rann

You know, I find I exist sort of on the periphery of a lot of groups and issues. It allows me a certain viewpoint, where I can understand, empathize, and share a lot of feelings and concerns, but where I'm not so heavily involved that I'm drawn into the trap of just blind acceptance of anything that would forward said cause.

The thing that got me thinking about this lately is seeing some peoples' reaction to dom/sub stuff in a certain story. People that don't just enjoy it as bedroom kinks but live it as part of their lifestyle are so heavily, emotionally invested in seeing ANY positive portrayal of it that they'll leap all over any dom/sub (or polygamous or whatever) relationship shown in a positive light that they don't stop and think "But is it a good dom/sub relationship? Is it a healthy one?" It's a dom/sub relationship and it's not being mocked or vilified, which automatically equals to "Yay!", in a lot of cases.

The same thing happens a lot with the homosexual community. Being bi, I'm invested in the idea of equality and acceptance for homosexuals, but not nearly so much as those who have immersed themselves in the lifestyle/culture of being gay. (Partly because there's still an undercurrent of feeling in that community that looks on me about like straight people do.) But gay people HAVE been very badly persecuted, marginalized, and in general not treated well in society, so there's a tendency to latch on to any serious, positive portrayal of them by "legitimate" media.

Even if it's Brokeback Mountain.

See, a lot of gay people (and non-gay people, but we'll get to that in a minute) liked that movie because it was seen as a gay love story. About the trials and hardships of two gay men yearning for each other in an unaccepting society.

Too bad it's also about two lying assholes who cheat on their wives.

I mean, really, that was my reaction to Brokeback Mountain being hailed as the defining gay love story. "This is seriously the best we can do? Guys lying and committing adultery to be together?" This gets brought up occasionally, and is generally waved off by the film's proponents, as just another tragedy of their forbidden love affair. We're supposed to sympathize with the men for having to cheat.

Now let that sink in for a moment. In any other movie with a guy cheating on a woman, nineteen times out of twenty we're supposed to sympathize with the woman. Especially if she's an okay gal and he's doing it just because he wants to get his rocks off with someone he finds more attractive (whether physically or mentally or both, whichever). But because the cheater is cheating on her with another guy, we're supposed to feel sorry for the guy for his terrible burden of having to lie and cheat. Twice over.

Nuh-uh. Not buying it.

Of course, in and out of the gay community, there's a lot of support for the movie because, hey, Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger snuggling? More women are secret yaoibunnies than they'll admit, and the open ones probably have ficgasms just thinking about the movie. Right now one of them is writing a fanfic where the Ronin Warriors sweep in and kill all the people opposing the love of Heath and Jake (oh, excuse me, Ennis and Jack) including their wives who are suddenly evil, hateful harpies. And then there's an orgy. Of LOVE!

But you know what? Okay. I'll accept Brokeback Mountain as the defining movie of a new genre. I'll accept it as symbolic of the gay love story. I just want to do two little changes and remake the movie. "Brokeback Mountain: Revised Edition".

These changes will have nothing to do with script, story, or setting. I want all of that exactly the same. Every action, every scene, all of it, done exactly the same way.

The two changes are purely in the casting of the main characters.

I want this to be a love story between Robin Williams and Jack Black.

Yes, you heard me. I will accept Brokeback Mountain as a valid and meaningful film for the gay community when it is about the forbidden love of JB sticking it in Mork's pooper. I wanna know how many people would go to see the movie with the two of them cuddling on the poster.

Until people can be so enthusiastic over a gay love story where the lovers aren't prettyboy darlings and their "indiscretions" in pursuing their love are forgivable because they just look so goddamn good with a few days' growth of beard on, then no, not gonna buy into it.