Theater Thursday: Buffy, Drag Queens and Angelina Jolie

Oh, the pangs of actually having to work and getting caught up so I can't post during my lunch hour... Anyway, so I'm a little late with the post. Y'all just get a less formatted version of the post because I get to write it on my iPhone!

Television

Two gynormous TV events for me this week! First, the premier of Ru Paul's Drag Race season 3! I am pumped for the show. We actually started watching the first two episodes last night and I only made it through the first and half way through the second before I fell asleep. Not that it was boring, but I was T-I-Red. I'm excited for the competition this year though, much more so than I was for last years cast, so you can bet you'll see plenty updates from me as the season goes on!

The second big event was that I finished my re-watching of Buffy season 2. I forgot how important this season actually was: Angel's curse revealed, The cementing of the scoobie gang's roles (Xander the protector, etc), Willow dabbling in witchcraft, hearing the familiar refrain that Buffy really is alone... Those are all things that become themes throughout the rest of the series. And still, more than a decade later, the show can find a way to pull at my little heart strings.

On a less monumental scale, let me just state, for the record, that Scott Caan is one sexy, furry, little man. I had avoided Hawaii 5-0 for as long as possible, but when it came on this Sunday I just couldn't resist... And now I may be hooked. Not because it's a great show or anything, but I will take any opportunity to ogle that man shirtless or in tight, ass-hugging slacks.

Movies

We didn't really watch much. The husband watched Salt while I played on my laptop, but I wasn't too drawn in to the movie. He enjoyed it though. Action, Angelina, Liev Schreiber (ok, that part I did enjoy), those all spell "movie husband enjoys." I just didn't get pulled in to the story.

I did make it half way through some super indie (read: no budget) gay flick called Issues 101. The "plot" was some kid going off to college, realizing he's gay, then rushing a fraternity. But when it became a poorly executed soft-core fantasy porn, I cancelled the play back and went back to gaming. I guess that should teach me that an average 1 star review on Netflix is probably more accurate than not.

What Did You Watch

So, what was on your weekly viewing plate? Any of your stories start up this week? Let me know in the comments!

Theater Thursdays: Memory Lane Edition

It's been a slow television watching week, but that doesn't mean we haven't dug in to a few things here and there. Once shows start to come off their winter break I'll be a bit more involved in Stories, but until then here's what I've been watching.

Television

I'm still making headway through Buffy Season 2. I'm getting up near the end of the season now and although I remember most of the story lines, it's great to see it through again so that I can remember some of the smaller details. This week brought some pretty classic moments: Angel telling Buffy he loves her, Angel turning evil again after he and Buffy do the dirty nasty, and learning that Oz is a werewolf. It seems to me that the second half of Season 2 is really where the show caught it's stride, with the trademark humor and the whole cast finally clicking into character. I may have also convinced the husband to watch the show with me too!

We also caught an episode of the new Restaurant Impossible, which is a blatant and total rip-off of Tabatha's Salon Takeover… except in the restaurant world. I admit that I actually like Tabatha's show (though not so much her), but this episode of RI failed to impress. This is a guy who is suppose to be rejuvenating a restaurant to make it profitable again, yet he turned around and ordered plastic lawn chairs for the new dining rooms? Really? Plus he's no where near as genuinely condescending and confrontational as Tabatha. This guy, Robert Irvine, is just a whiny prick that throws temper-tantrums. If I wanted to see that, I'd watch Flipping Out… but I don’t.

Finally, I watched a few words of The L Word with the husband. I think it's more of a "him" show than a "me" show, but I have enjoyed the episodes I've seen so far. Poor guy has to explain to me what's going on whenever I catch an episode, but we've nicked-named one of the girls Pixie… and that's about all I can remember of the characters. Pixie is crazy possessive and also kind of my hero for being out and proud insane.

Movies

The A-Team came in the mail from Netflix. My husband is a huge action fan. If there's explosions and bad acting, he wants to see it. And even though we successfully dodged A-Tem in the theaters, it was only inevitable we'd watch it at home. And watch it he did while I tried my hardest to bury myself in World of Warcraft. The thing with A-Team is that Bradley Cooper is so hot that I can't help but stare at him, so I ended up watching it a little. I'm pretty horrible about movies because I'm that guy that goes "that is so not real, it could never happen!" Of course I never say that in movies I'm liking, but still… In any case, I had to remind myself that The A-Team never purported to be realistic, so saying whatever action shot just happened isn't real was pointless.

