Homosexuality in film

Anneke Smelik’s “Gay and Lesbian Criticism” explores homosexuality in cinema. Homosexuality was present in films since they began and is prominently featured in several films in our society as the issue of homosexuality has been pushed to the forefront. Early portrayals of homosexuals in films were stereotypical and insulting, reflecting the overwhelming prejudice and even hatred of homosexuality. Gays and lesbians were seen as the queen and the dyke, as something unnatural and scary like the sissy, the lesbian vampire, the unnatural woman, and the gay psychopath. Throughout history, the exposure of homosexuality in films, positive or negative, was heralded by the homosexual community; they needed to establish their identity in society. Today, in our society, homosexuals are more widely accepted, even with the legalization of gay marriage in some states. Homosexuality in films is more prevalent today and portrays gays and lesbians as humans rather than unnatural, abnormal beings. In The Business of Fancydancing, the main character, Seymour is a gay Native American who had left his reservation to pursue his career as a poet, alienating himself from his family and friends who believe he is abandoning their culture. When his childhood friend dies, Seymour returns to his old reservation and is forced to confront his family and old friends. Seymour’s homosexuality in the film does not play a large role in the plot; rather, the film deals with it very little. Seymour’s homosexuality lacks truth and depth; in one scene, Seymour offers to leave his lover to live with Agnes and simply tells her that they would not have sex to reinforce his sexuality. This scene reveals society’s mentality that gays are restricted to lovers but cannot marry or live together like heterosexual couples. In society today, this issue has been brought to the forefront and can be seen in many films. One of the most recent and notable films pushing gay rights is Milk, the story of Harvey Milk, a prominent figure in the gay rights movement in the 1970s and the first openly gay man to be voted in a major public office. The film does not skirt around Milk’s homosexuality like Seymour’s homosexuality in The Business of Fancydancing and portrays it simply as Milk’s sexuality, nothing more and nothing less. The film disregarded sexuality in its portrayal of Harvey Milk, making him human and honest, rather than a stereotypical and frail image of a gay man. Milk garnered sympathy for the gay rights cause and served as a film to provide hope to the gay community, especially in our society where gay rights activism has become more prominent with many heterosexuals supporting the cause now. Like in the past, homosexuality will always be portrayed in cinema; however, the idea of homosexuals is changing from the initial prejudice of these seemingly unnatural and disgusting group of people to a sympathetic view of gays and lesbians as people with different sexual preferences.

Celluloid Closet

The Celluloid Closet by Vito Russo is a book which was also adapted into a documentary which follows and exposes the history of homosexual representation in film. It brings to light the mistreatment of gay characters through examples of films in which gay characters were frightening villains or extremely ashamed of themselves. The Celluloid Closet also points out the pattern in many movies where the gay characters are eventually killed off. Whether it’s being shot like in Rebel Without A Cause or suicide like in The Children’s Hour it was a theme in Hollywood for the homosexual characters to meet their end within the movie. I had personally never noticed many of the points made in the documentary of The Celluloid Closet. These norms and ideas are slipped into society without much notice. Cinema along with other forms of media can subtly influence the general population through suggestion. It was fascinating to hear the accounts the commentators in the documentaries had to share about their experience watching movies as gay viewers. They all saw the suggestions about homosexuality so clearly because they interpreted the films through their own filters. One woman commented that growing up she was almost desperate for any recognition or visibility of homosexuality in the world around her.

Audrey Chasteen

Gay and Lesbian Criticism: Reading

Gay and lesbian aspects of movies were not favored in post-classical Hollywood and often times directors had to use hidden meanings in order to portray a gay relationship in films. Whenever homosexual relationships were used on stage they were shown in bad light in order to discourage this behavior in real-life. As more movies appeared showing homosexual aspects, a new series of stereotypes came about depicting gays. Being gay was represented as unnatural and unfit for society. The sissy, the dike, the unnatural woman, all showed the audience the side effects of being gay. These stereotypes not only added to the already prejudiced minds of regular people but also infused gays with feelings of worthlessness and disgrace. The stereotypes portrayed by homosexual movies also depend on the authorship of the films. It is very easy to determine whether the director of a film is gay or really in tune with gay culture by the way homosexual characters are shown in their movies. If they are stereotyped against then it's safe to say that the director himself is either prejudiced or so ignorant that he deviates for a truthful portrayal. Movies in which homosexuals are shown as day to day people and are treated equally are rare to find, however, there has been growing number of films which advocate gay equality in the past few years. As our culture begins to learn more about gay culture, then Hollywood will, in turn, change it's negative portrayal of homosexuals and try to rectify the decades of anti-homosexual messages it has sent out.

The Business of FancyDancing

This movie is not just a movie about homosexuality and the issues associated with it, it also exemplifies the struggles of a person afflicted by many different aspects that make them different from the norm. Seymour Polatkin, the protagonist, is shown as being ridiculed for being Native American and homosexual, and the conflict between these two aspects of his life. His partner does not approve of his attempts to reconnect with his past life at the reservation and his only heterosexual relationship, while his Indian friends do not accept him for different reasons, mainly because he left the reservation. The movie portrays Polatkin as a strong character and he is not afflicted with the stereotypes associated with a homosexual that are given by the readings. The movie shows the tribulations associated with being homosexual are shown, much like in older movies, but unlike those older films, the homosexual protagonist does not end his/her life or have an unhappy ending; Polatkin returns home to be with his partner, assuring the audience, and himself, that this is who he is, not his native American roots. This positive ending, in terms of the homosexual aspects of the movie, forces the audience to reconsider the notion of homosexuality being deviant and a bad life choice, as Polatkin is happy after he goes through all of the issues he does throughout the film.

