by Yazmin Ghonaim

BOYS DON'T CRY Kimberly Peirce (1999) Boys Don't Cry , directed by Kimberly Peirce, focuses on the complicated story of Teena Brandon, a young girl whose sustained efforts to supress her gender are rewarded by a successful psychological and social transformation into a boy, but punished by the intolerance of those who refuse to see beyond her body. Based on the true character by the same name, Boys Don't Cry is set in the early 1990s in Falls City, Nebraska, where the young Brandon (played by a convincing Hilary Swank) hides his female identity and seeks the excitement of a new love and of male bonding with new friends. Brandon's short hair, boyish features, cowboy clothes and confident smile help sketch his natural charm; yet it is those qualities independent of gender --innocence, optimism, tenderness and loyalty-- which win the love of Lana (Chloe Sevigny) and the trust of John (Peter Sarsgaard). Ignorance, fear and a threatened sense of manhood, however, overcome the town's "real men" and determine the story's violent dénouement. Although Boys Don't Cry touches upon the issues that concern the difference between being a lesbian and being a woman who feels she is a man, the film is most succesful in emphasizing the other characters' ignorance-driven hatred and their use of violence as a manifestation of their particular sense of "manhood". Furthermore, the film's strength lies in the actors' performances and in the characterization of the Teena Brandon/Brandon Teena persona.		DVD Music Books Search by keywords:
Outstanding Features: Story, Acting Boys Don't Cry Movie Review © 1999 Cinephiles - All rights reserved.