And just for shigiggles, we also watched X-Men 2. That has to be my favorite of the three actual movies, so I always enjoy spending a couple hours watching that flick.

What Did You Watch

So what's on TV that I'm missing, or what movies do I need to add to the queue? I'm excited for Ru Paul's Drag Race to start up again soon, and of course our regular stable of shows will be back shortly, but what are you looking forward to starting back up?

Theater Thursdays: Not So New Edition

Well, it's not quite theater centered, but y'all should already know I love me some alliteration.

I figure Thursdays, for all my love of the day, would make a perfect day to discuss what I've been watching in the realm of television, movies and theater (whenever we get the chance to go). I don't think I'll take this column as a critical analysis (or hack-job analysis as is more likely with one of my pieces), I do think it'll be fun to discuss what I've been watching. There will likely be spoilers, but considering I'm almost always behind on my TV watching and what not, I doubt that there will be too many. Join me and discuss what you've been watching in the comments!

I'll be honest and state up front that I'm just not much of a TV person. There are a few shows that I love and will watch regularly, but in general I just turn on Comedy Central of MSNBC and let it go in the background while I'm on my computer gaming. My husband watches far more TV than I do, which in turn means I get caught up on a few more shows than I would on my own devices.

Finding myself drawn into his Stories is a side affect of living with a TV watching person though. I would not watch Grey's Anatomy on my own, but since he watches it I find that get more and more interested in his shows. Keep that in mind as we dive into what I've been watching this week!

Television

First, I've started re-watching Buffy on Netflix. Yes, I am one of those geeks that thinks Buffy could be the best show that ever existed, and it is possibly one of only two shows that I've cared to go back and re-watch again and again. I'm in the middle of Season 2 and just watched the Halloween episode where Xander runs around in his camo's with a tank top on most of the show and… wait, where was I? Hmmmm… anyway!

The L Word has also been playing in our house this week. My husband has been getting into the show, and I've caught on to it after a couple episodes as well and have so far been enjoying it. I think we're both big fans of Shawn and her bad girl with a heart appeal, but we're already getting annoyed with the petty, controlling characters on the show. I suppose getting to a point where you have strong opinions about the different characters is a good thing though as it means your getting invested!

We also watched Grey's Anatomy this week. I'm not exactly sure how far behind we are with this season, if at all, but the episode we watched was the episode about a school shooter that opened fire on his campus and, of course, all of the victims came to the hospital that is obviously close to everything. It was a rather timely episode given the shooting in Arizona this past weekend. What stuck out to me in the episode was the mother of the shooter and her reaction to the whole event, as well as people's reaction to her, then drawing the parallel to the Arizona shooter's family… It wasn't super happy fun TV, but it was interesting and poignant.

Movies

Netflix brought us two movies this week: The Expendables and The Sorcerer's Apprentice. We saw Sorcerer's Apprentice at the movies when it released and I had just about the same impression of it at home as I did on the big screen. It's enjoyable and fun, but nothing I care to cherish forever or watch again. The fact that Nicholas Cage was in it and he didn't annoy the hell out of me actually speak volumes for the movie, but he is still in it, so it can't really get over that hurdle.

The Expendables… was not at all what I thought it was going to be. I truly lost track of the movie half way through and just focused on my laptop because it just stopped making any sense whatsoever. I was expecting an action-comedy, but was getting a "serious" action movie vibe instead. In a movie filled with action stars, I do expect to see some great fights, explosions, etc., and those were all present, but I do also expect a bit of self-awareness and in-jokes, perhaps some subtle jabs at the genre itself. Instead it felt like they wanted it to be a for seriousness movie with a bunch of not-for-seriousness actors.

What Did You Watch

That's what I watched this week. Most of our regular Stories are on winter break still and since it's Oscar season, not many movies have bee released that appeal to us. While I enjoy a good drama, my husband is not a big fan of any movie that is too serious, so Oscar season is usually a bust for us.

But what have you been watching? Tell me about it in the comments!

Guilty Admission

I have to admit: I really, really like Jackass.  I tried not to.  When it first came out, I thought it was the most idiotic thing I had ever seen.  I didn’t understand how anyone could like this filth, or even pretend to enjoy it!  I was so disgusted by it that I was offended at the mere idea of it.

