To many people, religion is both a delicate topic and a pervasive phenomenon. Many social cues, laws, and customs have been informed by the belief in a higher power, rendering it omnipresent throughout the world. While religion offers a sense of control, motivation, and serenity to some, many have also called attention to the ways organized religion has been responsible for personal traumatic experiences and historical catastrophes.
With that being said, living in a religious environment is far from simple. The expectations placed on young children coupled with the pervasive feeling of guilt and shame have detrimental effects that we as a population continue to witness as time progresses. Varying degrees of indoctrination and abuse have also resulted in a generation disillusioned with religion altogether. Some find solace in atheism, other don the title spiritual, and there are those who stand firmly within their religious confines while also remaining open-minded. As a result, it is not uncommon to find numerous people who reflect on their childhood with contempt.
Be it in a personal blog, a therapy session, or under 240 characters, many have the platform to express their experience living in religion communities. Describing discrepancies and identifying correlations between religion and bigotry, these memories and subsequent discourse have further validated people’s stories about the harms of a toxic, religious environment. Much like the average social media user, independent and mainstream studios have also tackled the debate with their nuanced offerings on religious trauma. Film likeCarrieandThe Eyes Of Tammy Fayehave discussed religion at length. Both projects emphasize human folly and hubris in relation to religion. Protagonists and antagonists alike have manipulated religion for one’s benefit, and most importantly, at the expense of others.
Thesedramasnot only look at the individuals themselves but also the institutions responsible for and reeling from religious trauma. The nuanced approach of these narratives offers insight on the authentic lives of people in religious communities. Neither completely critical nor completely oblivious, these films successfully tackle the intricate emotions, knee-jerk reactions, and insightful epiphanies prompted by one’s complicated relationship with religion.
10But I’m A Cheerleader (1999)
One of the brighter films to tackle religious trauma,But I’m A Cheerleaderwas one of the first films to actively critique conversion therapy, as well as the broader implications of heteronormativity. The film follows Megan Bloomfield, a young cheerleader portrayed by Natasha Lyonne. After her sexuality becomes the source of speculation, her parents collude with recently “converted” individuals and have Megan sent to conversion therapy. While the film acknowledges the darkness within these confines, it also makes the decision tohighlight the bright and amusing personalitiesthat remain vigilant and jubilant during one of the most traumatic moments of their lives.
Toying with irony,But I’m A Cheerleaderdeconstructs the rather ridiculous premise of a conversion therapy camp. Rounding up queer people and having them live side by side is the biggest deterrent to a perceived goal of ridding the world of queerness. The satirical moments are well executed, offering audiences some semblance of lightness and amusement while also tearing at the fabric of homophobia. Lyonne excels as Megan and the supporting castcontribute immensely to its enjoyment. Now considered a cult classic, the film continues to be a source of solace for many folks living under the constant threat of being “cleansed” of their innate attraction.
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9The Miseducation of Cameron Post (2018)
WhileBut I’m A Cheerleaderoffers some amusement in its dissection of conversion therapy camps,The Miseducation of Cameron Postaccomplishes just that with a darker, dramatic tone. The film finds Cameron Post (Chloe Grace Moretz) at her most vulnerable. Enjoying her time with her secret girlfriend Coley Taylor (Quinn Shepard), the two are discovered and outed by Cameron’s boyfriend, Jamie (Dalton Harrod), resulting in her aunt Ruth’s decision to ship her to conversion therapy camp. While there, Cameron strikes up a friendship with Jane Fonda (Sasha Lane) and Adam Red Eagle (Forrest Goodluck), and we as viewers get a look inside their identities, their aspirations, and the unique ways that conversion therapy and homophobia altogether has traumatized them.
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Much like the source material,The Miseducation of Cameron Postdoesn’t shy away from the damaging practices, and quite frankly, the various forms of child abuse that take place in these conversion therapy camps. The movie tackles feelings od dread and isolation, wandering without with the knowledge that the trauma experienced is linked to a tyrannical train of thought and protected by systems whose protocol is to ignore and thus jeopardize organized efforts for freedom in the face of torture and unjust punishment. Moretz, Goodluck, and Lane provide excellent performances that accentuate the film’s decision to critique institutionalized homophobia while also providing witty lines and endearing characters for us to champion.
