levasseur@morgan.DEC (02/11/85)
>I thought it was poor, dramatically and thematically, completely >compromised by the equivocating nature of network television. Most >fascinating and disturbing to me was how little TV has advanced in 13 >years: it still can't get past the sanitized sanctimoniousness that we saw >in "That Certain Summer", which was retrograde even in its day. I agree Steve, but whaddaya expect from Hollywood? Prime time moves very slowly when it comes to accurate portrayals of gays. This is funny since the industry has sooooo many gay people working in it as writers, actors, etc. TV has moved ahead somewhat. If Ozzie and Harriet were film- ed today, at least Oz and Harriet wouldn't be sleeping in separate beds. That Certain Summer wasn't that bad. I mean it sure beats Hollywood's idea of what gays are like in "Dog Day Afternoon","Boys in the Band" or the "Sergeant" where Rod Steiger blows his brains out when he can't face who he is. >It was wildly erratic in its handling of gay sexuality, from the nadir >of the kid's (whatshisname?) "first experience" cruising a guy in the >diner and then accepting a "ride home", a scene filmed in an almost >comically unsavory Rechyesque manner, to the apotheosis of a squeaky-clean >relationship between the kid and an equally blond, WASPy student with >straight, white teeth. Sex? They might as well be angels, so incorporeal >their relationship. This must be safe-sex in the 80's. I'm not looking >for extended petting scenes, of course, but it would be nice if TV could >show casual affection between two men without aiming for either of these >extremes. I didn't like the pickup scene in the diner. Sure it happens but the straight people I talked with after the movie was aired felt that this was the way that gay men met. It was interesting that heterosex between mom and dad was pushed on the viewers, but whenever two men were shown, there was a scene change. I remember when I saw Making Love in Nashua, N.H. The srtaights kept booing and cat-calling during the scene where Zack and the other guy embraced. Straights just don't want to see any affection between us save the affectionate punch in the shoulder between two buddies. I don't think that this will change overnight, or in my lifetime for that matter. >What's more, everyone's reactions seemed slightly out of kilter, as if >we were looking at the 60's set in the eighties. "Mom, I'm a ho-mo-sex-u-al" >just doesn't seem to ring true these days. Also, while I can grant that >some gay teenagers are still isolated and alone, if this movie purports >to present what is reality for most gay young people (and let's face it: >TV movies aren't serious art, they are latter-day miracle plays), it would >have been much more realistic to show him investigating his local campus >rap group, maybe reading some local gay newspapers, to establish a better >self-definition before coming out to his parents. True! Hollywood neglected to do their homework and get together some real research for the production. Why not "Mom I'm a ho-mo-sex-u-al?" I just told mom I was gay. Some people, especially those who are closeted, may not want to use the word gay but the more clinical ho-mo-sex-u-al. Maybe he was toooooo closeted to explore the campus support group but the movie never hint- ed to it. Yes they could have written a lot more backround material into the plot, but didn't! Making Love was also seriously deficient in that veine. Probably the best gay movie I ever saw was "A Very Natural Thing" Certainly not for prime time but suitable for a later night audience. Too bad it only gets shown at art cinemas, usually during gay pride week. Bottom line Steve is that yes, Hollywood still has it's head stuck in the ground, but they are slowly getting better. Ray Anyone else care to comment?