But then I actually watched the show.  And I laughed my ass off.  Then I watched the first movie.  And I laughed even harder.  And then I watched the spin-off shows and I didn’t laugh so much… but then the second Jackass movie came out and I laughed my ass off again.

And now there’s a third flick and I’m prepared to laugh at the crew of Jackass yet again.  I’m actually excited for the movie.  Really excited!

Below is another preview for the movie, shot while screened at one of the many Eagle leather bars across the country.  Also, check out this interview with Vanity Fair where the Jackass crew talks about the blatant homoeroticism of the show and how they embrace it.

So, who’s coming with me to see it?

Will Buy

Drawn Together	On DVD April 20
Red Band Trailer
www.comedycentral.com
Futurama New Episodes Funny Demon Zombie TV Show Funny TV Comedy Blog

What's Wrong With Valentine's Day?

The fiancé picked on me the last week because he's gotten to the point when he knows exactly what will spark a blog entry from me. While I resisted that particular entry (but still have the itch to write it), I can't resist this entry simply because it bothered me so much. I got really agitated by the whole incident and it made me feel like despite any advances we've made as a gay community, there's still a loooooong way to go. So what bothered me so much?

We went to see Valentine's Day.

OK, the movie itself wasn't the problem. I didn't like the movie, he liked it, but frankly anytime Eric Dane walks around half naked it can't be all bad. No, the movie itself did not bother me, aside from its mostly predictable plot. What bothered me was the crowd's reaction to the movie.

Spoilers Ahead

I'll give you a fair warning now, if you haven't seen it and actually care to, STOP READING at this point. I will have some spoilers below… of course, that assumes a movie that is this much of a carbon copy of every other romantic dramedy has anything that can be spoiled.

One of the big spoilers of the flick is that near the end of the movie, it is suddenly revealed to the audience that Eric Dane's character (an "old" NFL quarterback that just came out of the closet… ooops, another spoiler) is actually dating Bradley Cooper's character (who, until that point, had absolutely no reason to be in the movie). This is revealed in a bit of an awkward scene in which Cooper walks into Dane's house to find Dane sleeping shirtless in a chair, walks up to him, brushes a few roses against Dane's cheek to wake him up then bends over and plays with Dane's hair. That's it. No kiss, no "I love you," not even a hug. Just a hand playing in some hair and some doey eyed looks, and since you find out earlier that Dane's character is gay and this is a romance, the audience is left to assume they are a couple.

Before I start in, I do have to give a small amount of credit to the studio and the actors. I honestly thought the scene was sweet and the actors looked like two boys in love. Two very hot boys in love. And this was a story that could easily have been cut from the movie, but the studio plugged ahead and left it in. /golfclap

What's Wrong With The Movie

With that out of the way, I'm beyond baffled as to why the studio decided to minimize this relationship with respect to all the other relationships in this film. All of the other relationships featured expressions of love beyond a cranial massage. Lovers kissed, danced, made love, chased each other down in airports (oh yes… yes, they did)… yet this relationship was merely a 2 minute (if that) clip that only went so far as a few gentle smiles. Is this all the studio can handle showing the public? Is that what they think of gay people? Are we now allowed to love, but not allowed to show it? In this post-Brokeback Mountain era where two A-list males were passionate with each other on screen, are we really so scared of gay romance that we have to reduce it to 1940's style innuendos?

What's Wrong With The Audience

But that wasn't even my biggest gripe with the move. Actually, yes that was. My biggest gripe is not even about the movie itself, it was with the audience. When the "big reveal" happened the audience erupted in snickers and giggles. And yes, even though there were only 30 other people in our showing, erupted is the correct term to use. I'm not the only one that experienced this either, some reviewers warned of this in their screenings as well. Again, in this post-Brokeback World, is this really still an issue to chuckle at? Is it really still funny to some people to see two gay men showing emotion to each other? And if so, can you pretty fucking please explain to me why it is so damned funny?

Taking a step back, I do admit the story was poorly told and that scene, while decently handled by the actors, was very poorly delivered by the director. Maybe it was the overall hokiness of the film getting to the audience? Maybe it was that by this time in the movie, they were just looking for something to laugh at? Or maybe they, like me, thought the movie was just not that great and needed some comic relief?

