Boy Erased

Name: Boy Erased
Genre: Biography, Drama
Released: November 2, 2018
Duration: 115 min
Rating: 69
Cast: Britton Sear, Cherry Jones, David Ditmore, David Joseph Craig, Devin Michael

2018

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 48 Critics

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 57 Ratings

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7.4

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7.4	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 57 Ratings

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Boy Erased

Movie Details & Credits

Focus Features | Release Date: November 2, 2018

Starring: Britton Sear, Cherry Jones, David Ditmore, David Joseph Craig, Devin Michael, Emily Hinkler, Flea, Jesse LaTourette, Joe Alwyn, Joel Edgerton, Lucas Hedges, Madelyn Cline, Matt Burke, Nicole Kidman, Randall P. Havens, Russell Crowe, Troye Sivan, Victor McCay, Xavier Dolan

Summary: Jared (Lucas Hedges), the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, is outed to his parents (Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe) at age 19. Jared is faced with an ultimatum: attend a gay conversion therapy program – or be permanently exiled and shunned by his family, friends, and faith.

Director: Joel Edgerton

Genre(s): Biography, Drama

Rating: R

Runtime: 115 min

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Awards & Rankings

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Observer - Rex Reed

Nov 5, 2018

The details in every scene and the polish and precision of a perfect cast make Boy Erased one of the finest and most unforgettable films of the year. Read full review

New Orleans Times-Picayune - Mike Scott

Nov 14, 2018

Lucas Hedges is terrific in the lead role of a sneaky movie that, rather than preaching and shouting, becomes something uplifting, something hopeful, something moving and something important. Read full review

IndieWire - David Ehrlich

Sep 1, 2018

While Edgerton’s fractured approach has a frustrating way of compartmentalizing his characters into their own subplots, making it hard for the movie to convey the full sweep of its emotional journey, Boy Erased regards everyone with such raw empathy that even its most difficult moments are fraught with the possibility of forgiveness. Read full review

Original-Cin - Karen Gordon

Nov 10, 2018

Boy Erased isn’t the powerhouse that it could have been. But the movie has heart and soul. And, given that Gay Conversion Therapy centers still exist, the story at the core of the film is an important one. Read full review

Rolling Stone - Peter Travers

Oct 31, 2018

The reason that Boy Erased hits you like a shot in the heart can be found in Jared’s relationship with his parents. Kidman brings stirring compassion and a growing strength to a woman who learns about herself the more she learns about her son. And Crowe is magnificent as a believer who can’t quite storm the barricades his faith erects around a true reconciliation with his son. Read full review

Washington Post - Mark Jenkins

Nov 6, 2018

Boy Erased is a showcase for Hedges, who played a closeted boy in “Lady Bird” and who plays a teen with a different sort of burden in the upcoming drama “Ben Is Back.” In each of those roles, the boy-next-door actor finds just the right combination of ordinary and anomalous. Read full review

The Guardian - Benjamin Lee

Sep 13, 2018

It’s a curiously underwhelming, muted, often plodding two hours that fails to reach the emotional highs and devastating lows one would expect from the material. Read full review

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User Reviews

united001

Nov 10, 2018

I attended this movie showing with a good friend who is gay but had not read the book upon which the movie is based and only had vague awareness of anything specific but the general theme of gay conversion therapy. By halfway through the movie, he had to leave the theater for a short periodI attended this movie showing with a good friend who is gay but had not read the book upon which the movie is based and only had vague awareness of anything specific but the general theme of gay conversion therapy. By halfway through the movie, he had to leave the theater for a short period of time because the movie upset him. Turns out although he was never in formal gay conversion therapy he told me that the religiosity of the movie was accurate so much that it was like watching a bit of a nightmare of his own experiences in religious circles as well as with his own father. At the end of the movie, he stated that he was very glad to have seen the movie, but like a PTSD survivor, he said that he would never watch the movie again. He did comment that he would consider sending a copy of the movie upon its release in that manner to his father who in many ways resembled Jared's father. I found the movie slow in places and it does jump back and forth through time, but that is how the book was written by Mr. Conley. I have not seen the other gay conversion movie recently released. This movie takes seriously what "But I'm A Cheerleader" made fun of and was entirely useless to point out the extreme emotional damage done by such practices that still go on today and are not labeled as crimes of child abuse, which is what gay conversion attempts really are. The acting was off the charts good. Lucas Hedges perfection. Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe spectacular. Joel Edgerton was spectacular. The score is superb, Troye Sivan very good in his minor role, but his singing as always perfect for the occasion. In my opinion, Boy Erased took a good book that was somewhat muted in emotion until the very end and used it to create an extremely powerful screenplay that is both appropriately emotional as well as instructive in a way the movies sometimes need to be when such ignorance such as gay conversion therapy needs a voice to point out what society still allows that is still so wrong on so many levels.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

