Boy Erased ★★★

THERE is a lot of acting talent on show in Boy Erased.

A trio of Australians, Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe and Joel Edgerton, combine with up-and-coming American Lucas Hedges to create a strong ensemble.

Based on the true experience of a young, gay Christian man who spent time in a Church program designed to change sexual orientation, the film is engrossing throughout due mainly to the performances.

While it engenders feelings in the audience of anger, bewilderment and compassion, these feelings tend to develop quickly and remain relatively constant throughout the film.

There are some intense scenes towards the end, but the script doesn’t build sufficient tension and ultimately the sum of its good parts doesn’t fully add up to a compelling whole.

Garrard Conley’s memoir, upon which the script is based, may well take a similar approach to the story-telling, but I’m sure there are more emotional moments in the real events than depicted in the film.

There’s a very good scene towards the end between Crowe and Hedges that made me realise the film hadn’t achieved enough highs to that point.

Edgerton wrote and directed the film which is his second feature following the impressive thriller The Gift in 2015.

He’s also a good actor provided it’s the right type of role. In Boy Erased he plays Victor Sykes, the man who runs the so-called conversion program.

While Edgerton is good, the script doesn’t fully round out this character, especially considering something we discover in the close before the end credits.

Lucas Hedges plays the young man, Jared Eamons, with the right balance of respect for his parents and religion and his personal torment and conviction.

With Manchester by the Sea, Ladybird, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri and now this film, Hedges is building a promising career.

As Jared’s parents, Marshall and Nancy, Crowe, and particularly Kidman, give solid support but, again, without enough of the emotional beats you would expect from such a compelling true and disturbing story.