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Jul 13, 2019richmole rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
WE have two people to thank for this movie: Garrard Conley, whose memoir inspired it. And Joel Edgerton who wrote the script, directed the movie and starred in it as well, much like he did on The Gift in 2015. That makes it very close to a one-man movie--similar to his hugely successful 2015 hit, The Gift. This time, there's a third man to thank for making the movie as compelling as it is: the young star of the film, Lucas Hedges, (Oscar-nominated for Manchester By the Sea; Lady Bird; Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri.) Edgerton's script about the angst and horror produced by anti-gay Conversion Therapy (still legal in some Canadian provinces)--resulted in a four-way bidding war. Focus Features won. What Focus gets--at least, 10 months after the movie's release--is mostly prestige bragging rights. Gay issues can mean big box office (Milk, 2008 was huge money-maker--over twice its cost), but things can change rapidly and this movie wasn't the "ground-breaker" that Milk was for Focus Features, 10 years before. This film barely broke even--likely a small loss for Focus. Don't let that deter you from seeing it. It's a very good film, and Hedges is outstanding--again. A good performance also by Nicole Kidman as the boy's mother. NOTE OF CAUTION: You may not wish to see this movie if your faith means you believe homosexuality is NOT genetic predisposition, but something "learned" which can be "unlearned" through Conversion Therapy. But--again--don't let that deter you unnecessarily. At the very least, it might be instructive for to see how the "cure" affects some of the "afflicted."