Homosexual Stereotypes

Gay and lesbian stereotypes have been an important part of Hollywood cinema since its emergence. Stereotypes such as the sissy, the dike, the sad young man, and the unnatural woman have been common character types in many movies in both the classical and post-classical eras. However, each of these stereotypes fail to recognize the true nature of gay men and lesbians. Instead, these stereotypes focus on the negative aspects of homosexuality and present only a narrow point of view that reaffirms the negative connotations associated with a gay lifestyle. For example, the sissy stereotype focuses on creating a male character that is weaker than the rest of the men and women onscreen. This stereotype allows male homosexuality to be expressed in a way that is both inoffensive and non-threatening. On the other hand, the dike stereotype emphasizes the intense dislike of men that characterizes some lesbians. Both of these stereotypes have become common images of homosexuality in American culture despite their inaccurate descriptions. While some of the traits portrayed by these stereotypes are indeed true to certain individuals, they are not general categories into which all gay men and women can be grouped. However, it is often the case that homosexuality is viewed in these terms simply because they have been accepted by society as normal. These pre-determined points of view have profoundly impacted the way society views homosexuality off the screen. By presenting a viewpoint that fails to take into account the true nature of homosexuality and that narrows it into predefined categories, cinema has greatly affected the way homosexuality has been accepted into our modern society. Naturally these stereotypes have been targeted by gay and lesbian criticism in an attempt to rectify the false ideas they instill about gay men and women. By focusing on correcting the popular image of homosexuality, incorrect gay stereotypes will undoubtedly be corrected in the future. In turn, this will lead to the slow elimination of narrowly defined homosexual stereotypes from popular cinema and an influx of more fully developed gay characters.

Hill, John and Pamela Church Gibson. The Oxford Guide to Film Studies. New York: Oxford University Press,1998. Print.

-David Zwick

The Business of Fancydancing

Unlike films which make a mockery of their homosexual characters, Sherman Alexie's The Business of Fancydancing develops the experience of the dynamic character Seymour Polatkin in a way that respects homosexuality. Seymour is an openly gay Native American poet. He is portrayed as a real, substantial person, contrasting the shallow stereotypes that Hollywood has made so recognizable. Seymour is successful in his career and proud of his sexuality without letting it be the sole defining feature of his personality.

The reading from this week, "Gay and Lesbian Criticism" by Anneke Smelik discusses how stereotypes of gay men and lesbians in films established norms. Through degradation of homosexual characters, films established heterosexuality as a socially acceptable standard. This contributed to audience's formation of world view. For straight viewers, cinema reinforced that being gay was not normal. Cinema also had the effect of instilling self-hatred in gay viewers. The movie The Business of Fancydancing breaks out of this behavior. Seymour is clearly content with being gay and for him it is normal.

Seymour is no stereotype. He is unique. It was uncommon for an Indian on his reservation to become a poet. His behavior does not fit in with what is perceived as stereotypical. He is a deep character whom audiences can relate to. The level of development seen in his character shows a significant divergence from characters such as the costume designers in The Broadway Melody. In this 1929 film the effeminate male costume designers were a source of comedic relief. Though their sexual orientation was not explicitly stated, it was implied. This put the idea into audiences’ minds that being gay is something to be mocked and not respected. Cinema has a way of telling people what to think about society, and themselves.

Seymour from The Business of Fancydancing

Character from The Broadway Melody

The character of Seymour came across as a realistic character to me because even he struggled with accepting the way his life was. Even though he was secure in his sexuality, in a conversation with a friend he admits that he has frequently wondered what his life would be like if he was straight. He is happy with the condition of his life but like most people in reality, still has questions and personal struggles. He is in the process of being accepted by his tribe who feel that he abandoned them by leaving the reservation and not returning for such a long time. He used poetry to grapple with his own thoughts and feelings. The Business of Fancydancing did a good job of representing a gay character in a realistic, respectful manner.

Audrey Chasteen

Gay and Lesbian Criticism

The American public most associates the emergence of homosexuality in film with the premiere of Ang Lee's film, Brokeback Mountain. However, the presence of this issue dates back to the beginning of cinema. The way in which the homosexual issues and characters were treated has changed drastically. Early Hollywood, and many other nations' filmmaking industries, portrayed homosexuals as something less than man and relied solely upon stereotypes, much like any other minority. Modern day cinema, and television for that matter, tend to show the humanity of the homosexual actor or group while breaking down the previously held stereotypes. The crossover from film to television signifies a shift in the collective mind of the public. One of NBC's winningest shows, Will and Grace, shows the life of two homosexual men in New York City and their interactions with people who are heterosexual, homosexual, and many places in between. The show breaks down the stereotypes of homosexuals in such a way that American public could identify with the protagonist. The recent films addressing the issue, including a documentary glorifying the efforts of a man who worked for equality for homosexuals, coupled with the recent surge in support for gay marriage and other rights, are changing the face of American politics and Hollywood films and stereotypes.

-David Zabriskie