“Boys Don’t Cry” Has Always Been Violently Transphobic

A general warning — in discussing “Boys Don’t Cry”, this article will have to discuss violent transphobia, rape, murder, and a lot of generally awful things in regards to both the Brandon Teena case and the film’s depiction of events. Take care of yourself and don’t read any further if any of these will upset you.

Back in March of this year, I watched 31 movies that in some way dealt with transmasc individuals. I can count on one hand how many films on that list were of decent quality, and they were far outweighed by the garbage I had to get through. Though many of the films on that list I had straight up never heard of before, a small handful were familiar to me, albeit in infamy.

“Boys Don’t Cry” is among one of the most well known movies about transgender people. Released to a wide audience in October of 1999, the film would go on to gross over 10x its budget, as well as winning Oscars, Golden Globes, and over 30 other accolades. For most people, it is perhaps their first or only exposure to transgender men. And as media concerning trans men has yet to see any significant uptick in quantity, it remains one of the largest pillars of representation for people like me.

And as something that represents a true story as well as an entire community, it kind of fucking sucks at doing either.