oppressive.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 24, 2020

By offering a simple, lived-in depiction of the life of Tina Carrera (Carlie Guevara), director/co-writer Flavio Alves makes the picture a simplistic, political experience.

| Sep 23, 2020

Worthy if slightly clunky...

| Sep 22, 2020

The Garden Left Behind should be essential viewing for people who want to see what it's like for a transgender woman to find her voice and stand up for who she is, even if other people want to punish her for it.

| Sep 6, 2020

Flavio Alves' The Garden Left Behind is an unassuming and heartfelt New York City-set drama about a young undocumented trans woman.

| Sep 4, 2020

The Garden Left Behind seems to want it both ways and succeeds in achieving neither, in-turn compromising its own message.

| Original Score: 4/10 | Sep 3, 2020

"The Garden Left Behind" is absorbing, and authentic, and important, it is also frequently didactic.

| Aug 31, 2020

Representation matters and The Garden Left Behind definitely represents.

| Original Score: 3.5/4.0 | Aug 30, 2020

There's a secondary plot in The Garden Left Behind that's dizzyingly misguided.

| Original Score: 1/4 | Aug 28, 2020

"The Garden Left Behind" will break your heart; a film of utter grace, poignancy and deep understanding.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Aug 27, 2020

A fine film with a few minor tonal issues that shows another side to an important and topical story.

| Aug 26, 2020

A story about toxic masculinity and discrimination, as well as the dangers trans women face living in a society that doesn't fully understand them. [Full review in Spanish]

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 16, 2020

Flavio Alves' The Garden Left Behind captures the complexity of an undocumented trans Latina's life in Queens.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 9, 2020

Boasting strong production values despite an obviously low budget, The Garden Left Behind is a little film with a lot on its mind. Yet it is not a didactic film about trans life, thank God. (Includes video interview with director Flavio Alves)

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jul 8, 2020

Regrettably, the movie's general indistinctness only adds to its sense of emotional exploitation.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Jul 2, 2020