IIn 2018, filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBain won a gold medal after participating in a week-long Texas program in which 1,000 teenagers elected and ran a mock state government. Or rather, I paid attention to it. The subsequent film Boys State explores the possibilities and perils of the future – the idealism and ambition of youth, the ability to change one's mind, the allure of power, the corrosive codes of masculinity – full of fear and hope. Trapped inside for 2 hours. Winner of the 2020 Sundance Documentary Awards Jury Award.
This time, the duo returns to the festival with Girls State. It was structured similarly to its sister program at Boys State in Missouri. Although the mock government program run by the American Legion remains gender-segregated (controversially for some) in the state, this film marks the first time in its 80-year history that It captures how they exist on the same campus at the same time. The time is summer 2022. For the boys, it's business as usual, with the occasional familiar snippets relayed from their first project: soccer field drills, delegate meetings, celebrations by real-life politicians.
Despite the high stakes, their program is looser and less formal, at least judging by the film's plodding first half. Participants gather weeks after Dobbs' draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked. The rights decided by the committee are considered most important by everyone, including Catholics who are “pro-life,'' conservatives who do not try to impose their rights on others, and supporters who have learned the point that “abortion is right.'' It's something I'm considering as a priority. When it comes to “health care,” everyone seems to agree to sit at the same cafeteria table and try to be friendly.
As in the first film, Moss and McBain, along with several participants from across the political spectrum, embrace a range of afflictions and ambitions to fascinating effect. The frighteningly real Tracy Flick plays Emily, a blonde, determined and vulnerable daughter of a conservative pastor who announces her plans to run for president in 2040. She is one of several people running for governor, the top job and most competitive position this week. She watches Faith, her stubborn blonde rival, with wary eyes. This young woman is even less patient with society's expectations of female submissiveness. (Perhaps unsurprisingly, the program is skewed toward whites and blondes, resembling Sorority Rush many times over.) Some, like Brooke, Maddie, and Nisha, aren't so sure. . Part of the film's appeal is watching each of them grow in confidence over the course of a week of intense, if mundane, clarity.
There's some vitriol – Tochi, one of the few black participants, answers questions from white girls who don't know how to talk about her Nigerian heritage with clipped, resolute politeness. Cecilia, a proto-liberal activist, grits her teeth and says, “I'm having fun,” as she debates gun control with Emily. The girls all begin to feel disappointed in the structure of the Girls State program, but Moss and McBain keep it frustratingly opaque, at least in the first half. Some of the rules are clear – girls must always go out with friends for safety, girls must cover up (of course there are no such restrictions for boys) – but There is no description of the specific day or context of what the girls do. They walk around in groups and in the cafeteria. In the end, the girls seem to be dissatisfied with this as well. There's too much emphasis on cheerful female empowerment and modesty, and not enough on real issues and the inequalities between programs, for example. Someone says: “I’m a little tired of the fluff.”
It's good that the second half of the movie gets down to business. A mock Supreme Court case regarding a Missouri law requiring women seeking abortions to undergo counseling and the ensuing gubernatorial election both have seriousness evident in the audience. Similar to Boys State, the coaches wisely sit back and catch pieces as they fall. The main pleasure of this film is how motivations change and characters are forged through the sliding doors of new people, victories and defeats, and the young woman's differing judgments about the truly unfortunate differences between boys and girls. It's about seeing how things are honed. It all boils down to the apparent aimlessness of the first half of this week. These are not the same programs.
Although they share a similar sensibility, they are not the same movie. It's no surprise, because the dynamics of women in politics – getting people to believe, leadership, conviction, etc. – are steeper and more nuanced than boys, and more interesting in a different way. If “Girls State” pays a more tidy homage to individual mock government experiences than its predecessors, it's because the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade became official just days after the session ended. This is due to a shocking addition. The vote in Girls State may have been symbolic, the language is sometimes dull, the political maneuvering messy and at times messy, but the stakes are very real, and rightly so. It feels very realistic.
