Do These Films And Television Shows Give Gay Men A Bad Name?

Reddit has been hosting a semi-squabblefest which finds the community bickering ad infinitum about what films and television shows are markedly bad for the gays.

It begins, as such semi-squabblefests often do, with a seemingly benign question presented by a certain ShawnSparkles: “Any shows or movies that you feel give gay men a ‘bad name?’”

Unsurprisingly, the answer is yes.

“Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson do a great job playing Cam and Mitchell on Modern Family,” says libitum, “but the gay stereotyping is always an underlying irritation for me. It’s not that there aren’t gay men like that (there are) but why does a TV gay couple have to be like this. It’s visibility v. cringe, I agree.”

“Boys In The Band is annoying for most of us who weren’t of that age when it was released,” writes YorjYefferson.

“I know the movie bugs the shit out of me and makes me hate all of them pretty much, just because they’re so whiny and self-loathing, but it is also one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to put gay guys front and center, warts and all. And none of the characters had to die by the end of the film, which counted as major progress.”

“I couldn’t watch Sense8 because I felt like it was pushing an agenda too much,” says BlatantOrgasm, though doesn’t bother to expound upon what agenda that might be. “Not sure it necessarily gives gays a bad name, but felt like it just fed into the stereotypes too much. That and every other scene felt like a sex scene, both straight and gay.”

“Behind the Candelabra was horrible,” chimes in original poster ShawnSprinkles.

It felt like it was a film from the 1970s with all the gay men portrayed as either users, perverts pr sexual predators. I’m surprised GLAAD didn’t blow a gasket over this. I find it extremely homophobic. All of the gay men are one-dimensional caricatures and not one character is rootable.I did like Michael Douglas, who knew he could be so effective at playing a fierce bitch?