The acting and directing create a winning combination for unlocking the most powerful tool in social change: empathy.

| Jun 11, 2021

Pariah was honed over seven years...and the film that results is a stunning achievement.

| Jan 29, 2021

To me, a film that engenders that sort of hope and possibility is worth gas money, an $8 ticket, and a trip to the concession stand.

| Jan 12, 2021

Each character is so real, like someone you may know, which makes Pariah a real comfort.

| Original Score: A | Sep 8, 2017

The gay coming-of-age story's been done, but "Pariah" has something fresh to say, largely about the knotty complexities of love, and how they might keep someone in the closet: How badly do you need to be free, to hurt the people you love?

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Feb 17, 2012

The first word I muttered under my breath after watching writer/director Dee Rees' Pariah, an expansion of her award-winning short film of the same name, was, "Wow."

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 27, 2012

You don't have to be black or lesbian or even know someone who's gay to appreciate "Pariah"; you just have to have gone through or be going through the process of growing up.

| Original Score: B | Jan 20, 2012

"Pariah" is a small film about a big subject: the struggle to be who you are, not who others would like you to be.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 20, 2012

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jan 14, 2012

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 13, 2012

If the destination is trite, the journey isn't - it comes with an ample supply of raw honesty.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 13, 2012

Rees tells Alike's story in vignettes that are sometimes slapstick, sometimes heartbreaking, always tender.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 12, 2012

Especially rewarding about Oduye's performance is how she's able to portray that frustration while retaining hope and optimism.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jan 12, 2012

Rees' script, peppered with colourful hip-hop argot, is smart and economical, with well-drawn characters, dialogue and situations that echo with authenticity.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 12, 2012

"Pariah" feels a lot like life, at its most confusing, contradictory and exhilarating.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Jan 6, 2012

First-time feature filmmaker Dee Rees has crafted a movie that is consistently riveting because it is steeped in truth. She and her cast never once strike a false note.

| Jan 5, 2012

Adepero Oduye is excellent as a Brooklyn teen coming to terms with her sexual identity in this gritty film

| Original Score: B+ | Jan 5, 2012

The originality lies in the details, and the dramatic energy that sustains almost every scene.

| Jan 5, 2012

An eloquent, haunting coming-of-age/ coming-out tale...

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jan 5, 2012

"Pariah'' really feels like something rare.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Jan 5, 2012