'Brokeback Mountain' adaptation to star all-transgender cast (Am I the only one who hated the movie? But would love to see this for the LOLZ)

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[–]tea4two 11 insightful - 1 fun11 insightful - 0 fun12 insightful - 1 fun -  (9 children)

I hated it too! Everyone kept on saying it was such a beautiful love story and when I finally saw it all I got were two assholes being downright awful to their wives.

[–]yousaythosethings 13 insightful - 1 fun13 insightful - 0 fun14 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I haven't seen Brokeback Mountain, but I agree that coming to terms with your sexual orientation does not excuse cheating. I was married to a man when I realized I was a lesbian, but I never cheated or lied. I ended my marriage respectfully, and I was always open and honest about my feelings of attraction as I felt those feelings. He knew from even before our relationship that I was attracted to women. It was the lack of attraction to men that was harder for me to process.

Anyway, my ex went to a support group for people whose spouses came out as gay and left them and he said he actually couldn't relate at all to the people in the group who were mostly women and there was generally horrific cheating and a lot of deceit involved. He said it made him feel better that his situation was not like that and he respected how I handled it. So yea, he ended up not needing that group and thankfully we are still close friends because we handled the situation like mature adults and good friends.

[–]lefterfield 8 insightful - 2 fun8 insightful - 1 fun9 insightful - 2 fun -  (7 children)

...They were both married? That's some bullshit. I never had any interest in seeing it, but I HATE this idea of tragic romances between gay men married to women. No, that's still called being a cheating, lying asshole, your sexuality changes nothing.

[–]MarkTwainiac 13 insightful - 1 fun13 insightful - 0 fun14 insightful - 1 fun -  (6 children)

Not to excuse cheating and lying, but "Brokeback" takes place in the rustic American West in the early 1960s - the two men fall in love in 1963. A lot of gay men and lesbians in that era got married to opposite sex partners coz they were unaware of, had repressed and were in denial of their true sexual orientation - and coz they felt they had no choice.

From what I recall Annie Proulx's original short story from the 1990s and the 2005 film that was made of it, the two male protagonists in "Brokeback" hadn't come out even to themselves when they met each other.

IIRC, one of the male protagonists in "Brokeback" - the one played by Heath Ledger - was an emotionally unexpressive, repressed guy with little formal education and zero "emotional intelligence" who got married very young when he was totally clueless about his own sexual orientation as well as most of his feelings. If you do the dates, he would've met and married his wife in the mid to late 1950s.

The other fella in "Brokeback" - the one played by Jake Gyllenhaal - married a woman later in life, after he was aware he was sexually attracted to men. But he'd also been subjected to a brutal gay-bashing and he lived in a social milieu that led him to believe he had no choice but to deny and cover up his sexual orientation. Moreover, I think he got the woman he married pregnant when they were dating - and before legal abortion, marriage in such cases often seemed to be the only honorable option for a guy. Also, IIRC, the Jake G character was genuinely attracted to women - he was actually bi.

"Brokeback" as I recall it was story about gay love - love between two men - not necessarily between two men who were exclusively gay. One of the guys was bisexual.

The fact is, whilst most homosexual people - particularly today - fall in love only with other people of the same sex, some are capable of genuinely falling romantically in love with members of the opposite sex. This was probably more the case back in the repressive 1950s and 60s when "Brokeback" was set, but it also occurred in my own youth in the 70s, 80s and 90s. Similarly, there are many bi people who have mostly het relationships but whose greatest love of their lives has been a person of the same sex.

[–]lefterfield 7 insightful - 1 fun7 insightful - 0 fun8 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

I'm aware of the history of how such stories happen, and how gay or bisexual men end up married with children. It's a story that's repeatedly told in media, with full sympathy given to the repressed man. Far less common to hear anything about the wife, and how she was lied to, and how it affects her life and her understanding of her own sexuality. No, it's not fair for gay men to have to hide who they are out of fear of violence. It's also not fair for men to use women and then discard them without consequence.

[–]MarkTwainiac 11 insightful - 1 fun11 insightful - 0 fun12 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I wasn't trying to justify or excuse the portrayal, just giving the context in which the story and original movie are set. There's a lot of "presentism" going on today - judging events in the past by contemporary standards.

