Boys Don't Cry
After talking about Priscilla yesterday and male to female transgender, today we will be looking at Boys Don’t Cry, an account of female to male transgenderism. This is a breathtakingly tragic movie based on the life of real life transgender Brandon Teena who was brutally raped and murdered by his peers when they found out. Kimberley Peirce, the director, was taken with the case in 1993 and the “complete free spirit” of Brandon. Boys Don’t Cry, in that way, is a beautiful independent tribute to the Trans man with some of the most powerful performance you’ll see in cinema history.
As I have mentioned, Boys Don’t Cry is based on the harrowing true story of Brandon Teena, a female to male non operative transgender. When Brandon is discovered to be anatomically female, he is subjected to physical threats. After a bar fight, he moves to Falls City, Nebraska where he befriends two ex convicts John and Tom. Soon after moving there, he falls in love with Lana and the two make plans to move to Memphis. But the prior incident lands Brandon in a woman’s prison. Successfully lying to Lana about why, John and Tom become suspicious and soon torture, rape and eventually murder Brandon for being born female. The tragedy of the true story makes Boys Don’t Cry a controversial yet thought provoking movie.
Much of Boys Don’t Cry weight is carried by the ridiculously impressive performances of Hilary Swank and Chloe Sevigny. In particular, Swank gives the performance of her career which, for a relatively unknown, is brilliant. The project had gained a lot of steam and notoriety due to the public awareness of the murder. While a lot of actors and actresses viled for the parts (as well as some who were told to detach themselves from the project altogether. And though it seems Peirce had a seen many, she picked Swank who was pretty much nobody at the time. Peirce said that Swank embodied everything that Brandon was about and this is exhumed on screen. Swank gives a heart to a tragic movie. The character she portrays, with such a horrid end, is given poetry and hope that immerses you into the movie. She makes the spirit of Brandon fly into the audience and intensely touches are humanity. It is Swank as Brandon that gives light in a film that is swallowed so profoundly by darkness in the acts Brandon has to suffer. But Swank gives strength, love and hope that there is no questioning her Oscar Winning with this incredible piece. And luckily Swank is not alone here. Chloe Sevigny is wonderful cast as the girlfriend Lana who never address or questions Brandon as a man and supports him even after death. Here we have a Romeo and Juliet couple, torn apart from a cruel and unforgiving world. Sevigny and Swank have a tender chemistry that brings the plight of the relationship forward. With a whole host of supporting actors who act like it is the last film they are going to star in, Boys Don't Cry is a wonderful striking movie.
The brilliance of Boys Don’t Cry is not just in the cast and characters but in the director. Kimberley Peirce researched the story to precision and felt a strong bond with the real life Brandon and his story. Peirce and Bienan not only represent him here but offer a highly unique tribute. Boys Don’t Cry is beautiful in its tragedy about “a brave soul who flew too close to the flame.”
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