Boy Erased

“Boy Erased” stars Nicole Kidman as Nancy Eamons, Russell Crowe as Marshall Eamons, and Lucas Hedges as Jared Eamons.

Based on a true story, the film follows the Eamons family, a conservative, straight laced, God fearing family. Marshall Eamons is a minister, and a conservative one at that.

The story focuses on Jared. One day, the Eamon family receives a phone call, one that describes their son Jared as a homosexual. They ask their son if it is true, and Jared says yes. His parents then sent him to gay conversion therapy, in a facility akin to a rehab facility.

This is not an easy film to watch. There is a rape scene in the film. The techniques employed at the gay conversion facility are torturous, both psychologically and physically.  

Watching this film, I had a knot in the pit of my stomach the entire time. It made me feel like the horror film “Get Out.” It was uncomfortable to watch, and it means to be. There is no music in the film to set a mood, or suggest a mood; the silence in the film makes the tension, and anguish, palpable.

The scariest part of the film is that gay conversion therapy is actually happening right now, across the country. At the end of the film, there is a statistic that 39 states in the U.S. currently allow gay conversion therapy for minors. The film also stated that to date, 700,000 Americans have gone through gay conversion therapy.

While this was a difficult movie to watch, it is an important film. However someone identifies, it is impossible to pray it away. This film speaks to the need to ban gay conversion therapy once and for all.

“Boy Erased”, now on Blu Ray and DVD, available for streaming on Amazon Prime, Google Play, YouTube, and Vudu. Three stars.