Trapped: The Alex Cooper Story 2019

Late one night, Alex Cooper, a 15-year-old high school student who helps with the recycling program, runs barefoot through the street, ducks behind a parked car to avoid a passing car, and then slips behind a bus stop. When a bus rounds the corner, she steps in front of it, signaling the dangerous fragility of the moment and setting the stage for a tense, emotional journey.

She meets Frankie Jackson and the two quickly fall in love, sharing quiet, hopeful moments in places that feel like safe havens—the beach, the boardwalk, a bowling alley, and Frankie’s house. Their bond becomes a bright thread of resistance against a world that feels increasingly hostile.

Alex’s Mormon parents, Mrs. Cooper and Mr. Cooper, confront her about where she’s been and what she’s been doing. When Alex admits her crush on Frankie, they react with anger, and she is abruptly cast out. She finds temporary shelter with her sympathetic neighbor, Daniella, whose kindness offers a moment of shelter before the larger storm resumes.

Before long, Alex’s parents send her to Utah to stay with her grandparents in St. George, where she is placed in the care of Johnny and Tiana Simms. The Simms run a program that promotes conversion therapy, and they insist this will help her enter the Celestial Kingdom. The scene widens to include a juvenile ex-con named Damon and a boy named Henry, both under the Simms’ influence, as Alex endures harsh rules, isolation, and the constant fear of discovery.

The Simms’ house becomes a prison: Alex is forced to stand against a wall with a backpack of rocks, denied contact with the outside world, and pressured to deny her feelings. Each attempt to seek help—from a school counselor, a neighbor, or even Frankie—ends with punishment, as Johnny and Tiana claim to know everyone and promise that no one will aid her. Her attempts to ask for Frankie’s last name or to reach out through a note in a grocery store are met with violence, and the emotional toll deepens as she writes in a secret journal that becomes her only solace.

Desperation drives Alex to a planned act of self-harm, a suicide attempt by taking a bottle of pills, and the response from the Simms is swift and scornful. They force her to see Bishop Carver, Bishop Carver, who offers little comfort and no real path forward. Thanksgiving brings a temporary reprieve as the Simms abruptly allow her to return to her parents’ household, but the control remains tight and the pressure to conform intensifies.

For a time, Alex feigns compliance, enduring 77 days of “conversion” under the watchful eyes of the Simms, their claim that the town will side with them seeming almost airtight. At school, she finds a glimmer of connection with Jason, an openly gay classmate, and his English teacher Carol Lynn. Jason and Carol Lynn reveal a shared commitment to helping LGBTQ+ students, and they work to connect Alex with legal aid.

Paul Burke, a Salt Lake City attorney, agrees to represent Alex pro bono, offering a beacon of possibility in a landscape designed to crush dissent. The Simms’ grip grows tighter when a missed class phone call betrays a hint of independence, and Alex is pulled from school, forced back into the isolation she fears. The next day, with the support of Jason and Carol Lynn, the plan shifts toward protection and accountability, and Jason helps shield her from further harm.

With courage rising, Alex escapes once more, removing the backpack and slipping away in the night. She makes her way toward safety, and a compassionate bus driver ultimately agrees to take her back to school rather than turning her over to the Simms. On campus, she hides and waits, while Carol Lynn once again contacts authorities who will listen and act.

The following morning, a police officer escorts Alex to the St. George Youth Crisis Center. There, Colette, played by Natalie Liconti, reassures her that the world can be different and that not everyone will pick the side of oppression. Colette confirms that a broad network of advocates and legal help can stand with her, and she prompts Alex to reach out to someone she trusts.

Soon after, Frankie arrives, and the long-awaited reunion marks a turning point. In a hopeful postscript, the film notes that after months of legal battles in Utah, Paul Burke and Alex secured the right for Alex to live openly as a gay teenager. The family begins the slow path toward reconciliation, with Alex’s father even offering to walk her down the aisle someday if she marries the woman she loves.

In the end, the community’s resilience and the persistence of advocates light a path forward for Alex, whose courage challenges a culture of coercive control. The story remains focused on her experience, her truth, and the possibility of a future where love and acceptance prevail without fear or punishment.