Mudge Boy

Duncan (Emile Hirsch) is a 14-year-old boy who's always been labeled the "weird" one. When Duncan's mother unexpectedly dies, he takes a bizarre interest in her clothing and starts to speak in her voice. His father (Richard Jenkins) doesn't understand his son's conduct, and all the kids poke fun at him. When Duncan befriends a group of older boys by buying them beer, he discovers that one of them, Perry (Tom Guiry), has dark secrets of his own.

Review: Duncan Mudge (Emile Hirsch) is a shy, isolated, sexually confused farm boy whose mother has recently died, leaving him under the supervision of a stern, depressed father. Duncan seems somehow to have transferred his love for the deceased mother to his favorite chicken, which he takes everywhere, even to bed. He has developed the odd habit of putting the chicken's head in his mouth -- to calm the animal, he says, though the act also seems to reflect sublimation of homosexual desire. Duncan also likes to dress in his late mother's clothing, much to the distress of his confused father. The small, insular band of redneck teens that comprise adolescent social life in Duncan's world initially ostracize him, then allow him in to their circle only reluctantly, and largely for their own amusement. Duncan is beset with a profound sense of grief while trying to reconcile himself to a world in which he is a sexual alien. His crush on one of the local kids, Perry (Tom Guiry), leads to a resolution of sorts.