The divinely titled Yes, God, Yes mostly takes place at a Christian youth retreat, and while the movie takes some broad, comic swipes at that subculture (I’ve been to these things, and not everyone is a raging hypocrite), it’s dead-on about the hysterical, unhealthy attitude toward sexuality that exists in such circles. Natalia Dyer stars as Alice, a quiet teen trying to navigate dress codes, sexist health classes, cruel rumors, and her own sexual awakening. The retreat is an introvert’s nightmare—four days in the woods with other teens desperate to share their feelings and personal testimonies. Under the guidance of a nosy priest, they’re also all trying to smile their urges into submission. (Wolfgang Novogratz is particularly amusing as the painfully chaste football captain, something like this generation’s Chris Klein in American Pie). The priest is played by Timothy Simons, the disgusting dimwit of HBO’s Veep, so you pretty much know where that’s going to go. The true revelation is Dyer. A fresh presence amidst the boys’ club of Stranger Things, she’s incredible here in a performance that ranges from understated drama to physical comedy. Alice doesn’t say much—after all, she’s coming of age in a subculture of submission—but we can see everything she’s experiencing on her face: impish curiosity, skeptical confusion, errant impulsivity. (Refreshingly, Alice makes some really bad decisions; she’s no innocent.) Late in the film, all Dyer has to do is slightly raise an eyebrow and we know Alice is on the verge of a personal breakthrough. Writer-director Karen Maine, making her feature debut, delivers some nice grace notes between the jabs, including a moment when Alice meets a recovering Catholic turned biker chick (Susan Blackwell). Unlike just about everyone at the retreat, she shows concern for Alice’s soul, not just her body. At its best, Yes, God, Yes reminds us that few things are as perverted as making sex more important than the gospel.
