Petersen Vargas’s Some Nights I Feel Like Walking is a haunting and deeply intimate queer coming-of-age drama that blends raw realism with lyrical storytelling. At its core, it’s a road movie about survival, grief, and chosen family.

The film follows a wealthy teenager who drifts into the lives of Manila street hustlers and joins them on a journey to fulfill a dying friend’s final wish — to bring his body home. What unfolds is both tender and brutal: a portrait of youth navigating desire, poverty, and identity while confronting mortality head-on.

Visually, the film is stunning. Its use of neon city nights and the desolate quiet of rural landscapes amplifies the tension between freedom and loss. Vargas balances stark realism with moments of surreal beauty, making the journey feel at once grounded and dreamlike.

Performances, particularly from the young cast, are raw and unguarded. They embody vulnerability, anger, and longing with authenticity, capturing the fragility of bonds formed in the margins of society.

With its R-18 rating, Some Nights I Feel Like Walking doesn’t shy away from difficult themes or intimate depictions of queer identity. Yet beneath the grit lies a tender heart: a story about love, memory, and the need for connection in a world that often denies it.

Rating: 4/5 – An uncompromising, poetic indie drama that lingers long after the credits roll.