The sympathy shown to the males in such stories and movies is not specific to stories and movies about gay men. Nearly all mass media focuses on male main characters, and tells the story from their POV in a way that is extremely sympathetic to the men even when the men are total dicks, and media portrayals typically fail to explore - or even acknowledge - the experiences of the females in these fellas lives, whether wives/female partners, mothers, sisters, female colleagues.

[–]tea4two 5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 0 fun6 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

That was exactly my issue with it. It was written to be overly sympathetic to the men, with no empathy left over for the women whose lives they were destroying. Moreover, it wasn't just a case of cheating, Heath Ledger's cowboy was absolutely awful to his wife on the regular! And these poor women who were not getting their needs met were framed as the obstacle to their love. I'm getting angry all over again just thinking about it!

[–]just_lesbian_things 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

whilst most homosexual people - particularly today - fall in love only with other people of the same sex, some are capable of genuinely falling romantically in love with members of the opposite sex

If they can fall in love with the opposite sex, then they're not gay. They're bisexual.

[–]MarkTwainiac 5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 0 fun6 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

I know that's how it's supposed to work, and in most cases it does, but there are outliers and exceptions. Humans and human relationships are very complicated, and over the course of long lifetimes strange things can and do happen, particularly when shaped by circumstances.

[–]just_lesbian_things 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

No, it's really that simple. I'm a homosexual woman. The odds of me becoming attracted to men is exactly zero. They're not even viable partners for me. It's like being attracted to a dog or a baby something. It's just not happening. Not even if we were the last two sentient beings in the universe.

[–]MarkTwainiac 9 insightful - 2 fun9 insightful - 1 fun10 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

When I saw this post, I immediately wondered how the two TIF actors were going handle the sheep herding, camping and rugged outdoor scenes in the mountains. And how well they'd do playing characters who go for long stretches of time living in tents or under the stars without the chance to shower/bathe or keep looking in a mirror to check themselves out and see how masculine and "valid" they are.

I also wondered how the TIM actor who plays Michelle Williams' role will fare. That character is a downtrodden, dirt poor, mistreated, matter-of-fact woman who works a dull job, has kids to care for and is way too busy to put on feminine airs - and has no interest in getting all dolled up like a sex kitten porn star and acting girly. So that role won't provide a TIM with the the thrill of looking glamorous and acting fabulous that so many TIMs, especially LA/Hollywood and theatrical ones, seem to need to bring on "gender euphoria."

But as it turns out it's not a movie or TV adaptation they're making. It's simply

A virtual staged reading of the film’s script

that will be streamed online.

The actors won't actually do any of the outdoor stuff. They'll be reading the script as computers change the scenery behind them. But there will be "accents" and lots of "costume changes." Fun times!

Still, it is just a script reading. They're not even gonna act out the scenes on stage. They're not even bothering to memorize any lines.

Bet the TIM playing the Anne Hathaway part is thrilled, though. Hathaway's character was rich, pretty, dolled up and wore lots of makeup and tacky teased hair. IIRC, she wore some very stagey country-western outfits too, with mini-skirts and white cowboy/go go boots. Lots of fun in the dressing-up box for the guy who plays her. Hee haw.

[–]totallyrad 7 insightful - 1 fun7 insightful - 0 fun8 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

In a theater when this movie was out, my gay friends told me about how the crowd would laugh anytime gay men were awful to their wives and in their minds...the wives were their oppressors!

[–]diapason 6 insightful - 1 fun6 insightful - 0 fun7 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

What's even the point of that? And why are they doing this to a gay romance movie, not one of the thousands of straight ones? Hmmm…

[–]BEB[S] 10 insightful - 8 fun10 insightful - 7 fun11 insightful - 8 fun -  (0 children)

Good point. Truly they're trying for Wokeback Mountain.

[–]macaron 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Taking another part of gay history? oop

[–]Rationalmind 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

What’s down is up and what’s up is down. We live in a topsy-turvy world.

[–]alttrawl 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Buzzfeed's Gaby Dunn is lesbian if I recall correctly whose digital schtick was being woke. She also featured in an article complaining about how difficult it was for her to wait tables since she was so famous yet poor.