Goat

Fresh from a brutal assault, a nineteen year old heading to college with his older brother signs up to join the same fraternity. He hopes the brotherhood will offer support and a sense of belonging, but the campus rituals soon reveal a harsher side. Hazing, secrecy, and peer pressure pull him into a demanding cycle where acceptance seems earned through endurance, loyalty, and silence. As the pressure mounts, the line between camaraderie and coercion grows blurry, testing what he is willing to endure to stay in with the group. The film follows a young man wrestling with trauma and the costs of belonging in a tight knit world. As the semester unfolds, he weighs safety against pressure to conform carefully.

Directed by Andrew Neel, Goat adapts Brad Land's memoir of the same name and arrives in 2016. The film features Ben Schnetzer and Nick Jonas among a tight ensemble with David Gordon Green producing and the atmosphere feels intimate tonally.

Box office receipts were modest, totaling around 23,020 dollars worldwide. The limited release and small marketing footprint kept the film away from mainstream theaters, making it more of a word of mouth discovery than a commercial gamble in select markets.

Goat did not garner major award nominations, and it did not become a fixture on year end lists. Still, the film drew attention from crowds for its unflinching look at hazing culture and the toll it exacts on individuals. Its quiet approach drew viewers who prefer character study over spectacle.

Critics offered mixed responses, praising the performances of Ben Schnetzer and Nick Jonas while noting the film's blunt handling of trauma and power dynamics. It foregrounds themes of loyalty and identity under pressure, asking how far someone will go to belong, and whether safety comes at a price for many.