Movie Review

Boys State offers fascinating glimpse at possible future of Texas politics

Adults who have a decent investment in the state of the political world are almost uniformly fed up with the unending partisanship on display from the main two parties in the United States. Given how fraught the landscape is in politics, it’s a wonder anyone would willingly subject themselves to a system that would seem to have little, if any, rewards.

Any world, however, can look different if seen through the eyes of young people. Politics is both idealized and exploited in the fascinating documentary Boys State. A yearly event put on by the American Legion, Boys State is a national program that gives an opportunity to high school senior boys (and, yes, there’s a similar program just for girls) to create their own version of state government.

The film, directed by Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss, chronicles the goings-on at the Texas event in 2018, which featured over 1,000 participants descending upon the state capitol in Austin. The event splits the boys into two parties, named either Federalists or Nationalists to ostensibly head off any ingrained beliefs of real-world parties. After that, they jockey among each other to run for positions ranging from state party chair to governor.

The filmmakers focus on a variety of boys, including Steven Garza, who arrives in a Beto O’Rourke T-shirt and appears to be a liberal needle in a conservative haystack; René Otero, whose strong voice and opinions earn him both praise and scorn; and Ben Feinstein, who has disabilities that haven't dampened his sense of self, an attitude that helps him become respected by the members of his party.

The film is remarkable for a variety of reasons, including its scarcity of adults. Save for a brief opening sequence, almost no adults are shown in the film, which gives the event a freewheeling atmosphere that’s both chaotic and structured at the same time. The filmmakers also appear to have had unfettered access to every aspect of the event, which allowed for them to capture moments that are bracingly honest.

Since the group is made up of adolescent boys, the ability to take the proceedings seriously varies widely. While many of them approach different political issues with the gravity they deserve, at least one candidate running for governor runs on a platform of getting people to laugh at his penis jokes. Surprisingly, the former group seems to win the day, although there is plenty of macho posturing throughout even the most thoughtful debates.

While it’s difficult to fully grasp the intricacies of how Boys State works, the filmmakers do a highly effective job of bringing out the personalities of the boys. The beliefs of individual viewers will likely have them rooting for one boy or another to succeed, but the great thing about the movie is that none of the boys are solely defined by their own political beliefs.

The roads the two parties take at this version of Boys State may have you alternately having hope or despair for the future of American politics, but the film itself is a master class in characterization. No matter where their lives take them, many of these boys seem to have what it takes to be leaders.

---

Boys State, produced by A24, debuts exclusively on Apple TV+ on August 14.

Steven Garza in Boys State.

Steven Garza in Boys State

Photo courtesy of Apple TV+

Steven Garza in Boys State.

Movie Review

Daniel Craig searches for elusive new bond in audacious film Queer

Drew Starkey and Daniel Craig in Queer

Photo courtesy of A24

Drew Starkey and Daniel Craig in Queer.

As recently as the late 2010s, if a movie was made about an LGBTQ+ character, it was more than likely about their coming out experience. Romance, if it existed, was typically chaste, and actual sex was almost completely out of the question. Things have changed dramatically in the 2020s, to the point that a major movie star has no issue starring in a film called Queer.

Based on the 1985 novella by William S. Burroughs, the film features William Lee (Daniel Craig), whom everyone calls just Lee, a writer living in 1950s-era Mexico City who spends most of his time haunting local bars with friends like fellow writer Joe Guidry (Jason Schwartzman) and hitting on younger men. His early interactions in the film seem to indicate that Lee has a bad reputation within the local gay community, as multiple people avoid him or give him odd looks.

Lee senses an opportunity when he encounters a newcomer, Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey). Despite some awkward interactions, the two of them start spending time together, although Lee has much more invested in the relationship than Eugene does. Their hit-and-miss bond continues until Lee, who’s starting to get into drugs in addition to the booze, convinces Eugene to accompany him on a trip to South America.

Directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by Justin Kuritzkes (making their second straight film together after Challengers), early on the film seems to be mostly about the divide between an older person who’s grown comfortable in his ways and a younger person who’s living a relatively carefree life. The introduction of drugs into the plot changes things, though, with Lee searching out more ways to open his eyes to what the world has to offer.

Guadagnino and his team use some interesting visual storytelling techniques to introduce ideas that may not be present in the actual script. The most successful, demonstrated in multiple scenes, is the superimposition of movements by Lee over what’s actually taking place in the scene. The subtle overlay gives the audience insight into Lee’s true feelings, showing what he can’t or won’t say out loud.

Music also plays a big part in how the plot is perceived, with the use of anachronistic songs from Nirvana and Prince serving to heighten certain moments. The score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is not as in-your-face as the one they did for Challengers, but it complements the film well, especially when the plot starts to get trippy in its final half hour.

Craig, who appears sweaty and disheveled for much of the film, is about as far from the suaveness of James Bond as you can get in this role. He takes multiple risks with his performance and almost all of them pay off. Starkey’s character is subdued by comparison, but still comes off well. Schwartzman and Lesley Manville are given showy roles, with both using altered appearances that make them nearly unrecognizable to deliver memorable performances.

Queer is not as accessible as Challengers was storytelling-wise, but the fact that it tells a story about gay men living their lives as they see fit with no interference or questions shows how far the film world has come in a short period of time. It also continues Guadagnino’s streak of making audacious films in a way that few other filmmakers are willing or able to approach.

---

Queer is now playing in theaters.

Loading...