Or maybe the audience has just gotten used to Hollywood treating gay men as punch lines so they just assume this was a punch line too.

It's All Wrong In The End

Whatever the reasoning, it was very, very aggravating. If I had not already disliked this flick, that would have ruined it for me by itself. Nothing about that scene commanded the audiences respect, and the audience responded in the way they thought was most appropriate: Gays are funny. They should be laughed at and mocked. That is truly a sad state of affairs, on both parts of the equation.

To summarize: A) Don’t waste your time with Valentine's Day, B) Hollywood needs to start treating gay relationships with some fucking respect, and C) Immature straight people need to grow the fuck up and get the hell over their own issues. I had to bust down closet doors and continue to face daily struggles to be who I am, the last thing I need is some "frat-boy" dumbass chuckling it up at my expense in a subversive attempt at attacking my sexuality.

Next On The Must See List

I have to agree with The Raw Feed on this: I really want to see this new version of Alice in Wonderland!

It looks a little freaky, but it is a Disney flick so I can't imagine it'll be too bad.

Next On My Must See List

I've been dieing to see this movie since I first heard about it.  Sadly, this was the movie Heath Ledger was working on when he died, but it is directed by Terry Gilliam (of Monty Python and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas fame). 

So they actually have Jude Law, Collin Farell and Johnny Depp filling in for Heath throughout the movie. 

Chicago Is The "It" Town

This week my normal route home has been disturbed by something completely outside of my control. Normally, I would consider this even pretty cool, but because it's causing me a delay in getting home (a trip that already takes 1.5 hours as it is), I'm going to be a bit of a hater. This is my route home and some rich bastards are slowing me up. What's going on, you ask? They're shooting Little Fockers, the next in the Ben Stiller comedy series based solely on a guy's last name being Focker. Hilarious.

Thing is they are filming at the Sheridan Red Line stop. No, I haven't seen any of the stars myself, but I've seen all their junk: 786 trailers (on a narrow street, mind you), a bazillion lights and cranes, and a score of people who apparently have no jobs because they stand outside the damn "set" all day long gawking around hoping to get a glimpse of a real live person! You know, completely unlike their friends, or someone standing next to them. Because they are shooting at the Sheridan stop, which is where I get on and off the train, I have to fight through these hordes and hope that they haven't decided to delay the trains just so they can get one more shot.

Then last night, I went to go see a special showing of Mystery Science Theater 3000 at the AMC downtown only to find that place also swarmed with weirdoes. News vans, freaky fan-type peoples, and snooty pricks running around in paper thin red scarves (I swear I spotted 17 red scarves) and skinny suits. Oh, and Uma Thurman. She was there promoting her new movie Motherhood, which debuted last night during Chicago's Film Festival.

I just don't know if Chicago is ready for all this. OK, well, I should rephrase that. I don't know if I'm ready for all this. Sure, it's cool that my city is in the movies and in the headlines, yadda yadda yadda, but I also just want to be able to get home in peace after a nasty day of work, or go watch some stupid geek-gasm flick at the theater downtown to unwind without having to deal with the world's worst snobs. And honestly, do people really go ape shit like this over actors still? I was excited when I got to meet Dan Savage, but I talked to him like a normal person. I didn't stalk him around and hope for just a glimpse of his greatness in hopes it would fulfill my life. If I saw Ben Stiller at the Red Line, I'd wave or say "Hi, I really liked Zoolander, it's one of my favorite movies," and leave it at that.

I just don't get it. I suppose it's not for me to get. I guess I do want it both ways though, because I like the notoriety we get for things like this, but I just don't want them to get in my way. Oh well, looks like for now I just get my cake but no way to eat it.

Fame: Pretty Please Don't Live Forever

My fiancé picked on me for this last night because he just knows me way to well, and I tried to resist the urge to do this, but in the end the blogger in me won out, so here you are.

Last night, a quaint little gaggle of gays made our way down to the River East AMC downtown to watch the newest in the long tradition of movies that somehow manages to appeal to gay men without actually advertising to us: Fame. Fame is a remake of an 80's movie, which should have been enough to make us weary of the flick, but it featured dancers, singers, artists and disenfranchised high school kids that have found a magical home. And that is just about all we gays need to be drawn to a flick.

