As first witnessed in The Celluloid Closet at the beginning of the semester, queer cinema has undergone many transformations over the years. Everything from horror to comedy films has included queer or GLBT characters. Some of these depictions have shed a positive light on the queer community while some have illustrated gay characters as evil beings, or characters worth laughing at and nothing else.
Something interesting I have been thinking about because of this class is how the queer community is divided on certain depictions of queer cinema. To some, films like The Kids are Alright and the Birdcage are positive because they illustrate that families with gay parents are "just like everybody else". On the other hand, some don't approve of the homonormative view of gay characters, and believe movies like Priscilla, Queen of the Desert do a better job of representing queer characters positively without making them be so "normal". There isn't one right answer, but regardless, I think queer cinema should always regard its characters as multifaceted characters rather than one-dimensional stereotypes.
To me, it seems in recent years (2000s), queer cinema has taken a step towards portraying queer themes in a realistic and compassionate way. Many filmmakers treat queer characters as real people with real intricacies rather than stereotypes. This is a step in a positive direction, and for this reason, my favorite film in this class has been By Hook or by Crook. This film doesn't dwell on the sexualities of its characters, and instead tells a moving story about friendship and family. I would like to see more queer films like this that have themes of compassion for others.
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