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8Hala (2019)
Inspired by her experience as a Pakistani-American, Minhal Baig presentedHalato audiences in 2019. Following 17-year-old Hala (Geraldine Viswanathan), the film both stands alongside a recent number of compelling coming-of-age fiction while also carrying itself as a complex, nuanced, and ultimately relatable film that looks into the role religion plays in adolescence. Raised by strict Muslim parents, Hala is expected to adhere to the typical tenets of the religion as well as the additional roles crafted for her. Throughout the film, we see Hala attempt to define romance in her won way while navigating her sexuality.
Despite the continued use of the strict Muslim family trope, Hala’s parents are shown to be compassionate and caring, rendering them as more than two-dimensional stereotypes that would be easy to vilify given pervasive Islamophobia as well as the complicated relationships many Muslims have with their religious communities. Instead, the film acknowledges that religion can be one’s saving grace, but that does not mean that it will be for another person. Due to the strict interpretations of religious texts and beliefs, there are those who feel like they would not have grasp of their own identity if they did not break the rules. Furthermore, the film calls attention to the concept of rule breaking in the first place.
Much like Hala, people in religious communities are exposed to hypocritical actions and beliefs all throughout their lives.Halaexcellently captures the guilt, frustration, and the confusion that comes with being a child of devout immigrants,being a youth naturally in search of their own identity, all the while still wanting to appease their parents. Not because of a superficial desire but as a result of their understanding that family, chosen or otherwise, is important and beneficial when affirming. Instead of juxtaposing the two ideas, Haig offers a complex look inside an American Muslim teenager, who much like her parents, strives to balance their own aspirations with the choices they made for each other, for better or for worse.
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7Minyan (2020)
Looking back the lives of gay, Jewish men in the 1980s, the filmMinyanis beautiful coming-of-age film that acknowledges the perils of living in a hostile, homophobic environment while also highlighting the close-knit communities in both the Jewish and queer communities in New York. The film follows David (Samuel H. Levine) a teenager who lives with an overbearing, and often times invasive mother and an abusive father. Bonding with his grandfather Josef (Ron Rifkin), the two moving to an area with subsidized housing, where they are required to join a minyan, or a Jewish prayer circle. In a new environment, David becomes exposed people and experiences that are both affirming and educational. Watching David blossom makes for a particularly endearing movie.
Minyanexists within a canon of intersectional, coming-of-age films, exploring one of the many immigrant communities that exist within the United States. Watching David try to weave through the difficult waters that is adolescence in a devout and interlocked community. As he continues on his personal journey towards a sense of freedom, discovery, and comfort, the pervasive trauma from the Holocaust as well as the omnipresent threat of homophobia permeates throughout the film.It ultimately informs the community’s desireto remain connected, even if the manner of said connection is deemed “unconventional” or “unholy.” All in all,Minyansuccessfully juggles themes of grief, longing, and repression in hopes of chronicling David’s story of growth.
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6Women Talking (2022)
Women Talking
Academics, followers, and apostates alike have the discussed the various ways religious institutions enable abuse. InWomen Talking, the site of the crimes in question is a Mennonite colony. The film opens with the aftermath of a brutal assault scene that exposes a litany of sexual assaults occurring throughout the land. After the arrests, the group of women in the colony begin to discuss the next steps, with some deciding to do nothing while others wish to take action. Be it the women’s testimonials or their harrowing experiences,Women Talkingnever turns its attention away from the horrific act of violence and the equally sorrowful aftershocks.
Anyone who had the privilege of watchingWomen Talkingwill confidently attest tothe bravado of the ensemble cast. Rooney Mara, Jessie Beckley, Claire Foy, alongside their peers, have provided audiences with riveting performances of pain, resilience, and confusion. In recent memory, conversations about the “perfect victim” have gained popularity and this film is one of many that actively combats against that notion. Violence and trauma appear in many different ways and the morality of a survivor’s decision is much more complex than many would hope. The brevity of the discussions within the film offer a striking set of conclusions that calls attention to the interwoven bond between religion, misogyny, abuse, and silence.
