Queerty sometimes envisions itself in a nice cardigan knit sweater chatting up queer theory with a bunch of doe-eyed college freshman, which, we wholeheartedly admit quickly leads to terrible pornographic thoughts, which is why we’re so excited or the upcoming adaptation of Michael Chabon’s Mysteries of Pittsburgh. For those of you who have sworn off books, Michale Chabon is the sorta straight, but loves to write about gay topics and bisexuality even though he’s married author who penned The Wonder Boys (the movie adaption featured Tobey Maguire and Robert Downey Jr. sleeping together) and who writes all of Details‘ gay culture stories. Mysteries of Pittsburgh is about a young artsy dude (read: Michael Chabon) who falls for a straight rich couple during one crayyyzy summer. Watch the trailer after the jump.
First Look: Mysteries of Pittsburgh
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Tallskin
Hmm, might be interesting.
Over here, we really do have to put pressure on the BBC and Channel 4 to make more gay orientated dramas. Forget british film, it’s invariably totally, 100% straight, these days!
blake
I read that the film got so-so reviews when it premiered at Sundance and that it has severely watered down the gay content.
Tallskin,
The UK has far more gay characters on its TV shows than you’ll find on American TV. Most American-made films with gay content are usually insipid trash, like “Another Gay Movie.”
Sebbe
Seems like it could be good. Michael Chabon’s work is usually well written.
If queerty is interested in dressing in a “nice cardigan knit sweater chatting up queer theory with a bunch of doe-eyed college freshman”, than you might want to consider moving back East Japhy. LOL
Jeffrey Bryan
Jon Foster, who are you and will you marry me?
Thomas
This film was made almost two years ago. It was critically panned at film festivals. The fact that it is only now being released says it all. The book, however, is fantastic. I highly recommend it.
Ben
I think it was Chabon himself who wrote Wonder Boys, not his wife (though she is also a writer). His “The Yiddish Policemen’s Union” is fantastic. His wife, Ayelet Waldman, writes mysteries, among other work.
rsquared
I agree with poster No. 5; the book is excellent. Skip the flick and read it.
Tylertime
looked good until i saw Peter Scarsgaard in the trailer playing the same role he always plays.
hardmannyc
Didn’t Phillip Roth do this 50 years ago with Goodbye Columbus?
Stop! Or My Daddy Will Shoot!
Why oh why have they not yet made the film of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay? Is Weinstein still sitting on it? It doubtless the most cinematic of Chabon’s novels.
jimhalloran
They completely straight-washed the moving and got rid of one of the main (also gay) characters, Arthur. Boo to the film- pick up a book.
Mike
The only thing left from the book is the title. I read it when it first came out and it is still one of my favorite books of all time. The last paragraph is one of the best ever written in English.
Landon Bryce
It is a wonderful book, and I am sad that I have no interest in seeing the movie because _the_ gay character, Arthur LeComte, has been removed and some elements of his character passed on to Cleveland, the straight guy who the protagonist Art has a crush on. The thing is, Arthur and the relationship between Art and he are original and interesting. Cleveland is a major flaw, because he is a rip-off of Jay Gatsby and the writing about him is less real, less deeply felt than anything else in the book.
Regardless of the de-gaying, I have read nothing about the film that indicates that anyone involved with it understood the book’s merits.
Frank Anthony Polito
As the moderator of the Official MOP Film Boycott, I’ve been warning folks against wasting their time and $$ on seeing this so-called film adaptation since reading the screenplay in October 2006.
Actually, it’s not a bad script, but other than the title and a few of the same character names, this film does NOT tell the story of Art Becstein as penned by Michael Chabon.
With regards to making Cleveland bisexual, writer/director Rawson Marshall Thurber has defended his choice by stating that, in the book, Art is attracted to Cleveland. Yes, he IS, but if you read p. 204 of the paperback, Chabon writes (of the Art/Cleveland relationship) “There was no shadow of sex to mar or deepen it… We were friends.”
Is it just me or has Thurber completley missed the mark? He claims he’s a longtime fan of the novel, but would any fan erase Arthur Lecomte from the story? The bigger question is: why did Michael Chabon allow him to do this?