'Boys Don't Cry', 1999

Released in 1999 and directed by Kimberly Peirce, ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ tells the true story of Brendon Teena, a transgender man coming-of-age in rural Nebraska. After a former girlfriend’s brother discovers Brandon is transgender, he is forced to move to the small town of Falls City, Nebraska. There, he meets Lana Tisdel, and they begin to grow close - but with Lana comes her ex-boyfriend John, a troubled but charismatic character with a history of violence.

Viewers should be warned that 1) you will almost certainly cry before the conclusion of this movie, and 2) there are several scenes in this movie that have brutal violence and are very difficult to watch (see below for CW). The movie exposes the unfortunate realities of social, medical, and legal discrimination and violence against trans people. The movie was created after Peirce, an open lesbian, wrote her thesis at Columbia about Brandon. The short film she made after traveling to Falls City and doing her research/interviews was noticed by producer Christine Vachon, who helped Peirce turn it into a feature film (shot in just 36 days). Yet despite this effort, some close to Brandon said that the events of his life were not portrayed accurately (for instance, the romance between Lana and Brandon, which may have been less passionate in real life). Peirce also failed to include Phillip DeVine, a black disabled man, in her film, reportedly due to filming time constraints. Several trans people have written essays on their perceptions of the movie; you can read two of them here or here.

The five words I would use to describe this film: heart-rending, jarring, brutal, intense, harrowing

My queer take: This movie was Hilary Swank’s breakout role, and her acting in the film won her an Academy Award and a Golden Globe award for Best Actress. But Peirce made an egregious error in casting a cisgender woman as Brandon. Despite that, I believe that Peirce’s dedication to this film (and the story it tells) is evident. The movie also addresses toxic masculinity, the culture of violence, and the intersection of social class with gender and sexuality. What I’m trying to say is - the movie is flawed in some ways, but at the end of the day, Peirce’s honest intentions (and her genuine interest in telling Brandon’s story) are evident. After its release, the film helped to spark additional public interest in hate crime legislation in America. I found this film to be incredibly moving and I do think that others should watch it, but I found it necessary to warn viewers of the brutal depictions of violence.

CW: transphobia, sexual assault, rape, violence, murder

Fun fact: Chloe Sevigny has played several other LGBT+ characters throughout her acting career, including a trans woman on the British TV show ‘Hit & Miss’. You can read an interview with her here about how that came to be, and why she wouldn’t accept a role like that today. She also starred in ‘Lizzie’, the lesbian drama about Massachusetts axe-murderer Lizzie Borden that came out in late 2018.

Another fun fact: Peirce is a founding member of ReFrame, an industry-wide effort to end discrimination against women and people of color in Hollywood. Peirce was initially frustrated with the MPAA’s decision on how to rate her film; they wanted to remove a sex scene between Lana and Brandon, but were fine with the level of brutality in later scenes of the movie. The MPAA also took issue with one scene that featured an orgasm that was “too long”. In response, Peirce rhetorically asked if anyone had ever been hurt by an orgasm that was too long.