Boy Erased (2018)

This film is a devastating look on a gay conversation camp and a hidden gem of a film.
Jared Eamons (Lucas Hedges, one of the best actors of his generation) seems to be the typical wonder bread American boy, athletic and all that. His father, Marshall (Russell Crowe) is a pastor and owns a car dealership (because that makes sense) and is the one who sends him off to a gay conversation therapy camp, which is a dreadful experience because you can't pray the gay away, which any sane person would know.
However, Jared isn't like some of the other boys (or girls) there. He isn't angry at this father though he has reason to be and also, he's still struggling with his sexuality, his main sexual experience was when his friend Henry (Joe Alwyn), one of the worst villains in the recent years of film, date rapes him in a truly horrific scene and then wonders what's wrong with him (Henry, not Jared).
And then, Henry calls Jared's mother, Nancy (the brilliant Nicole Kidman) and the whole plot gets underway.
Nancy is the one who takes Jared to this camp, Love In Action but she is more aware than most parents and insists on reading the manual, even though one of the main rules is that nothing leaves the facility, which is foolish. Parents should know what they are paying for. There is child abuse behind those walls, literally beating a young man with a Bible but Jared doesn't fall for that and tries to leave; however, it isn't until his mother threatens to call the cops that Jared is actually allowed to leave. Nancy regrets falling in line with the men (her husband and others) and she starts to truly accept her son for who he is. It takes Marshall years longer and nearly destroys the relationship he has with his wife.
The only problem I had with the film is that I don't fully understand when Xavier (Theodore Pellerin) falls into the timeline. Is he from Jared's high school days or is he during the Henry friendship days?
Still, this film is one of the best films of the year, though slightly predictable (you know which young man will commit suicide), but the screenplay is great and the performances are utterly brilliant. Both Hedges and Kidman should have been nominated for Oscars for their work (Kidman was far better here than in Lion). And the characters are so real, with every little emotion showing on their faces. The score is haunting and the film is put together superbly. It is a must watch, though it is not an easy film to watch knowing how dreadful those conversation therapy camps are and that that practice is still legal in many states. People should be loved for being exactly as they are, unless they enjoy harming others (figured I should put that in). You shouldn't try to change someone just because you don't agree with homosexuality and think that it's a sin. It isn't a choice, its how that person is meant to be.
But back to the film, everyone should watch it, for the brilliant performances, if nothing else. However, it remains one of the most underrated films of the year. Grade: A-