Then, tonight I came across some christian's rant** about the film (hideously titled "The Rape of the Marlboro Man"!), which justified my feeling that there really is something wrong with always having the queer love story end in death:
"The [film] is a brazen propaganda vehicle designed to [promote]... the complete and utter acceptance of homosexuality as equivalent in every way to heterosexuality.
If and when that day comes...this nation—like the traditional cowboy characters corrupted in "Brokeback Mountain"—will have stumbled down a sad, self-destructive and ultimately disastrous road."
First of all, dude, you think "traditional cowboy characters" are so holy and pure? Where d'you think the term "cowpoke" comes from?
But more seriously, I am waiting for the day when a really beautiful, tender, believable AND well-acted, gorgeously filmed, and deliciously scored queer love story on screen does NOT "stumble down a sad, self-destructive and ultimately disastrous road."
I mean, what else has there been? Big Eden was close, my favorite probably, but most of the film was tortured longing (adorable, but unfulfilling)—they just get together in like the last ten seconds of the movie, and even that is just a significant look across a room and then an awkward dance—no real love scene or togetherness. Desert Hearts I admit I liked, corny as it is, but again, they only barely sorta get together at the end, and you don't really know what's going to happen.
And sadly, in both those films, you couldn't really quite believe that the characters were even queer. They were too tenative and, well, you know, they just didn't quite manage to convince me that they weren't straight actors trying very, very hard. That was one place where I thought "Brokeback" really did shine, as Franklin also noted. (The author of the above-mentioned christian rant quotes one of the "Brokeback" stars as talking about how hard it was for him to do the love scenes, and states that this was because he was going against his god-given conscience. Gee, ya don't think it's because he was STRAIGHT?)
So, anyone else? Did I miss any queer films that (a) are as gorgeous and well-crafted as Brokeback, (b) have real sex and real love, and (c) have a happy ending?
I'm tempted to close with, "I didn't think so"—but I'll just wait and see.
*That was what the ticket stub said - "Brokeback Mo". I thought it was mildly amusing—similarly, when I worked at Barnes & Noble, Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil was super-popular and it always came up on the computer as "Midnight in the Garden of Goo". Got a smile out of that every time—what can I say, it was a dull job.
**Here it is, if you want to spend your time on it: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=48076
I'm not gonna link it, you'll have to cut/paste.
3 comments:
It's so exhausting, living surrounded by totally insane freakin' Xian fundies. They're making me crazy.
I think it's good that Brokeback Mo is a 'mainstream' film; it was on the cover of Entertainment, it's getting press, etc. etc.
I think it's bad that it ends the way it does, because the 'moral' effectively ends up being that you get what you pay for.
Bah.
Nice cinematography, though.
I thought you were "more politically conservative than even your closest friends realize." That must be relative. ;-)
I was SO looking forward to the cinematography, I dragged everyone to see it in the theater for that reason exactly. But here in our ridiculous town it was playing in the "alternative/indie" theater with screens the size of a postage stamp and a projector that doesn't seem to exactly focus. Grrr.
My only other comment: that's a whole lotta sheep.
Okay, so I'm prolly a libertarian... who just happens to think that while people could be smart enough to govern themselves, they tend not to be.
Despite living in rural Iowa, I'm still surrounded by stoner quasi-hippy Dems - I'm more conservative than they are.
Relative to the Xians, though, I'm a fucking pagan.
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