We Sing, We Dance, We Reveal Things

Posted on October 10, 2010 by queerlefty

Sometimes, watching a new episode of Glee reminds me of watching The O.C. It’s not because these two shows had anything else in common besides the high school setting, but because both shows, while sharp and well-written at their best, always keep their viewers aware that the episode you’re watching could take a fatal turn at every moment. What Glee and The O.C. doesn’t share in terms of style and sensitivity, they share in unevenness and in their ability to make me love them despite being fairly disinterested in the trials and tribulations facing their central couples. I guess their imperfections made me a more loyal fan in both respects. Would Seth Cohen have been as much of a hero to me if I hadn’t been so thoroughly bored by the Marissa/Ryan drama? Has Kurt, Sue and other Glee characters that work come into sharper relief because neither the Will/Emma relationship nor the ups and downs of Finn/Rachel are particularly interesting? I think so. Sharing a less-than-excellent experience may do more to forge a bond of loyality than a flawless episode could. Continue reading →

Posted in Disability, gay, Labels, TV | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

How To Make A Great Book Into A Great Film

Posted on October 2, 2010 by queerlefty

The art of adapting a book into a film has always fascinated me. In most cases, it’s a lose-lose situation. Literature and film are different art forms with different strengths, and any attempt to simply film the text will inevitably end up diminishing them both. When adapting a text cherished by many, you nevertheless have myriad crossing expectations to live up to. You are supposed to make a movie that can be understood and enjoyed by people who have not read the original text, while at the same times being true to its spirit, and to the sentimental memories readers attach to it. Finally, you have to make yourself independent enough from the structure inherent in the original text to write a script that is actually filmable. It’s a monumental challenge. Continue reading →

Posted in Books, film, gay, homosexuality | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

What It Means To Be A Movie Hustler

Posted on September 26, 2010 by queerlefty

NOTE: A slightly different version of this essay appears in Ganymede Unfinished, out now from Sibling Rivalry Press.

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Rewatching Gus van Sant’s magnificently playful and daring My Own Private Idaho (1991)  always is a striking experience. How great isn’t it to see River Phoenix again, the talented dreamboat whose untimely death from an overdose in 1993 left a hole it took the emergence of Leonardo DiCaprio to even begin to fill? And it’s always refreshing to watch a Keanu Reeves movie without feeling the instant need to jump out the window as soon as he starts talking, Few movies have made his limitations into strenghts like Idaho did. Still, the movie is interesting even in a broader sense. It reminds me of why I find the subject of the gay hustler so interesting. Continue reading →

Posted in film, gay | 2 Comments

On Boybands, Jay Brannan and Escaping Gay-By-Association

Posted on September 20, 2010 by queerlefty

NOTE: This essay first appeared in Ganymede Unfinished, available now from Sibling Rivalry Press. An earlier version appeared on this blog in May 2009.

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When I sat down to try to write about the music of singer/songwriter Jay Brannan, I soon realized that it would be harder than I thought. It wasn’t that I was unsure about what I actually thought of it, or that his music is too complicated to be discussed in writing. Rather, I found that it was so new to me to listen to someone who writes and sings from a distinctly gay point of view that I wasn’t sure I would be able to frame it correctly. It could of course be that I’ve simply been listening to the wrong music, or that I don’t know where to look. But to the extent that the cultural mainstream has had any place for gay-themed pop music, (apart from Rufus Wainwright) the general vocabulary of pop talk nonetheless felt poorly suited for discussing somebody like Jay Brannan. Continue reading →

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Three Months On, ‘Shout It Out’ Holds Up

Posted on September 9, 2010 by queerlefty

I’m coming home to Hanson. I know, it sounds weird for someone as enthusiastic about the Tulsa Three as I am, and as a Fanson it pained me to say it. But after the rush that accompanied the release of Shout It Out in June, I actually needed to take a break from them. I stand by every word of praise I gave the album a couple months ago, but having first spends weeks and months looking forward to it, and then several weeks listening to it non-stop, I had to take a step back. and throw my self into something else. In that sense, it reminded me of when I saw Bruce Springsteen live in Bergen last year. Then too, I had dedicated so much time to looking forward to it and listening to him endlessly, that when it was over, I couldn’t pick up where I left for a while. Continue reading →

Posted in Hanson | 1 Comment

The Fine Art of Self-Promotion

Posted on August 18, 2010 by queerlefty

Now for a first on this blog; a bit of self-promotion. I am featured in Ganymede Unfinished, a tribute to the late Ganymede editor and renaissance man John Stahle, out now on Sibling Rivalry Press. Stahle published seven issues of the gay journal over the course of two years, and the tribute issue, honoring Stahle’s memory by collecting a wide range of gay expressions from photography to essays, fiction to reviews and interviews, is edited by my friend Bryan Borland.

You can purchase Ganymede Unfinished here.

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Reintroducing ‘What To Read’

Posted on August 8, 2010 by queerlefty

I’ve been doing it for over a year now, but since I don’t know it anybody ever reads my (semi)weekly What to Read feature, I’ve decided to take a page out of the playbook of the magnificent Jessie Carty (whose blog you should visit several times a week). Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 7 Comments

In Case You Wondered If I’m Still Gay…

Posted on August 7, 2010 by queerlefty

There are few things in my life that has made me really proud of myself, but coming out is one of them. Therefore, the annual August 7 repost of my coming out story from 2008, Two Years Ago Today Since I Came Out, is below Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

“The Gays have the momentum again!”

Posted on August 4, 2010 by queerlefty

A little over two years ago in this space, I congratulated California on their judiciary’s decision to allow gay people to marry on equal terms as heterosexuals. When that decision was eventually overturned by a referendum the following November, I was both too delirious with Obama fever and too enraged to write a follow-up post. But today, another congratulations is in order for residents of the Golden State: Judge Vaughn Walker ruled the constitutional amendment banning gay marriage – known as Proposition 8 – unconstitutional. Continue reading →

Posted in homosexuality | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

What Justin Bieber Can Tell Us About The State Of Television

Posted on July 25, 2010 by queerlefty

This is not meant as a post about me being late to the Justin Bieber party. Seriously, it’s not. But with this Canadian teenager’s place in pop culture, I feel like I have to make one thing clear from the outset: I don’t hate the Bieber. It’s not a gut-check contrarian position as much as it about decency. There’s so much hate out there for the fellow already that I wouldn’t add my voice to the chorus even if I agreed with the hatred. Let his fans have their day. At least they’re not out doing drugs, etc. Continue reading →

Posted in Entertainment | Tagged , | 7 Comments