Sophia Allen
Lantern Staff
The Miseducation of Cameron Post, which was released on Friday, Aug. 10, is a new film based on a novel of the same name. Set in the 1990s, the film follows Cameron (Chloe Grace Moretz) as she gets caught kissing another girl at prom and is sent to God’s Promise, a conversion therapy camp run by Dr. Lydia Marsh (Jennifer Ehle) and Reverend Rick (John Gallagher Jr). During her time there, she befriends Jane Fonda (Sasha Lane) and Adam Red Eagle (Forrest Goodluck), often going on hikes with them to escape the environment of the camp. After some time, their classmate, Mark, is hospitalized, leading them to the decision to run away.
A unique feature of this film is that almost all of the characters are shown in great detail. In many films, only a few main characters have detail shown about their person and emotions. In The Miseducation of Cameron Post, however, each character has an individual story.
This is shown through icebergs, an activity that Dr. Marsh has each camper complete. In struggling to complete hers, Cameron decides to look at the others’ icebergs, which end up showing her how different, but also slightly similar, each camper’s story is.
An interesting point made in the film, and in an NPR interview with director Desiree Akhavan and author Emily Danforth, is that the teens do not have their identities fully figured out. During her first session with Dr. Marsh, Cameron says, “I don’t really think of myself as anything.”
Akhavan and Danforth are asked about this line and go on to explain that even though Cameron has yet to get a firm grasp on who she is, people are already telling her what she can and cannot be, which can have terrible consequences. They provide the example that people today who have been subjected to conversion therapy still feel the guilt and shame that was forced into them, even after decades.
Overall, this film is amazing. The story is very engaging, and the actors portray their characters very well. 10/10