I don't think I need to make this very long. The movie was bad. It wasn't the most god-awful thing I've seen, but it found a way to crawl up my list of movies to watch when I need to self-induce a coma. There is no plot. Whatsoever. None. There are simply characters, and only a couple of them with real depth, and even fewer of them played with any sense of credibility, which is oddly ironic in a movie mostly about young people struggling to be actors.

The stories being told throughout the film are mostly disjointed, and it seems more like a mistake than a planned effort if any one of the stories interacts with another or if a story arched for more than 20 minutes. The movie is presented in four parts, one for each year of high school, and one would naturally expect to see some development of the characters and their talents over those four years. Instead, we're shown perfect or almost perfect performers as freshmen who do not develop their skills one iota nor do they develop their personalities.

Even the "emotional" moments were laughable. One student attempts to commit suicide (it wouldn't be a high school movie without someone trying to off themselves apparently…) which comes across as a terrible attempt at a cheap laugh more than an emotionally stringing moment. Oh, and apparently mothers in Iowa are perfectly fine with putting their gay as the day is long young 14-year-old sons up in a studio apartment in New York all by their lonesome just so they can study at a performing arts school… cause that makes sense. There are no other performing arts schools anywhere near Iowa...

Anyway, do yourself a favor and just don't see it. Seriously, don't bother. Unless you want to see Karen Walker not be Karen Walker. Or watch performances that are so overtly doctored up in a studio a Brittany Spears concert with Ashley Simpson opening would sound more realistic. If any of those sound good to you, please go see Fame. Otherwise, spare yourself.

Time For Another Gay Ol' Story

I'm not sure what is happening lately. Either I'm spending more time actively chasing down gay content or gay-accessible pop culture is just becoming more prevalent.

This weekend, I finally got the chance to watch Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. If you haven't seen it yet, it's a pretty solid movie. Cute, full of high-school angst and growing pains, but hopeful. So what's really queer-friendly about a love story between a teenage boy and girl? The male lead is in a gay rock band. He's just not gay. But the rest of the band (and the supporting cast for the movie) is gay, and it's just that simple. There's no long, drawn-out explanation as why he's there or over-testosteroned attempts for the male lead to prove his heteroness. The sexuality of the kids is handled as casually as the sex lives of the hetero characters, which is certainly a nice change of pace from what we've come to expect of movies and gay stereotypes.

I also finished Hero by Perry Moore the other week. Hero is a novel about a young queer boy growing up in a world where super heroes simply exist. The League is thriving and thwarting enemies on a daily basis, while characters like Justice, who crashed landed on Earth after his home world was destroyed only to be raised by farmers (ahem… not familiar at all), fly through the sky protecting the planet from peril. The boy goes through a small bit of pain about his secret homosexuality, but soon learns that his secret powers are what will make the biggest difference in his life. Why is this important from a pop culture perspective? It was a successful book, and considering that Peter Moore is the executive producer on the Chronicles of Narnia series of movies, I'd say his chances of green lighting his novel into a movie should be pretty good, or even a TV series if the current round of rumors are to be believed.

In a few weeks, The Watchmen will be released in theaters. The Watchmen has been heralded as one of the greatest works of fiction, and is easily the best example of what a graphic novel can be. The novel doesn't expressly focus on anything gay, but you do come to learn that two of the characters, minor as they are, are gay and that news is handled as matter-of-factly as the fact that the are masked adventurers. Whether this tacit acceptance and normalization of the gay characters will persist into the big screen isn't quite clear yet, but the portrayal in the book is pretty great.

So what's going on? Am I hunting down LGBT-related content, or is it finding me? I think a little bit of both, to be honest. I want to know my community better and I want to consume material that I can relate to, so I know that I'm on the look-out for more gay content. However, I believe that the tide of queer equality is approaching faster and faster, even if only in the pop culture frame.

And A Stereotype Shall Emerge For All

This weekend, the boyfriend and I went to see He's Just Not That Into You. The previews looked charming enough and a silly, light, romantic comedy was exactly what we needed, and since this was the latest and greatest (and since Ben Affleck was in it) we gave it a shot.

The movie itself was exactly what we thought it would be: easy-to-comprehend, light, funny, romantic. Nothing out of the ordinary for the typical Hollywood romance. We both enjoyed it and left completely satisfied with the $22 we spent to sit in a crowded theater. The more I think about it though, there was something that bothered me the whole time: the blatant use abuse of stereotypes.