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5Boy Erased (2018)
Boy Erasedtakes every queer person’s worst nightmare and illustrates the devastation that comes in its wake. After being outed to his Baptist parents, Jared (Lucas Hedges) is provided with an ultimatum: to “attend” a conversion therapy camp or risk permanent exile from all that he has known. Lifted from the pages of Garrad Conley’s memoir of the same name, the film finds Jared coming to terms with the fact that various people within his life have failed him before he was even aware of it. While in the conversion therapy camp, Jared also meets various attendees who either abide by the rules just to go back home or actually believe conversion therapy will make them heterosexual.
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Stemming from the false belief that homosexuality is a mental disorder, conversion therapy “practices” have largely been deemed as illegitimate. However, testimonies like the source of inspiration behindBoy Eraseddocument just how inhumane the “treatment” at these facilities truly are. Abuse remains prevalent and is often, deliberately used because the queer lives in question arrive to them already tainted and perverse according to them. Giving a voice to one of the many survivors of this iteration of systemic abuse makes it impossible to disguise the ulterior motives of these programs. Reinforcing the very shame and self-hatred that queer people have experienced as children, conversion therapy goes to great lengths to vanquish the innocent souls they claim to want to purify. AsBoy Eraseddutifully expresses, religion can fracture a family before they even know, and even that initial crack won’t prevent further down the line.
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4Yes, God, Yes (2019)
As much as high school is glorified in media for being a moment where adolescents experience greater independence and begin their journey of self discovery, high school also acts as a microcosm for the world at large. Similarly, religious high schools echo the same beliefs shared by the God-fearing establishment. In Karen Maine’s indie dramedyYes, God, Yes,Natalia Dyer shines as the endearing Alice, a young woman attempting to navigating her personal exploration of sexuality in the midst of disapproving gazes and condescending prayers. After a rumor shatters her previously clean reputation, Alice spends the rest of the film contending with the gossip and hypocrisy that permeates within her school, culminating in an eye-opening Catholic camp excursion.
Religion has been a notorious tool to advance and institutionalize misogyny in every facet of life Women, femmes, and young girls have been held to ridiculous standards, invented to confine and silence them. Anyone who dares to take a simple step out of those confines experience ridicule, ostracization, and even violence. What makesYes, God, Yesa particularly moving movie about religious trauma is that it doesn’t lead with spectacle. In documenting Alice’s curiosity about sex and the subsequent shame she feels, her authentic story stings just like a faint memory of the past. Instead of being approached in good faith, teenage girls are already cast to eternal damnation, being picked apart by peers and adults alike. While Alice is at the receiving end of much scrutiny, she eventually gets a semblance of solace that finally liberates her from the constricting mortification that comes with living in heteronormative communities.
3The Witch (2015)
In one breath,The Witchis a call back to the terrifying times of Puritan America. However, the film also illustrates the seemingly eternal struggles of the teenage girl. Be it in the home, with devout parents, or throughout the small town, the power of organized religion reigns supreme. Coupled with pompous people in power, eager to humiliate and isolate those deemed “undesirable” or “ungodly”, what results is an environment rife with hypocrisy and ruled by fear. Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy) and her family are introduced as pariahs, banished from their town and rendered to a life of isolation in the wilderness, demonized by many Puritan thinkers as the terrain of the devil. Throughout the film, the fear of witchcraft threatens the stability of the recently isolated family. With accusations flying back and forth, the seams quickly unravel, andthe family suffers from irreversible consequencesas a result.
The film’s conclusion is surely shocking, but its messages continue to live beyond the constrained time limit. Those with lived experiences in repressive, religious environments undoubtedly have an insatiable thirst for freedom alongside a history of being vilified that motivates their actions. Whether or not they fall in line with personal morals or better yet, societal expectations shouldn’t hold such precedence. In fact, the direness of the situation should implore viewers to acknowledge the severity of religious trauma and its impact on themselves as well as their loved ones.
