Film

Pray the Gay Away

Name: Pray the Gay Away
Released: 2018
Cast: Erik Alan Bell, Michael Gaty, Emil Glassbourg, William Poulin, Tracy Rowland

Comedy

A closeted college student and his boyfriend hatch a scheme to trick his conservative parents into funding a Palm Springs trip instead of conversion therapy. This sharp, lean 11-minute film finds dark comedy in the gap between what parents believe they're paying for and what actually happens—a story about survival, deception, and the absurd lengths queer people have gone to just to breathe.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy a quick, cheeky caper where a made-up plan is tested on very earnest parents, and a small story lands harder because it knows exactly when to stop.

Skip it if it is over before its premise has much room to breathe, so if you want characters given space to develop slowly, you will likely find it slight.

What it asks of you: Eleven minutes, brisk and light in tone, with almost no slack, so it takes a single sitting and barely any commitment before the credits roll.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

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Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Pray the Gay Away

The wildcard

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Everything Everywhere All at Once poster

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