A lot of Hollywood flicks rely on stereotypes. Ok, just about all of them do to one extent or another. This movie may have just taken the cake though. Observe the stereotypes:

All men are pigs
All gay men are queeny
Men are afraid of commitment
Women can't control their emotions
Women are clingy
All contractors are Latino and illegal immigrants/undocumented workers
All married men will cheat on their spouse
All women blame themselves when their man cheats
Gay men are a financial "market" to be tapped
Every woman's ultimate goal in life is marriage
Husbands are slovenly beasts that must be cared for by women
Wiccans are all crazy, socially malfunctioning people

I'm sure there are more, but those are the ones that pop to mind with just a quick pass threw of the plot. That's pretty annoying! I understand that some characters in a story must be static, and therefore rely on some form of stereotype, do all the characters need to?

Putting that annoyance aside, somehow the director and writer were able to put together an entertaining movie all-in-all. By the end of the movie, some of the above stereotypes were broken for the even greater stereotype of every romantic comedy: People will change for Love. Not all of them, mind you, just the straight, white people…

OK, getting off my political soap box now. Somehow, through all the utter BS the movie threw at me, I still came away enjoying it, which is pretty much a contradiction of what I believe in. Maybe it's because it managed to be funny. Maybe it's because it had a sick sense of reality to it. Or maybe it's because my boyfriend really liked it, and like the characters in the movie, I'm just a bit more malleable because of love than I ever thought I could be.

The Curious Case Of A Great Movie

This was an odd weekend for us. I had spent the last part of the last week working from home and my boyfriend was on vacation, so we got to spend a lot of time together. To end a great weekend, we decided to go see a movie, and since we've both been wanting to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, we decided to make the trek to the theater on Sunday and finally make the three hour commitment.

To say that I was swept away into the story of Benjamin Button's backward life is an understatement. The story was interesting and one I'm sure we've all thought about before, at least I know I have. I remember talking to my friends about that in high school many times, trying to figure out if it'd be a good thing or not. But overall, the story was just a servant to the constant stream of imagery.

Every scene was detailed and painted on to the screen in a way that evoked the exact emotion of the moment, whether it be desperation or joy or love or lust, it was all beautifully displayed. One scene in particular took me by complete surprise and I can't get it out of my head. Daisy (Cate Blanchet's character) is strolling along with Benjamin (Brad Pitt) when she jumps up on a wall and begins dancing. In the background, there is a fog rising giving way to a few street lights and the ambient sound of New Orleans style jazz flows through the air. As she dances, you can sense there is more to her moves than just showing off; she's making a statement to Benjamin as the moon highlights her silhouette. While my words may not give the scene justice, it (as well as many others) stand out in my mind as excellent examples of the movies evocative imagery.

The screenplay is loosely based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story, which shows through in that same imagery. While Fitzgerald's stories are often encumbered by imagery and symbolism, Benjamin Button finds a nice balance between over-using symbols and accentuating images to tell the story.

I really can't say enough about this movie. For me, image and presentation in films is key, which can be evidenced in that movies like Big Fish are in my top five favorites. If you haven't seen The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, I'd strongly recommend it.

Milk: Not Just For The Gays?

I don't often get moved to tears by films. They just don't push me very far, and I think most times it's because I don't identify with the character's emotions. Seeing a heterosexual couple's unrequited love on screen for the 18 millionth time doesn't do it for me, not because I'm not hetero, but because that doesn't speak to my experience. Sure, I've had unrequited crushes before, but those were a completely different set of circumstances, and in many of the cases I would never be able to earn the attention of my longing because they simply were not gay, unlike most of these romantic movies where the hetero guy/girl simply annoys the shit out of their opposite sex crush until they give in. But when a film maker takes the time to speak to me, directly to the heart of who I am, then I can truly be moved by a film.

This weekend, I went with my boyfriend and a few friends to see Milk, as we had planned. I know, everyone in the gay blogosphere is raving about how great the movie is. And it's true, the movie is simply brilliant. I related to the characters on so many levels, and I felt strongly about the ideals being espoused by the characters and the film maker. I teared up in more than a few occasions, and my sweet boyfriend who knows me all too well knew exactly when to pacify me with a kiss or caress as the bigots spoke or the police beat innocent people in the streets. As we left the theater, I was awe struck at the power the movie had on me, but was also intrigued to find out that not everyone felt the same way as I did about the movie.

