As suggested above, the strength of this film lies in its thoughtful restraint and in the intelligently sympathetic view of the parents. While the decision was horrendous, this film, unlike what many dealing with this topic might have done, did allow that the parents were acting from genuine if very misguided love and sympathy for their son. And it was their journey and relationship (with each other and with their son) that was the main dramatic engine driving our involvement in the unfolding drama.
Nicole Kidman was, I felt the real star, emotionally in tersm of the drama and from an acting point of view. She gave a wonderfully nuanced performance as someone who gradually realised that she had made a terrible mistake - but as much as not speaking out at the right moment as much as a realisation as to how fraudlulent and false the whole programme was. And the relationship with her hiusband was very powerfully shown - she wanted to support and stand by him and believed that was her duty but at the same time had to come to terms with the terrible error of his, and by implication, her decision to do what they decided to do.
A central element of this fraudulent belief about ‘gay conversion therapy’ was that change was what it centred upon - a desire for change and a commitment to change, but this journey of change, ironically, was best demonstrated by the change and journey that the husband and wife had to make and did make - for Nicole K a lot earlier than that of her husband (a powerfully restrained and moving performance by Russell Crowe), although the implication at the very end was tat it was happening (and reading of the actual story confirmed this).
A fine and thouughtful film -and thankl goodness that, finally, this fraudl;ently cruel practice ois being rightly banned in many states. I am not sure to what extent it is prevalent in Europe - I would like to hink not at all…#naive?