The Lost Tribe

Filmmaker Rachel Landers' The Lost Tribe follows ex-Mormon Sue Ann Post, a lesbian and award-winning comedian from Australia who embarks on a bizarre pilgrimage to a conference in Utah hosted by a group named Affirmation, comprised of GLBT members struggling to reconcile their sexual identities with the Mormon religion. Presented largely cinéma vérité, this chronicle of Sue Ann's journey combines edgy comedy with personal drama, as Post mines unresolved personal trauma (regarding childhood sexual issues and family estrangement), and explores the background of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—a deeply patriarchal religion that continues to excommunicate members for any number of perceived sins (including adultery, homosexuality, and masturbation), and believes that gays and lesbians can be “cured” of their sexual preferences through church-conducted reparative/conversion therapy. A story told through the unique intersection of one of the world's least understood faiths, a taboo subject, and a healthy sense of humor, The Lost Tribe offers an engaging and compassionate look at a provocative subject. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (A. Cantú)