More on 'Outrage'

Following my post from Tuesday on Kirby Dick's new film about politics, homophobia, and the closet, some further thoughts: When ‘Brokeback Mountain’ was released almost four years ago, it elicited acclaim from people who identified or empathized with the story of love between men whose social contexts had led them to repress their sexual orientation.  The film’s central characters had both married, and ultimately were unable to keep their vows in the search for a relationship that felt more authentic for them.  The social conventions of the time eventually made their relationship impossible; and one of them was ultimately killed for being gay.  The film did an excellent job of exploring the moral ambiguities of repressed sexuality (it’s a story in which nobody wins), and its impact on the culture was palpable.

Something ironic happened in the period since then.  At least three national US figures have been the subjects of same-sex scandals.  First, a well-known Christian leader was found to have had ongoing encounters with a male escort; then a Florida state legislator was arrested for allegedly offering $20 to a police officer in exchange for being allowed to perform a sex act; and most notably, a conservative Republican Senator resigned under the media microscope (and then un-resigned) for some alleged ambiguous business in an airport restroom.  Some public commentators are having a field day, with mockery of the Senator  drowning out serious discussion of human sexuality, which is of course a central part of this story.

I feel ambivalence because of the damage I believe their failure to publicly challenge homophobia has done to gay people trying to make sense of their lives in an often hostile world.  But I also feel empathy toward them because while they may indeed be simply confused about their sexuality, or experiencing the kind of sexual repression that often accompanies fundamentalist religion and conservative political culture, it would appear that they have had to hide all of their adult lives.  They may even have been hiding from themselves.  I hope that they can find healing, and develop a healthy emotional life.  But their strong denials of ambiguous sexuality suggest a degree of self-loathing that should surprise even seasoned fundamentalism-watchers, not to mention the fact that they reinforce the social paradigms that contribute to the serious mental health problems that afflict many gay people.

I'll post some more questions about this later today.

Honesty in Media

Don't you appreciate it when a film marketing company treats the audience with enough respect not to pretend that their film is anything other than what it really is?  I mean, 'MegaShark vs. Giant Octopus' probably isn't going to evoke the spirit of Ingmar Bergman (although it does seem to deal with Bergman's key theme, death), nor will it have the wit of Wes Anderson (but the trailer certainly made me laugh), but it does have Debbie Gibson, without whom my bedroom wall twenty years ago would have featured only posters for 'The Goonies' and 'Back to the Future'.  Debbie Gibson.  And a Giant Octopus and  Mega Shark. Not much else I can say right now. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fa7ck5mcd1o]

Why Stephen Fry is my new favourite Political Commentator

This clip from BBC last night: Serious Fry nails the hypocrisy and disproportionate understanding of what's important when it comes to political scandals. And below, Comedy Fry talks semantics.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHQ2756cyD8&hl=en&fs=1]

Both Frys are worth reading and listening to, on almost anything.  The hand-wringing over MP's expenses in Britain may well be warranted - but the way it is reported far outweighs its importance, and the contrast with the spinning of the dehumanised foreign policy decisions of recent years couldn't be greater.

The Politics of 'Outrage'

In 1993, while still living in Belfast, I received a phone call from a Member of the UK Parliament, offering to help me with the fact that I was not being offered a student grant as I began my time as an undergraduate.  The MP was gracious and helpful, and although he was unable to do anything that changed my financial circumstances, I was grateful for the personal attention he had given my case.  I had no further dealings with him, but he was always a highly visible presence in the constituency, frequently seen in town, and in the media.

Two years later, the London-based Gay Rights activist group Outrage!, led by Peter Tatchell, announced that it had written to 20 MPs whom it believed to be closeted gay men, and who also had supported anti-gay political measures.  Outrage! threatened the MPs with being publicly outed if they did not acknowledge their sexuality, and, presumably disavow their public homophobia.

Shortly after this announcement, the main local newspaper in Northern Ireland printed a front page story to the effect that they knew that one of the MPs who received Outrage's letter was a local man.  On that day, the MP who had tried to help with my student funding case died of a heart attack on board a train in England.  Outrage! never carried out its plan to name the other 19, and I have always assumed that this was a direct result of my MP's death, although some have suggested that the letters were always an empty threat to gain publicity.

Peter Tatchell has been a human rights activist since he was a teenager, fighting for justice for Aboriginal peoples, and more recently being beaten to the point of brain damage by Robert Mugabe's bodyguards as he tried to address the horror of that man's legacy in Zimbabwe.  He has opinions with which I strongly disagree, but the personal courage and commitment he has brought to a range of issues has to be acknowledged.

Last week, Kirby Dick's new polemic film, also called 'Outrage', opened in limited release in the US.  I haven't seen it yet, but it is being marketed as the DC version of the 1995 letter campaign - I imagine it may be more nuanced than that, but for the next few days, in hopes of having a discussion here, I'll post some questions that might be relevant.  I'll see the film as soon as I can.

So, first questions: Is it ever right to expose someone's consensual private life?  What should the public response be to political representatives who endorse homophobic legislation or refuse to challenge homophobia, but who are later found to be involved in same-sex activity?  Is this simply hypocrisy, worthy only of condemnation and public ridicule, or could it be more complicated than that?

'Star Trek' Haiku

Now Spock cries. Kirk flirts.

Time loops create new options.

Movie's pretty good.

It really is, actually.  JJ Abrams knows how to keep an audience's attention, the black hole/time warp device is a stroke of genius, allowing the story to start from scratch while also making space for old Spock to make a return visit, the design (sound, image, costumes, everything) is as well-crafted as an IM Pei building, the performances feel like real acting rather than camp, and there's real pleasure in seeing what you thought you knew being genuinely re-invented.

Sure, the narrative hangs on a superficial revenge thread (one of these days we're going to see a Romulan/Klingon deal with grief by reaching out to their friends rather than committing genocide), and the need to establish the characters means there's less room for mystery.  But that's what sequels are for.  I didn't expect to be saying this, but 'Star Trek' is one of the best mainstream large-scale adventure films I've seen in ages.