Yesterday I watched the fantastic, "A Kid Like Jake," written by Daniel Pearle (based on his play), directed by Silas Howard and starring Claire Danes, Jim Parsons and Octavia Spencer. I heard about the film for the first time on the GALECA FB members page and added it to the ever growing list of films to see before the end of the year. "A Kid Like Jake" is about a NY family coming to terms with their child being transgendered.
As I was watching the film I began to wonder what others had been saying about it. Why weren't more people championing it? Barely a glance led me to the answer.
The film beats around the bush when it comes to transgender identification.
The film is full of homophobic conversations.
Danes and Parsons are a "strange" couple.
Danes and Parsons can't shake their TV roles.
I found myself becoming incredibly agitated while reading review bullet points on Rotten Tomatoes. Sometime similar happened a couple of days ago when I was utterly floored by "Pose" only to see its Metacritic number was 73 with no individual scare higher than 83.
I find myself fighting against my Oscars Mission Statement. This isn't the same as going after "Hereditary" or defending "A Star is Born." This is bigger and much more important.
This goes beyond ignorance. I know what a "strange couple" means. Every queer person knows what that means. Parsons is an out gay actor, playing straight. And this is "strange."
Watching the parents struggle is messy, and both of them say things untoward as they try to navigate what is going on with Jake. Human beings are complicated. Why can't a NY liberal say something homophobic and not be homophobic. Guess what...they can.
Of course someone facing the idea of their 4 year old being transgendered might react negatively. I have heard many, many liberal parents say that they were clearly on the socially left spectrum of things...that is until they had to face it in their own lives.
We live in a world where anyone can post anything. I'm so grateful that google created Blogger because it certainly makes my life easier when it comes to writing about movies...but with that comes a cost.
We are at a crossroads when it comes to representation. I want more queer voices writing about queer content, but also someone who understands that if we begin to compartmentalize characters as good/bad, racist/not racist, homophobic/not homophobic, we are going into very dangerous territory.
Same with casting. The real issue I see when it comes to casting is that LGBTQ actors need to be given the chance. Are we even allowed to walk in the door? I have played some incredible straight characters, one just last month, and you better believe I will fight if someone starts to tell me I can only play gay roles. That is backwards, and that is homophobia. This conversation needs nuance and I fear we are censoring that nuanced voice.
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