Boys Don't Cry

In 1993, Brandon Teena is a young trans man living in rural Nebraska. When Brandon is discovered to be a transgender man by a former girlfriend's brother, he receives death threats. Soon after, he is involved in a bar fight and is evicted from his cousin's trailer. Brandon moves to Falls City, Nebraska, where he befriends ex-convicts John Lotter and Tom Nissen, and their friends Candace and Lana Tisdel. Brandon becomes romantically involved with Lana, who is initially unaware both of his actual gender and his troubled past. The two make plans to move to Memphis, Tennessee, where Brandon will manage Lana's karaoke singing career. Eventually, they kiss during a date night which ends with them having sex. The police detain Brandon on charges that arose before his relocation; they place him in the women's section of the Falls City jail. Lana bails Brandon out and asks why he was placed in a women's jail. Brandon attempts to lie to her, saying she's a hermaphrodite born with intersex organs, and will soon receive genital reconstruction surgery, but Lana stops him, declaring her love for him regardless of his birth gender. However, while Brandon is in jail, Candace finds a number of documents listing Brandon's birth name, and she and her friends react to this news with shock and disgust. They enter Brandon's room, search among Brandon's things, and discover transgender pamphlets that confirm their suspicions. When Brandon and Lana return, Tom and John violently confront Brandon and take him into the bathroom, forcibly removing his pants and his white briefs, revealing his female genitals. They try to make Lana look, but she shields her eyes and turns away. After this confrontation, Tom and John drag Brandon into John's car and drive to an isolated location, where they brutally beat and take turns raping him. Afterward, they take Brandon to Tom's house, but Brandon escapes by climbing through a bathroom window. Although her assailants threaten Brandon and warn him not to report the attack to the police, Lana convinces him to do so. However, the police chief proves to be less concerned with the crime and interrogates Brandon about his sexual identity. Later, John and Tom get drunk and drive to Candace's house. Lana attempts to stop them, but they find Brandon and kill him along with Candace before fleeing the scene, while Lana lies with Brandon's body. The next morning, Lana awakens next to Brandon's corpse. Her mother arrives and takes her away from the scene. As Lana leaves Falls City, a letter to her from Brandon that she found on his body, is heard in a voiceover, saying that in Memphis "I'll be waiting for you, love always and forever".

Plot from Boys Don't Cry (1999 film)CC BY-SA 4.0