The Beasts of Henagar
As a gay man who went to see beauty and the beast I want to share some of my sentiments.
Director of the movie, Bill Condon made a comment that there was a “Gay Moment” in the movie and suggested the charicter LeFou (Gaston’s sidekick) was the one who had it.
Now I saw the movie folks. I don't even know if I even went to see it because i love the movie as much as I went to see it over the uproar it caused. I had to see for myself what the stink was about. And before I share what I believe the “Gay Moment” was… I want to take a minute to discuss all the drama this caused.
A Theatre in Alabama….you know one of those places where their bible is shoved so far up their asses as children that the only thing that comes out of their mouths as adults is psalms…. yeah thats the place! They got wind of this comment and before they could even see the movie they banned it…. sparking a vicious debate about gay characters on television as well as prompting questions around what “a gay moment” is and what we consider censorship material.
This brings me right back to my sentiments about religion. If being gay is against your religion….don’t be gay. Thats one thing. It’s an entirely different thing for you to force your proverbs and psalms down everyone elses throat. If you don't like it….shut up and don't like it. Do you see budhists trying to shove their beliefs down your throat…NO. Jews? No. In fact…the only people I can legitimately compare Christians to these days is ISIS who’d rather cut off your head than see you precutce something other than christianity. The similarities, at least metaphporically, are staggering. Stay the goddamn out of my life. Your religion is not my law.
By the way Russia went out on an all out campaign against the movie too …one lawmaker took the time to pull his face out of his vodka long enough to tell their congress that the movie was “a blatant shameless propaganda of sin”
ahhh but on to the good stuff…..
I saw the movie….ok…with my own green pearly eyes. The character who’s been villianized even mores than gaston is named LeFou. He is a loveable guy, sexually ambiguous, slightly effeminate if you ask me…. and he is like most of the side kicks in any movie made for children. Why? because we LOVE this kind of character. He is able to be justifiably abused by the bad guy because he works for the bad guy. He is goofy, clumsy, and I guess if you go by his flourishes and wrist waves….a little “gay”. Doesn't that describes almost EVERY VILLAINS HELPER IN EVERY ANIMATED MOVIE>>>>EVER
The show stopping scene in mention is the one in which he and some bar patrons in a tavern stroke gaston’s ego by pointing out the traits that he possesses more superiorly thank every other person alove. Vein little narcissist. In the scene he dances around on a table and sings sort of flamboyantly.
Gasp…… was there a gay kiss? Nope
Groping……eeeeeh
Dry humping……..xnay
Nudity……uh uh
Same sex kiss? nada
A rainbow, a unicorn, glitter..????
NOTHING…..
So because we have a character who falls into the “stereotype” of what a gay man is in terms of dancing and singing and fun loving….. this not only constituted a GAY MOMENT but also caused a bunch of ignorant uneducated hicks with no exposure to anyhitng other than their bible classes and a couple markers to make a hate sign….. to cause an unbelievable stir over literally NOTHING…..
What about the villain in Minions…..slightly gay, that dope in ice age, gay, and all the other movies that have characters with questionable sexual identities…..
I walked away from this movie Happy that disney is making an attempt…albeit flimsy..
I walked away wondering if this is really what our society is reduced to…
I walked away angry at all the people who throw their religion around as if it is supreme law…. maybe it is for them… and I am supposed to respect that….somehow I cannot because they cant seem to respect me.
We need to start a revolution. Religion is great but those who seek to push it on others should be fined or jailed or improsioned or made example of. Moreover….what the hell kind of religions are people practicee where they think that the way to handle something they deem bad is to act even worse…. is this their loopole for being able to act just as bad if not worse than the people they are condemning. I don't know….last I checked Jesus never taught these lessons…. I have friends and family members who disagree, they feel as though they can bend and thist gods laws into anything that serves them and then in the same breath they hypocritically break the 10 commandments in abundancee…. it really needs to be studied more. It’s evolved int a mental illness.
I walked away from this movie wondering if we need to start recognizing who the real beauties and beasts are in our society. Are they being portrayed accurately?? because to me the people of the LGBTQ community, those of us who live our lives without hurting anyone…simply hoping for love and acceptance, those of us who advocate for others…..and want nothing more than to have a happy healthy prosperous life with the one we love…..we’re the real beauties. The beasts…… well… look no further than Henagar Alabama at the Henagar Drive-In a place where the mere word gay sent them into such an ignorant christian frenzy that they embarrassed themselves nationally when they realized that they brought “hate” into a movie that is all about being kind to other people…… I hope this podcast is their witch with a rose.
