To set the record straight, the word "transgender" is an adjective. They illustrate and add depth to nouns, divulging their cloaked splendors and hidden horrors; this is what "transgender" does for the movie "A Fantastic Woman" and its main character. This film vividly tells the story of a transgender woman dealing with a terrible loss, inflamed by the stigma of her gender identity. The movie begins with a joyful birthday celebration for Marina that takes a harrowing turn when her older boyfriend Orlando suddenly falls ill that night. After he is rushed to the hospital, Orlando unexpectedly dies, leaving Marina lost and shaken. In the ensuing events, Marina must deal with Orlando's cruel and transphobic family who cut her off from his funeral and evict her from their shared apartment, handle a skeptical detective who smells foul play in Orlando's death, and grapple with graphic images of her deceased boyfriend that manifest within her daily life.

Played by the remarkable and inimitable Daniela Vega, Marina is truly revealed to be a fantastic woman who perseveres through invasive interrogations, derogatory digs, and malevolent misgendering. All that she struggles against is tightly bound with the omnipresent bigotry of the narrow-minded people and intolerant world that surround her. When she is abducted by her dead partner's son and his brutish friends, they hurl obscene slurs at her, violently wrap packing tape around her head, and dump her in a deserted alley way. Marina simply rips and tears the tacky tape and sordid words away and later finds her way to Orlando's funeral, even after her bitter and unwelcoming reception at his wake. Marina is forced to constantly battle with these elements that are ill-natured forces in the story.

As a key facet and one of the despicable instruments of the storyline, transphobia pervades every moment of Marina's life with its cruel and spiteful marks. From unabashed staring at her nether regions to being labeled a chimera and a "crazy man," everyday humiliations that transgender people face are brought to light, complicating a seemingly mundane story of devotion and demise. As these details and components are carefully and surreptitiously woven into the plot line, every quick glance and misspoken word is intensified with meaning and malice.

Details matter to the story of "A Fantastic Woman," and the minute differences in the definitions of words were important to me as I considered how best to describe Marina Vidal. "Fantastic" is not a word that I would have chosen, as it is often a bland and overused adjective with little significance or impact to support it, but its use in the title of "A Fantastic Woman" is one of the numerous ways that evinces Marina's tremendous tenacity in a world that strives to curb her and her indefatigable spirit.