PARIAH garnered a lot of attention on the Festival Circuit in 2011. It won several Independent Film Awards and was given a limited theatrical run throughout most of the country in hopes of possibly garnering some Oscar attention. And although it didn't receive any nominations, as Meryl Streep was accepting one of the numerous awards for her work in THE IRON LADY, she gave a specific shout out to PARIAH and called it one of the best films of the year. PARIAH tells the story of a 17 year old African-American girl who is 100% sure about only one thing....she knows beyond a doubt that she is gay. She lives in a middle class family where both parents have steady jobs and both she and her sister earn good grades. She writes poetry and has ambitions to be a well known writer someday. Her sexual identity is so natural to her that she is comfortable being "herself" everywhere except in her own home. Both of her parents know that there is something different about her, but they continue to delude themselves that whatever she is going through, it is absolutely just a phase. PARIAH is incredibly well written and beautifully performed by a note perfect cast. It handles the subject of teenage homosexuality extremely tastefully. The language is raw but incredibly realistic. I sincerely hope that this film finds an audience. It should be viewed by parents and teenagers together. "God doesn't make mistakes...."
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