To HRC and GLAAD: Get off the cocktail party circuit and get out in the real word and talk to real people so they can achieve real results.

Mike
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObj.....8;s=143441

And uh… ‘the trailer just wasn’t funny?’ Wow.

But, this movie is LARGE. Many, many people will, at least, see those horrible ads with Sasha Baron Cohen looking like the biggest annoying faggot in the universe and will be really irritated by him (and by extension, us).

I’m irritated by him, and I’m gay. I can easily imagine those people in your town thinking that you are the exception, not the rule, and not really understanding that SBC is playing stereotypes to bust them (or so he seems to be claiming). I think that his message, if it even exists, will go over the heads of a lot of people.

I hope that I’m wrong, really, I do. And, I know it’s not really fair of me to make generalizations about all small towns based on my experiences of a small Pennsylvania town. All small towns aren’t necessarily always filled with bigoted, backwards rednecks–but the town I came from was totally filled with them. Though, based on voting patterns, it does seem that a lot of the small towns in the center of the US are quite religiously conservative and, consequently, homophobic. So I think that there is some evidence on my side.

The town I was born in was a former coal-mining town with no more coal mines and no more jobs for people, and I think that did definitely brought out the worst in them. It’s part of what they call the Pennsylvania Rust Belt–sort of middle and central–kind of between Pittsburgh and Philly. Very conservative, but a little left-leaning because of Union issues.

During the Obama campaign, PA governor Ed Rendell and Central PA representative John Murtha both made public comments to reporters like, “the people of western Pennsylvania are what you might call rednecks,” and “a lot of people here may have issues in voting for a black candidate.”

Though, in fairness, PA did vote for Obama–and so did Ohio, if I’m remembering correctly. Maybe it just takes a long time for things to change. I do try to remind myself that there probably have been more positive changes in my lifetime than I realize, but I just hate seeing SBC using us for his own gain by inflaming stereotypes.

Maybe your life as a gay man has been relatively free of homophobia and hostility, but mine has not. I don’t think it is a helpful thing for Sasha Baron Cohen to make it okay for straights to feel okay in laughing at us. That WRONG! I guess if that makes me humorless in your book, then so be it. I don’t like being the butt of someone’s joke. I don’t think that any of us deserve that.

With the PROP 8 crap that happened in California, with all of the homophobia that still exists, I fear that this film will only incite hostility. I read recently that hate crimes have been rising since Obama’s election. There was that guard who was shot at the Holocaust museum recently by some old crazy bigot. Do we really need “Bruno” adding fuel to some other insane person’s fire?

It’s easy to make money off of other groups when your tribe isn’t the one being mocked. So, come on, SBC, let’s see your idea for a Hiram movie. [cue crickets]

omg lmao thank you for not so common sense!

“Based upon reactions and repercussions to Sascha Cohen’s previous movies, that you can expect an increase in verbal harassment, stereotypical impersonations and loss of community self worth.”

So I think my statement is very true my world won’t be as safe for me walk in.

I meant kenny G. You don’t get it.

Really? Did you see drag me to hell? Did you observe other people in the theater? I did, and it wasn’t your age…and people your age probably aren’t going to be the main consumers for bruno.

SFNative: You do bring a good point of a situation that is very sad. Gay kids are bullied in our schools and that is not right in any means. Bullying occurs in our schools to gay kids as much as it occurs directed to geeks, nerds, skinny boys, ugly girls, latino kids, etc, etc. I know this as in school I was a gay, latino, geek, skinny boy. Having said that, is not right to bully ANYONE.

Sasha Baron’s satire exposes the prejudices of certain groups and put them in ridicule. In fact, Mr. Baron has higher education in civil rights and even though is to early to judge the movie itself (since non of us have seen it), I doubt that anyone coming out of the theater after seeing the movie will want to look as stupid, judgemental and retarded as the people Cohen will challenge with this character.

As a community, we need to be ultra-aware of a trend I’ve noticed in the liberal entertainment media and, indeed, in people like Barack Obama. With the one hand, they’re buying our love. With the other, they’re selling us down the river.

Be ultra-aware of this is all I can say.

As for HRC and GLAAD, what irks me about them is how selective they are in their criticism of homophobia. They seem to avoid criticizing organizations which they consider gay-friendly, such as MTV, even when those organizations clearly present distorted, unbalanced and exploitative images of same-sex sexuality.

Case in point: MTV’s bisexual dating show called A Shot At Love. When it came out, the show’s protagonist Tila Tequila or MTV put out some statement about how this was supposedly a good show for bisexuals and would increase understanding of same-sex sexuality in the context of bisexuality. Yet the images presented were straight out of a sleazy straight men’s rag. The bisexual women were there for the purpose of propping up the sleazy straight guy fetish for girl-girl action.

And let’s not forget that, despite having three such series made, MTV consistently failed to depict male bisexuality. Thus, male-male sexuality was effectively censored. Where was GLAAD and HRC on this? Nowhere to be seen as far as I can remember.

Dave, do you care about our LGBT children who are taunted by anti-gay bullying in our schools, consider suicide, and even take their lives? They are GONE.

You continue to live their life.

And they are GONE.

GONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You know what this movie is going to do? Probably fuel some of those jerk kids who were taught to hate gay people to continue to anti-gay bully our younger LGBT brothers and sisters.

Please, do me a favor and continue to enjoy your life, while your own kind continues to suffer at our schools.

I would love to see your heart. I sincerely hope you still have one.

JV – Wake up!!

kids have killed themselves from anti-gay bullying in their schools. I’d love to understand from you if those kids matter to you, as such bullies would be fueled by this movie.

I will not appreciate this movie to play without any preface and further fuel horrible kids to continue to taunt and bully our young LGBT children and force them to consider committing suicide.

Wake up!!

Well I haven’t even seen the movie yet. Have you? Part of my point is that I will see it before passing judgment on it.

And I am aware that art (especially comedy and satire) can be taken the wrong way sometimes. Kubrick having to withdraw “A Clockwork Orange” from circulation in Britain is a good example. Or Michael Powell’s career being ruined by “Peeping Tom”.
Or “Le Sacre du Printemps”, “Carmen”, Bob Dylan going electric or Andy Kaufman.

But you can’t judge art based only on the audience reaction. In a good percentage of cases it is the public which is out of step.

The producers/writers/directors knew that America would buy a “gay movie” if the audience was given permission to laugh at them – “Hey, it’s JUST a movie.”

To me it looks like, while the results may be the same, the intent of Cohen is different. “Birdcage” was used to exploit, “Bruno” lookes to expose.

b) There is nothing wrong with Drag Me to Hell, but it’s not the same audience as Bruno. One of the hardest lessons I learned in the last few years is to know the audience for whom I am writing. I would never give one of my sci fi scripts to my friend who likes gay camp. I would never judge Bruno by the audience that goes to see Drag Me To Hell.

You’re like soft rock, phil collins and five for fighting combined. The suck. And no, those examples just don’t match up. Is shylock a bruno? LOL! This just underscores the fact that you have no capacity for serious criticism.

This movie is pushing no boundaries…are you people retarded? This is fag jokes…and yeah, and some jokes about fag bashers, too. That’s not pushing any boundaries, either…

Have some fun and realize that not everything has to be life or death.

But the norm is homophobia, quicksilver. Get it? It is making fun of gay people because they’re gay. That’s still quite the norm. Aggressive hatred of gay people is slowly becoming not as acceptable…but it’s far from unacceptable.