Mysterious Skin

When eight-year-old Brian regains consciousness in the basement of his parents' house, he cannot remember what has happened to him in the last few hours. The most obvious explanation for his blackout seems to be that he has been abducted by aliens. At the same time, Neil, who is the same age, has a far more tangible but similarly fateful experience when he falls in love with his baseball coach. For Neil, too, a fateful chain of circumstances begins that will shape the rest of his life in an immoral way. Ten years later, the two meet again in their hometown and try to piece together the events of their childhood. But the journey into their past turns into a trip to hell as the whole truth gradually comes to light. MYSTERIOUS SKIN by Gregg Araki is based on the novel of the same name by Scott Heim and tells the story of Brian and Neil, whose childhoods are marked by sexual abuse. The film premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in 2004 and was nominated for the Venice Horizons Award. It received further awards at the Rotterdam International Film Festival (MovieZone Award) and the Seattle International Film Festival (Golden Space Needle Award for Best Director and Best Actor for Joseph Gordon-Levitt). MYSTERIOUS SKIN was also nominated for Best Director at the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards and received nominations at the Chlotrudis Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film. Araki depicts the protagonists' trauma with a mixture of poetic imagery and unflinching directness, making the film a haunting experience. Starring Chase Ellison as Neil (child), George Webster as Brian (child), Brady Corbet as Brian, Mary Lynn Rajskub as Avalyn Friesen, Michelle Trachtenberg as Wendy, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Neil.