Brent_Marchant

Nov 17, 2018

A well-made fact-based drama that effectively skewers the fallacy of conversion therapy without becoming shrill, resorting to cliches or getting tied up in rhetoric either before or against the idea. With fine performances by Lucas Hedges, Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman and Joel Edgerton, theA well-made fact-based drama that effectively skewers the fallacy of conversion therapy without becoming shrill, resorting to cliches or getting tied up in rhetoric either before or against the idea. With fine performances by Lucas Hedges, Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman and Joel Edgerton, the film delivers a solid, well-told story, full of empathy, sincerity and heart by all concerned while exposing a sham treatment for what it sadly is. This strong awards season contender is sure to give many other laudable releases a run for their money.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Compi24

Dec 4, 2018

Actor-turned-actor/director Joel Edgerton follows up his 2015 chiller "The Gift" with a film that holds a surprising candle to it in terms of shock value. But what makes "Boy Erased" more sobering, important, and -- ultimately -- better than its predecessor, is the unshakably sobering truthActor-turned-actor/director Joel Edgerton follows up his 2015 chiller "The Gift" with a film that holds a surprising candle to it in terms of shock value. But what makes "Boy Erased" more sobering, important, and -- ultimately -- better than its predecessor, is the unshakably sobering truth behind the events depicted in the film. Edgerton's adaptation of the eponymous memoir is, simply put, one of the most impactful, moving, and significant cinematic experiences of the year for me. It's not the easiest watch, strictly speaking, but I'm glad I did see it.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

JLuis_001

Feb 2, 2019

That this film was certainly built with the intention of getting attention in the awards season? Mmmm, maybe yes, to some extent, but I must give Joel Edgerton a lot of credit, because this is his second film in the director's chair and he's really showing that he has talent for it and IThat this film was certainly built with the intention of getting attention in the awards season? Mmmm, maybe yes, to some extent, but I must give Joel Edgerton a lot of credit, because this is his second film in the director's chair and he's really showing that he has talent for it and I have to say that he should exploit it more.
He's a very good actor but he can be an impressive director if he continues on this path.

The same goes for Lucas Hedges who has shown to have a solid future if he stays on this level.
Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe, correct as usual. They work well but the star of the film is Hedges.

This is a very good option.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

The3AcademySins

Dec 8, 2018

In spite of powerful performances from Lucas Hedges, Nicole Kidman, and Joel Edgerton, Boy Erased flounders with it's over padded and overly dramatic script. It's two hour run time feels like three and a half, thanks to many scenes that either don't go anywhere, or subvert Lucas Hedge'sIn spite of powerful performances from Lucas Hedges, Nicole Kidman, and Joel Edgerton, Boy Erased flounders with it's over padded and overly dramatic script. It's two hour run time feels like three and a half, thanks to many scenes that either don't go anywhere, or subvert Lucas Hedge's character's journey as opposed to highlighting it or world building.

While you wouldn't think that world building wouldn't be a necessity in a real-life drama, I found that a lot of the character motivations and behaviors were completely alien to me. Russel Crowe's character suffers the most from this, and you never really get inside his head. You also never understand why these gay conversion camps operate in the way that they do. As a result, a lot of scenes are frustrating, or overly talky, or take the cheap way out with an overly dramatic delivery of a line or development of a plot element we never see again. While there were many moments I enjoyed, there were an overwhelming amount of moments that I could have slept through and not missed anything in the movie.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Metaflix

Dec 8, 2018

The primary intention going into 'Boy Erased' was to see if Lucas Hedges could solidify himself as an unquestionably talented actor and--for the first time--carry a film as its leading man.

He wasn't very compelling in 'Manchester By the Sea' (despite an Oscar nomination!). Alternatively,The primary intention going into 'Boy Erased' was to see if Lucas Hedges could solidify himself as an unquestionably talented actor and--for the first time--carry a film as its leading man.

He wasn't very compelling in 'Manchester By the Sea' (despite an Oscar nomination!). Alternatively, he was terrific in 'Ladybird' and 'Mid90s.' So what's the final verdict after seeing his latest performance? Hedges is undoubtedly a top-notch actor and his recent string of well-developed roles in equally fantastic films is no fluke.

