Latter Days

[freetobegay]

By Rodger Streitmatter
Media Matters


Even though anyone who keeps track of major news events would agree that the campaign for gay rights has been exploding on an impressively wide variety of fronts-from the American judicial system to the Episcopal Church to the cities of San Francisco and Portland-in recent months, the latest venue in this on-going effort to level the gay/straight playing field may come as something of a surprise: the romantic dramedy.

Say what?

For more decades than any of us gay men with a fondness for "chick flicks" would like to admit, we've been trooping off to movie theaters to watch pretty young women-from Doris Day to Kate Hudson-make their way through a mix of dramatic and comedic scenes filled with clichés, far-fetched coincidences and over-the-top contrivances until they inevitably fall into the arms of handsome young men-from Rock Hudson to Matthew McConaughey.

Heterosexuality has had such a powerful stranglehold on the American culture that most of us never even acknowledge the fact that we'd much prefer that Rock Hudson and Matthew McConaughey end up together-no, no, none of that. So we have blithely bought our tickets, taken our seats and instinctively made our adjustments vis-à-vis gender roles.

No more.

http://www.gaytoday.com/entertain/042604en.asp