I have nothing against homosexuality but you make a really good point here. So far the only movies I've seen about deep friendship between men are foreign films, and the Italians back in the 70's were the best in that domain with movies combining humour and nostagia such as <i>Amici miei</i> with Ugo Tognazzi and Phillipe Noiret and <i>C'eravamo tanto amati</i> with the great Vittorio Gassman.
gay struggles have been going on since the beginning of the modern church. http://www.beliefnet.com/story/142/story_14299_2.html Bishop Speaks John Shelby Spong Was the Apostle Paul Gay? Nothing about Paul was moderate. He was tightly drawn, passionately emotional, filled with enormous feelings of self-negativity, seeking to deal with those feelings in the timehonored way of external controls, unflagging religious zeal, and rigid discipline. He could not, however, master the passions that consumed him What were these passions? There is no doubt in my mind that they were sexual in nature, but what kind of sexual passions were they? Searching once again through the writings of Paul, some conclusions begin to emerge that startle and surprise the reader. Paul's passions seemed to be incapable of being relieved. Why was that? Paul himself had written that if one "could not exercise self-control" that person should marry. "For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion" <Prev Page | Next Page> Page 1 2 3 Some have suggested that that Paul was plagued by homosexual fears. This is not a new idea, and yet until recent years, when homosexuality began to shed some of its negative connotations, it was an idea so repulsive to Christian people that it could not be breathed in official circles. This is not to say that our cultural homophobia has disappeared. It is still lethal and dwells in high places in the life of the Christian church, and it is a subject about which ecclesiastical figures are deeply dishonest, saying one thing publicly and acting another way privately. The prejudice, however, is fading slowly but surely. With the softening of that homophobic stance we might consider the hypothesis that Paul may have been a gay male. We might test that theory by assuming it for a moment as we read Paul. When I did this for the first time, I was startled to see how much of Paul was unlocked and how deeply I could understand the power of the gospel that literally saved Paul's life.
A few American films, off the top of my head: Mean Streets Diner Husbands Lonesome Dove Scarecrow (1973) Breaking Away Once Upon a Time in America Birdy Heartbreakers (1984) The 25th Hour Bill Durham The Outsiders The Deer Hunter Bye Bye Braverman Harold
First of all gay struggles have been going on since well before the modern church and those articles are the worst type of bullshit. Perhaps when Paul was calling homosexuality sinful and homosexual acts and men lusting for each other - shameful, he was really joking. Go ahead be gay or tolerant of the gay lifestyle but don't corrupt the writings of the new testament with some dopey psuedo speculation about Pauls sexuality.
One recent counterexample - the Lord of the Rings trilogy. One of Tolkien's major themes is the strong bonds that form between men, which came out of his experiences in the trenches in WWI. The movies didn't flinch from this theme of male companionship. Martin
"There's nothing good about drug use. We know it. It destroys individuals. It destroys families. Drug use destroys societies. Drug use, some might say, is destroying this country. And we have laws against selling drugs, pushing drugs, using drugs, importing drugs. And the laws are good because we know what happens to people in societies and neighborhoods which become consumed by them. And so if people are violating the law by doing drugs, they ought to be accused and they ought to be convicted and they ought to be sent up." ~Rush Limbaugh <b>Beware of those who wish to force their 'morality' upon others. Their closets always have the most skeletons.</b>
Amen. If there is anything that makes my blood boil...it's a bully. Close behind, are self-righteous demagogues. (right or left) The American experiment is about freedom. And our greatest strength is our pluralism. (re: Hamilton, Federalist papers). Think about it form an evolutionary standpoint. Do you want a small "gene pool" (literally and figuratively)? Or are we stronger by maximizing the worldviews that get poured into the "melting pot" that is America? saxon
That's funny because in the final episode I thought that Frodo and that other hobbit guy (Sean Astin) were going to makeout. They were always touching each other and crying like two bitches. Maybe I was still scarred from that 3 hour train wreck called "Alexander".
And that is exactly why Hollywood movies do not generally explore themes of male companionship. American audiences just do not like it. Even for California liberals like me, it doesn't feel right. Europeans and Middle Easterners have much less deeply ingrained homophobia, even in socially conservative countries like Saudi Arabia. Another interesting example is Top Gun. That movie is full of homoerotic imagery. Maverick & Goose have a close and emotional relationship. But they're flying jet planes and picking up chicks together so it doesn't alienate Middle America. Martin