Everything else about 'Boy Erased' is a bit more pedestrian than we had hoped, but we still remain appreciative of the fact that Joel Edgerton was able to bring such a important project to fruition as it's writer, director, and supporting actor. For those who really enjoyed this film, we also recommend seeing 'The Miseducation of Cameron Post,' which is the better version of the two.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

TrevorsView

Dec 27, 2018

It’s obvious by now that some folks urge beyond the familiar man-woman marriage, so much so, that Tumblr has even begun to argue that mayonnaise a gender! Other modern coming-of-age teen dramas express same-sex attraction signs, others even challenge the limits of romance, such as Call Me byIt’s obvious by now that some folks urge beyond the familiar man-woman marriage, so much so, that Tumblr has even begun to argue that mayonnaise a gender! Other modern coming-of-age teen dramas express same-sex attraction signs, others even challenge the limits of romance, such as Call Me by Your Name. So what happens when filmmakers start to utilize such modern shifts in cultural values for the purpose of cashing off audience emotions? Movies like Boy Erased get made, an exploitation of a young man’s true story for the purpose of attacking religious people.

I for one do not feel like I fall in that stereotype; a best friend of mine in the past was gay, but I still welcomed him the same after coming out. Although some years later, he fought against my mindset against homosexuality by bragging about how his sexuality defines who he is, this confrontation ultimately resulted in our friendship ending. Now, I admittedly went too demeaning myself by not understanding his feelings, so a few years the Lord called me to send him a Facebook apology, which he graciously accepted. But the moral of the story is that homosexuality does not define who you are, clinging to it just boosts your ego to the point of destroying perfectly healthy relationships. That’s exactly what Focus Features does with this movie—it demonizes a religious group by narrowing onto a single abusive organization to identify the entire body.

I have seen in the past many other church groups contradict the second greatest commandment to, “love your neighbor as yourself,” but who is Hollywood to tell Christians they’re ignoring that command if they can’t do it themselves? This film’s gay protagonist, Jared, lives under “normal” parents who go to church every Sunday, his father is even a pastor, yet they plan to disown him unless he converts. Rejecting family just to look cleaner is not love, and any organization who claims to represent Christ yet can’t obey Matthew 22:34-40, are very much unspiritual. Boy Erased instead just stereotypes that all Christians are spiteful.

The screenwriter/director’s depiction of religion makes everything else very impersonal, as signified by how a car conversation is filmed from behind, not up close to the actors. In this car, Jared’s mother orders him to keep his hand inside the car window, a subtle sign of parental repression that’s even greater when father sends him to the abusive Gay Conversion Therapy program. Oh yeah, these guys abuse gay people! It may be true that these groups exist, but the closest thing this movie goes to showing “good” Christians is mom and dad, who are willing to disown their own son just because he likes men! Not only is this a stupid, one-sided argument against specific people, but nothing supports this argument; mom and dad never say what they think of one another, nor does Jared have any apparent opinion about the people running Gay Conversion Therapy. That includes when these people try to teach gays that baseball is masculine, even though no women ever voice their opinion on that objectionable claim.

Now look, Russell Crowe plays the part of the dad well with his smooth-talking tone that secretly expunges wandering, conveying a clear greed for outer cleanliness. As for Jared, hot emotions come out once he takes a long pause before answering whether to change. These sessions also keep their actions secret from the parents, and the fact that they give their victims zero privacy, even if they must pee, makes the minimal lighting setups outside the therapy doors further support Jared’s confusion. So, the details of the program are there to sharp accuracy, the problem is that weak reasons are justified for Jared to hate father, which the therapy tries to convince him he should feel.

Hence, its core audience, especially mothers, will find little appeal from the lack of mental detailing, as Nicole Kidman’s thin mother role puts no input on this highly masculine story that doesn’t even know how manhood works. Jared says at one point that he sees himself as Job, a super minor detail that contributes nothing to the story, since whomever put that detail in clearly knew nothing about the book aside from the title. Dad’s not out of the clear either in being a forgettable character, as he has no response to the memories with his son growing up. At this point, I almost prefer if the story came from the fascist “Love in Action” therapy’s perspective, then learn why one leader name-calls Jared—besides just being an abusive hypocrite.

Such “art” of today only wants to feed the misconception that everything goes to waste anyways, as there is supposedly no life after earth. I’ve seen plenty of secular films that are tremendously made and still teach the proper values, including my favorite film, American Beauty, which says that Americans’ obsession with appearances teaches the wrong idea of success.… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

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