One of my friends just didn't like the movie. What's worse (according to another gentleman we talked to the next day) was that my friend is gay… and apparently, being gay means you must like Milk. I've stated above that I loved the flick, but my friend had some solid reasons why he didn't like the movie. Mainly, he felt the character development was lacking. Truth be told, I think I agree with him there. We were introduced to many characters in the film, and did not see really that much progression in them throughout the picture, which ultimately makes it hard for people to connect to the characters… unless they are passionate about the content or message. Which I am. Which is why I loved it.

Not to say that my friend isn't an activist. He is, but I have a feeling that he doesn't hold quite as liberal views on equality issues as I do, as evidenced by our discussion on hate crime legislation (I'm in favor of it, he's not… we talked about it once, then realized our friendship was more important that a disagreement on public policy). I think that I idolize people like Harvey Milk, that can stand up and fight for our community, and I also think that my friend thinks there are other ways to achieve these same goals. I'm not sure they are mutually exclusive concepts either. Like I said about Corporate Advocacy vs Grass Roots campaigns, I feel they need to coexist to ultimately win. I have a feeling that I'm more the in-the-streets activist and he's more the lobbyist activist.

All that aside, it makes me then wonder how well Milk will do in front of general (read: heterosexual) audiences. Will straight people really connect with the message, or even the characters? I would hope that, even if they do not personally connect, that they get a better perspective on the LGBT community and struggles. Brokeback Mountain did very well in front of straight audiences, but that was not nearly a political picture. Beautiful and tragic, yes, but not political. Milk is political. It's highly relevant. And with all the emotions raging across the country regarding what should be my legal rights to marriage, will "middle-of-the-road" thinkers really get into Milk?

Will Be Seeing

Hopefully tomorrow. I've been excited about this flick for some time now. Please go out and see it this weekend, bring friends and family. Just don't go see it at the Cinemark Theaters please. It would be horribly wrong to watch a movie about one of the biggest figures of the modern gay movement at a theater chain that supported the movement to strip us of our rights.

Want To See It

But I Still Get Nervous Around The Ethnics...

This past weekend, my boyfriend and I made our way out to the theater to see a movie. We hadn't really had a "date night" in a minute, and we had free passes to AMC, so we figured, "Why not?" While he was finishing up his shift, I narrowed our choices down to two picks that I thought we'd both enjoy: House Bunny and Hamlet 2. After some quick searches, and a little pleading on my part, we decided on Hamlet 2. I was a little unsure about it, it could be a complete miss, but the producers of Little Miss Sunshine and half the writing team for South Park: The Movie, so I had some faith it would at least not suck. And I was right, it didn't suck, it was simply amazing!

South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut, is hands down my favorite movie. I spent a good year with my fraternity brothers in college watching that movie just about every night, and I can still recite it word for word, laughing my ass off the entire time. I think Hamlet 2 may have stepped in to take the place of South Park now though. I don't think I've laughed as hard in a very, very long time.

I know full well that this movie isn't for everyone. In fact, I think most people will watch it and wonder why they just paid money to be raped in the face. But, if you, like me, enjoy sadistic and twisted comedies, then Hamlet 2 is an absolute must see. Plus, the main student character is super cute.

The basis of the movie is very much like Waiting For Guffman, with it's concept of creating a play. The movie takes a million spirals in different directions, but ultimately leads to a culminating performance of the original work Hamlet 2, wherein Hamlet travels in time with Jesus, Albert Einstein sings about being raped in the face, Elton John's Someone Saved My Life Tonight is used as background for a light saber battle, and Jesus brings sexy back during Rock Me, Sexy Jesus.

I have a feeling the movie isn't going to do as well as either of it's progenitors. For one, it doesn't have the name and built-in audience of South Park , and it definitely doesn't have the feel-good, almost family style humor of Little Miss Sunshine. But I still have to urge everyone to go see this movie. Tonight. I've seen it twice already, and plan on seeing it some more, assuming I can drag any of my other friends to the theater with me. And for your enjoyment, here's just one scene to drool over: