CONTINUATION OF REMARKS ABOUT "REGARDING US"
December 12, 2024
THE POINT THAT MAKES THIS SCENE EVEN MORE TROUBLING IS THAT THE VICE PRINCIPAL JUSTIFIES HER TRANSPHOBIA BY SAYING, "THIS IS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH" , WHICH MAKES IT SOUND AS IF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS RESPONSIBLE FOR HER TRANSPHOBIA. AND, ALTHOUGH WE ARE ULTIMATELY SUPPOSED TO FEEL SYMPATHY FOR CONSTANCE (ABIGAIL HAWK), SHE IS INITIALLY DEPICTED IN A NEGATIVE WAY BY MAKING A XENOPHOBIC COMMENT ABOUT SHE COULD "BARELY UNDERSTAND" WHAT THE PRIEST IN HER CHURCH WAS SAYING. SHE IS ALSO SOON SHOWN AS BEING BOTH HOMOPHOBIC & TRANSPHOBIC & HER CATHOLICISM IS DESCRIBED AS THE REASON FOR BOTH BIGOTRIES- ESPECIALLY WHEN WE HEAR HER TELLING HER EX-HUSBAND OVER THE PHONE THAT HE NEEDS TO "SLAP SOME NORMALCY" INTO THEIR POSSIBLY TRANS CHILD, KYLE (HUDSON PAUL). I REALIZE THAT SOMEONE SHOULD HAVE TAUGHT CONSTANCE THAT YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO SLAP SOMEONE JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE DIFFERENT. (I ALSO REALIZE THAT SOMEONE SHOULD HAVE TOLD CONSTANCE THAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO SAY "NORMALITY," & NOT THE UNGRAMMATICAL "NORMALCY"). HOWEVER, THE MOST DISCOMFITING SCENE CAME WHEN MR. BECK'S CHARACTER TELLS VERONICA THAT "THE POPE FUCKING SUCKS," & WHAT MADE IT EVEN MORE TROUBLING WAS THAT I HEARD A MAN IN THE AUDIENCE LAUGH WHEN HE SAID IT (WHICH WAS JUST AS BAD AS LAUGHING AT A JOKE THAT IS RACIST OR SEXIST OR ANTI-SEMITIC OR HOMOPHOBIC OR TRANSPHOBIC OR ISLAMOPHOBIC). I THOUGHT IT WAS A LITTLE IRONIC THAT THE CRITIC FROM "FISH JELLY FILMS" SAID THAT THIS FILM WAS "HEART-WARMING THROWBACK TO '90'S QUEER CINEMA" . ALTHOUGH I REALIZE THAT IT WAS MEANT AS A COMPLIMENT TO THIS FILM, THE IRONY ARISES FROM THE FACT THAT IT SEEMS MORE LIKE A THROWBACK TO A FEW FILMS & TV SHOWS FROM THE '70'S THAT WERE MEANT TO BE TRANSFRIENDLY, BUT ENDED UP MAKING DISPARAGING REMARKS & INSENSITIVE JOKES ABOUT OTHER SEXUAL MINORITIES. FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WAS A SCENE IN "THE CHRISTINE JORGENSEN STORY" IN WHICH THE PRE-OPERATIVE CHRISTINE RUNS OUT OF A MOTEL ROOM WHEN A GAY MAN PROPOSITIONS HER, & THEN TELLS A STRAIGHT FEMALE FRIEND OF HERS THAT "I'M NOT LIKE THAT," & HER FRIEND RESPONDS, "I KNEW THAT WHEN I SAW YOU RUNNING OUT OF THAT ROOM." (THAT SCENE WAS BASED ON A PASSAGE FROM MS. JORGENSEN'S AUTOBIOGRAPHY, IN WHICH SHE SAID THAT SHE VOMITED WHEN A GAY MAN PROPOSITIONED HER- WHICH DEFINITELY SEEMS LIKE AN OVERREACTION). AND< "I WANT WHAT I WANT", WHICH CONTAINED A POSITIVE DEPICTION OF A TRANSWOMAN (PLAYED BY ANNE HEYWOOD) ALSO CONTAINED A JOKE THAT WAS AT THE EXPENSE OF A BUTCH LESBIAN. NS A 1977 EPISODE OF "THE JEFFERSONS" SHOWED THE CHARACTER, GEORGE, LEARNING TO ACCEPT THE FACT THAT HIS OLD FRIEND WAS A TRANSWOMAN, BUT ALSO SHOWED HIM MAKING INSENSITIVE JOKES ABOUT GAY MEN & TRANSVESTITES. THERE WAS ALSO AN EXCELLENT EPISODE OF THE TV DRAMA, "MEDICAL CENTER" FROM THE FALL OF 1975 IN WHICH ROBERT REED PLAYED A TRANSWOMAN WHO IS GOING THROUGH HER TRANSITION & THERE WEREN'T ANY DEROGATORY REMARKS OR "JOKES" MADE AT THE EXPENSE OF OTHER SEXUAL MINORITIES MADE IN THAT EPISODE. BUT NOW IT SEEMS AS IF THE NEGATIVE VIEWS THAT WERE DEPICTED TOWARDS SEXUAL MINORITIES ARE NOW DEPICTED TOWARDS CATHOLICS. I HOPE THAT CO-DIRECTORS & CO-SCREENWRIERS DAVID BECK & JENNIFER BOBBI WILL SHOW MORE SENSITIVITY IN THEIR FUTURE FILMS. AND I REALLY DO HOPE THAT THEY WILL WORK TOGETHER AGAIN BECAUSE THEY REALLY DID DO SOME GOOD WORK IN THIS FILM- ESPECIALLY WHEN IT CAME TO GETTING GOOD PERFORMANCES FROM THEIR CAST. THIS WAS PARTICULARLY TRUE IN MS. GRAY'S TEARFUL DELIVERY IN VERONICA'S PHONE CALL TO HER FATHER (WHICH WAS O A PAR WITH THE CLASSIC TELEPHONE SCENES PERFORMED BY BARBRA STREISAND IN "THE WAY WE WERE" & LUISE RAINER IN "THE GREAT ZIEGFELD") & WITH MR. PAUL'S SORROWFUL DELIVERY OF THE LINE, "WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME?" TO CONSTANCE. I ALSO LOVED THE SCENES BETWEEN KYLE & ISABEL BECAUSE THE TWO CILD ACTORS INTERACTED SO WELL TOGETHER THAT YOU REALLY GOT A SENSE THAT THEY WERE FRIENDS IN REAL LIFE. AND I ALSO LOVED THE SCENE WHERE ISABEL COMES TO KYLE'S DEFENSE WHEN HE OR SHE IS BEING BULLIED. I ONLY WISH THAT WE HAD LEARNED MORE ABOUT HOW KYLE FELT ABOUT HIS OR HER SEXUAL & GENDER IDENTITIES BEFORE HE OR SHE MET ISABEL. AFTER ALL, ISABEL WAS THE FIRST ONE TO TELL KYLE THAT HE OR SHE IS TRANSGENDERED, BUT WE NEVER LEARN IF KYLE FELT THAT WAY BEFORE MEETING ISABEL. PERHAPS THE MOST LUCID FEELING OF GENDER IDENTITY CAME IN JAN MORRIS' EXCELLENT AUTOBIOGRAPHY, "CONUNDRUM" IN WHICH SHE REVEALED THAT SHE KNEW AS YOUNG AS FOUR OR FIVE THAT SHE SHOULD HAVE BEEN BORN A GIRL (THIS WAS BEFORE PEOPLE KNEW ABOUT DORA RICHER- THE FIRST DOCUMENTED CASE OF A TRANSWOMAN HAVING SEX-CHANGE SURGERY- OR LILI ELBE). PERHAPS MR. BECK & MS. BOBBI SHOULD HAVE DEVELOPED THAT PART OF THE FILM INSTEAD OF DEVELOPING NEGATIVE STEREOTYPES OF CATHOLICS.
