Boys State (2020)

Boys State (2020)

An inspiring social experiment about youth in government, that builds with the emotion of a sports movie

The Very Best

8.7

Movie

United States of America
English
Documentary, Drama, Family
2020
AMANDA MCBAINE, FEMALE DIRECTOR
109 min

What it's about

In an unusual experiment, a thousand 17-year-old boys from Texas join together to build a representative government from the ground up.

The take

What starts out as as a summer camp of teenage boys not taking anything seriously grows into a rousing portrait of their hopes and dreams for the future. You wouldn't expect a documentary like this—shot like a reality TV show—to carry so much weight, but Boys State knows how to unearth the values that drive each of its incredibly well-rounded characters. So by the time these young men have assembled their mock governments and are casting their votes, it feels like the spirit of an entire generation is on the line. This is powerful, entertaining, and ultimately tear-jerking filmmaking that shows us how much work we still have to do and how much hope there still is.

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