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2Joyland (2022)
Joylandfocuses its lens on a middle class Pakistani family living in Lahore. We come to meet the Rana family through Haider (Ali Junejo), the younger son of the family patriarch Amanullah (Salmaan Peerzada). Defined by his years-long unemployment status, Haider accepts a position as a backup dancer for Biba (Alina Khan), a trans woman who works at an erotic dance theater. Meanwhile, Haider’s wife Muntaz (Rasti Farooq) works as an aesthetician and has largely served as the provider for the family, much to the dismay of the rest of her family. Alongside Haider’s sister-in-law (Nucchi) and her husband Saleem (Sohail Sameer), the extensive family share moments of strife and pain while each member ventures on their own rebellion in the face of repression.
Many aspects ofJoylandmake for a spectacular story. Partly inspired by the trans community thatlived 10 minutes awayfrom director Saim Sadiq’s childhood home,Joylandproudly asserts that transness is not a “Western import” as virulent transphobes would profess. In Pakistan specifically, trans folks have existed as one of the many core aspects the country’s identity, and it shows in legislation dating back to 2018 that prohibited discrimination in educational and social circles while also granting them rights ot identify as they wish legally.Reflecting the reality of Pakistan and the world at large, Biba’s various encounters remind audiences of the pervasive transphobia that she faces but also shines a light on the adoration she receives as well as the affirmations that her community offers her.
Furthermore,Joyland,at its core, speaks to a previously overlooked cycle that many families of color go through. Due to religious fundamentalism and colonial creed, heteronormative attitudes and beliefs are even more entrenched at times, breathing life into the shame and fear that haunted subjugated ancestors under imperialism and continue to estrange people from their families, their true selves, and thus any hope of genuine happiness. Despite the colorful personalities within the film, the true villain is not one person but the system of patriarchy that informs some while harming all. In spite of the bleakness that the film touches on,Joylandlives up to its name through glimpses of Biba’s iconoclast energy on the stage, Haider’s respective relationships with Biba and Muntaz, as well as the characters' respective decisions in stripping the “transgressive” label off of their normal desires.
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1Persepolis (2007)
Persepolis
Perhaps it would be an understatement to simply call 2007’sPersepolisa film. An adaptation of creator Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel series of the same name, the animated coming-of-age drama is as moving as an era-defining monument as it is a deeply personal story. In fact, it is because of its personal origins thatPersepoliscontinues to be a fascinating and earnest exploration of adolescence in the midst of political upheaval and spiritual uncertainty.
Opening in pre-Revolution Iran, we meet Marjane, referred to as “Marji”, lives with a middle-class Iranian family whose left leaning principles make them targets of both the Shah and the Islamic fundamentalists that would assume power following the Revolution. Following the persecution of her family members and the restrictive legislation coming in the wake of the Iran-Iraq War, Marji is sent to live with a friend in Europe where she suffers a series of disorienting experiences while also empowering her with much need insight on her identity, world politics, and her relationship with religion.
The beauty ofPersepolisis in its depiction of teenage curiosity, disillusionment prompted by the state of the world in doing so, chips away at the fabric of falsities that have created and propagated dismissive stereotypes and damaging rhetoric that enabled various conflicts within Iran. Forever linked to her Iranian heritage,Persepolisdoesn’t read as a heartless critique of Iran or pays into the flawed “clash-of-cultures” concept that many of us grew up hearing. Instead, the film chronicles the relatable confusion many teenagers have with having every facet of their identity harmonize when being faced with contradictions.
Of course, living under a theocratic government endangers this process of self-discovery but as we witness in Marji’s time in Europe, so does being in a hostile, xenophobic environment that makes no effort to perceive her as an ordinary person or acknowledge her different background. WithPersepolis, Marjane Satrapi bothmanaged to tell a story she could only telland have it be a universal reflection on adolescence, tearing away the walls and letting seemingly oppositional contradictions exist as one, in peace.
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