A homoerotic Hercules helped turn this sword-and-sandal adventure flick into camp spectacle
Welcome back to our queer film retrospective, “A Gay Old Time.” In this week’s column, we’re revisiting a campy sword-and-sandal classic with 1963’s Jason And The Argonauts.In anticipation of the release of Gladiator II next weekend, we’re looking back at a genre that has historically been filled with homoerotic imagery of strong, muscular men and themes of platonic friendship—and romance—via a groundbreaking movie that has for generations awakened a sense of adventure and wonder in moviegoers… in addition to perhaps some other type of feelings.It’s a historical fact that same-love attraction and relationships were abundant and culturally accepted in Greco-Roman times.
Although perhaps understood in a different context than how we see them now, we’re able to identify the clear admiration and affection between males at the time through their lasting art, literature, and architecture.
Surprisingly, we’ve seen this reflected in films set during this time period, too—even in films that are many decades old.Subscribe to our newsletter for your front-row seat to all things entertainment with a sprinkle of everything else queer.The “sword-and-sandal” flicks is a specific subgenre of adventure movie usually set in the era of classical Greek and Roman antiquity, and they typically deal with historical, biblical, or mythological narratives and themes.
They tend to feature warriors going on epic quests, heroic fights with the help of the Gods, or adaptations of Christian passages and stories.
