Recently participated in these topics:
Entertainment media that doesn't "stereotype" homosexuals
I've watched 2 interesting films like "Brokeback Mountain," the soundtrack is amazing by the way, and "Milk," which didn't stereotype homosexuals like some other mainstream media.
What other films, music, plays, etc...? Any recommendations?
To have something like this in the Arab world, and pass unnoticed, or live safely after creating it is out of question. That's why I'm really asking about Western media indeed!
If any of you has an experience with underground oriental documentaries/films that dealt with homosexuality... Let us know!
Samir82
819
Recently participated in these topics:
Have you checked out Jihad For Love? There's also another one called "Not Quite the Taliban" - I haven't seen it yet but my boyfriend did and recommends it. The film maker is a homosexual living in Dubai who speaks about double standards and hypocrisy in "modern" Arab countries and generations and brings up homosexuality as one of the taboos.
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign UpPeter
774
Recently participated in these topics:
Even the term "gay" is a stereotype of homosexual behavior, associating it with frivolousness and flamboyance.
There are two reasons, or so I theorize, why such a stereotypical behavior has emerged. Certainly some feminine traits commonly associated with homosexuality may be biological in nature, but many patterns of behavior have emerged within homosexual culture for a couple reasons.
The first reason which I speculate is due to the difficulty in establishing relationships with the same sex based on a lack of knowledge of a person's orientation without coming out and just asking (which can be disastrously misconstrued). Certain patterns of behavior and dress I feel likely emerged to facilitate the process of finding other homosexuals such as mannerisms and dress.
The second I think may come from 'closeted' syndrome. When individuals are in denial about an aspect of their personality to the point where they are lying to themselves and developing a false persona to reinforce the delusion (see: macho men) when they are awakened to the reality they may very well find themselves in doubt and distrusting about the whole of their persona. This, I feel, is why you'll see people who have come out of the closet extremely recently will have relatively extreme personality changes. Not knowing what of their old identity is trustworthy, they compile a new identity around the one aspect of which there is a measure of certitude. Unfortunately, I feel this often ends up repeating the problem rather than addressing the root of one's self understanding.
The stereotypical homosexual, despite many of the negative stereotypes that surround it, is something recognizable, and I would suspect that rejection of many of these stereotypical behaviors meets with resistance due to concern that this is tantamount to admission of moral fault or shame. It's become rather like a culture of tradition, and a lot of individuals have a lot of personal emotional investment in it.
I don't think, in this instance, that the media is needing to force this notion, I think it's fairly self-perpetuated culturally and media portrayals are just a reflection of that social condition.
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign Uplalithmuthali
400
Recently participated in these topics:
None of the gay men I know actually act, look, or dress like the gay men I am shown on TV. The Almighty TV, irritates me sometimes.
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign Uplonelynumber
80
Recently participated in these topics:
There's this book you might be interested in reading Amadeus
The book is called "Gay Travels in the Muslim World" edited by Michael T. Luongo
http://gaytravel.about.com/od/gaytravelresources/qt/Travels_Muslim.htm
It is a truly fascinating account
As for movies, there's an Australian movie from 1998 called "Head On"
about the life of an immigrant Greek boy in Melbourne and the whole relationship with his family
based on the novel "Loaded" by Australian-Greek writer Christos Tsiolkas
An Israeli movie called "Eyes Wide Open" about a relationship between a married man and a young guy in the Ultra-Orthodox world, this one movie gave me the chills since I'm formerly Orthodox myself
There's a torrent somewhere out there with English subtitles
From this year there's a Lebanese film called "Circumstances"
About the life of lesbian women in Iran
There's also a Lebanese film from 2008 called "Help" which was banned anyway but it's available for download in some places,
At lastly the book of Brian Whitaker, "Unspeakable Love' about gay and lesbian life in Middle East that had a new edition this year.
As for the stereotype: It's not only an Arab thing though, Israeli and Western media is full of it even in the best-meaning liberal gay-loving soaps.
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign Uppi-chan
936
Recently participated in these topics:
i know it isnt the right thing to do , but i live , interact and deal with gays who don't fit the "stereotype" , maybe so they wont be noticed or maybe because it's just the way they are , so i find it kinda nice and refreshing to watch sth with the stereotype taking part in , like sassy men & tombys and whatever .
what rly concerns me is ; we probably very afraid of the "stereotype" that we alter our actions that might be considered stereotypical so we won't be 'branded' ! i rly think that even if u dress,walk,talk& even breathe the part and ur comfortable with it,then u should just that cuz it's U , and u shouldnt rly give a damn abt being stereotyped or not .
pi-chan
936
Recently participated in these topics:
sth like this
http://www.breaktheillusion.com/gay/dear-davey-i-dont-want-to-seem-too-gay/
thats what i was talking abt
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign UpAnonymous users can't be rated
Sign UpPeter
774
Recently participated in these topics:
I know homosexual persons who are way more flamboyant and stereotypical than it would be politically correct to show on most television shows without people being offended. I also know homosexual persons who you'd never know unless they told you. More often than not, it's somewhere in-between.
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign UpCowBella
157
Recently participated in these topics:
How about Will&Grace ? a sitcom that showed all the gay and lesbians stereotype in a really funny away, they put all these stereotypes not make fun of them rather than making people to be proud of who they are no matter what ! this is how I got it at least.
Anonymous users can't be rated
Sign Up