“We Are Who We Are”

I came across “We Are Who We Are” because it was available on BBC iPlayer at the beginning of last December. Reading that it was another creative child of Luca Guadagnino whose “Call me by your name” (despite its heavy flaws concerning representation) blew me away with its calm fantastical visual storytelling, I was excited to watch it. And not to spoil anything, but Guadagnino did not disappoint.  

Centred around two teenagers called Harper and Frasier who navigate the messiness of living on an American army base in Italy, this series tackles many themes and issues around identity, conformity, family, love and relationships. But let me summarise some key observations that I made whilst watching it:

What struck me most is that this series ‘reads like a book’. Strategically making use of the chapter format as well as making use of literary descriptive pauses to really zoom in and envelop the viewer in the story’s calm serine moments, We Are Who We Are truly feels like a young adult novel come alive on screen. The fact that the main song that accompanies the two main characters throughout the series and alongside their journey is called “it is what it is” (sung by Blood Orange) and that Guadagnino then titles the series with its humanised counterpoise “we are who we are” is akin to poetry.

The “matter-of-fact-ness” of We Are Who We Are– or put differently: we exist how we exist also encompasses the boldness and unapologetic character of the series. Throughout the runtime, the use of clothing as means for both teenagers to express themselves and visualise their changing relationship to their bodies, their family and friends as well as their gender identities offers for countless striking costume moments. In key moments of the show, Frasier and Harper even wear each other’s sweater or scarf to symbolise their closely intertwined and intimate relationship. Moreover, Frasier’s genderfluid haute couture combining military assecoires with pastel colours and lots of prints capture the daring and complicated nature of his inner turmoils and relationship with his home country and parents. Apart from that, the choice to heavily feature the colour orange in both their wardrobes can be read as symbolising the deliberately defiant behaviour that both teenagers exhibit as well as highlighting how both of them purposefully do ‘not fit in’. Since the show also starts in summer and ends in autumn, the colour orange literally can be read as symbolising change, changing of the season and one’s relationship to others and oneself.

Guadagnino also makes no effort in pretending that human relationships are linear and full of ‘character arcs’. Throughout the series, characters that in the beginning seem important or meaningful, just fade out. In doing so, the series captures and sometimes visually literalises how human relationships actually work ‘outside’ and beyond the cinema. This not only makes the writing and dialogue extremely realistic but also demonstrates a beautiful life lesson: namely, that some people will just ‘pop out’ of your life and that you cannot anticipate how seemingly unimportant conversations profoundly impact your life or your outlook on life in the long run.

Interestingly, throughout the show, Frasier and Harper always allow those side-characters to impact them and change their perspective, while their parents on the other hand compulsively try to resist this change and in the end remain in the exact same spot as they were at the beginning of the show. Maybe Guadagnino wants to tell us something here…

Another aspect that this series visualises beautifully is the art of looking. Throughout the series, both main characters often look at each other through windows and from a distance. Apart from this outward looking, the series counterpoises this with looking inwards. Especially Harper with her struggle and experimentation of gender often finds herself looking at herself through a mirror. What is heartbreakingly beautiful though is that Guadagnino turns looking inwards and outwards from an individual experience into a communal one. More specifically, in the most crucial moments of the series, Harper and Frasier look inwardly through the mirror together or end up romantically looking outwards over an Italian city together. This collectivity and activity of looking and seeing oneself through another person’s eyes captured me in particular whilst watching the show, because it truly encompasses the confusing, irritating yet joyful and exciting dynamic of growing up and growing together.

Last thing I want to mention is the unique Italian perspective that Guadagnino brings to the table when depicting American teenagerhood. The very militarisation of their situation is literalised and the show’s setting on an American military base set in Italy offers a fertile ground for establishing a dynamic of both looking at American culture from the ‘outside’ European context, whilst allowing the inside American teenagers looking back at the European culture ‘out there’. The last episode in the series embodies this intracultural growing outwardly and inwardly together perfectly. In the episode, Frasier and Harper decide to run away to a concert of their favourite artist and explore Italy on their own terms. Consequently, the ending completely gets rid of all other ‘army base’ characters and their individual struggles and really zooms in on Frasier and Harper’s relationship and them finding each other tin the end (in the literal and metaphorical sense). In this sense, leaving this strict space of the American military allowed both teenagers to recognise the humanity and beauty in each other. Here one can certaintly extract a critique of the neo-imperial consumerist American ideology that is contrasted with a timeless natural and more humane Italian lifestyle (of course, this in itself could be critiqued as simplified ideology). In any case, the entire series and this episode in specific reads like a ethereal love letter of Guadagnino to the Italian people, architecture and cultural traditions. Moreover, the enthusiasm and potentiality of the two characters leaving this restricting context certainly seeps through in the striking visual language, be it through its ingenious use of colourful lighting, playing with night/day-time and most importantly the in-between dawn that are all employed in the last episode.

Naturally, like everything else, the series also has certain flaws. In all its boldness and unapologetic embodiment of gender exploration and search for identity and depiction of messy human relationships, the series ultimately presents a very heteronormative conclusion for its two main characters. For both Harper and Frasier experiment with their sexuality and gender and deliberately reject a stereotypical love story for themselves in the beginning of the series by actively choosing to be platonic friends only to throw all those important themes out the window in the end.

Additionally, although in general the series has a diverse cast of characters, certain black stereotypes and colourism becomes painfully visible. For instance, the two characters who have the darkest skin tone happen to be Harper’s verbally abusive and aggressive father as well as her brother who has anger management issues. Despite the series deliberate display of unfulfilled potential and desire concerning all adults, particularly the one’s who happen to be black get the most frustrating or heart-breaking conclusion with one of Harper’s friends even brutally dying off-screen in war. And although I understand that underlying racist characterisations, story arcs and casting are not particular to We Are Who We Are but rather are systemic problems plaguing the entire industry, this is one aspect where the series certainly falls a bit short.

But let’s end on a positive note, because there are a lot of positives here. I really really enjoyed We Are Who We Are. For me, what makes a good film or series is when it can impact me in some way or the other. And this series really did touch me on many levels. The visual language is simply poetic and serene and the strong acting, characterisation, costume design etc. all help to grab you and pull you into the feeling of being a confused teenager all over again.

Overall, if I had to distil this series into one word, I would say that its thesis is ‘change’. We Are Who We Are perfectly encapsulates the messiness of growing up and what changing over time means and in that department, it succeeds in every aspect.