Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
In the 1970s, five men struggling with being gay in their Evangelical church started a bible study to help each other leave the "homosexual lifestyle." They quickly received over 25,000 letters from people asking for help and formalized as Exodus International, the largest and most controversial conversion therapy organization in the world. But leaders struggled with a secret: their own “same-sex attractions” never went away. After years as Christian superstars in the religious right, many of these men and women have come out as LGBTQ, disavowing the very movement they helped start. Focusing on the dramatic journeys of former conversion therapy leaders, current members, and a survivor, PRAY AWAY chronicles the “ex gay" movement’s rise to power, persistent influence, and the profound harm it causes.
Pray Away is a competent and affecting documentary that chronicles the rise and fall of Exodus International and the personal journeys of former conversion therapy leaders. The film benefits from remarkable access to its subjects, whose stories are genuinely compelling and emotionally resonant. However, it follows a fairly conventional documentary structure—archival footage, talking-head interviews, personal testimonies—without significant formal innovation. The cinematography is functional and clean but unremarkable. The subject matter is important and the personal narratives are powerful, but the film doesn't break much new ground in documentary form or in its exploration of conversion therapy beyond what similar films and journalism have covered. The ending, while emotionally satisfying in its focus on survivors moving toward healing, is somewhat predictable in its arc. Solid across all categories but not exceptional in any single dimension.