I finally caught up with "Alexander," in which director Oliver Stone makes amends, somewhat, for his virulently homophobic conspiracy-theory flick "JFK." Alexander the Great is portrayed as bisexual, but clearly he feels real intimacy is what men physically share at night in bed, while women are for making heirs.
Still, the love between men is something that's talked of, save for one kiss and a few hugs, while the one heterosexual bedroom scene is quite explicit. A cop out? Well, in the Washington, D.C. theater where I saw the film with a mixed-race audience, the mere discussion of manly love elicited derisive cat-calls. So I guess Stone and his producers know their audience and how much (or rather, how little) of same-sex physicality they're willing to watch in a big-budget epic.
At the same time, nonsexual gays keeping popping up all over the small screen. The latest: On TBS's new reality show, "The Real Gilligan's Island" (in which two teams of castaways compete "Survivor" style), one of the "professors" turned out to be openly gay. Of course, didn't the original sitcom professor always seem gay (having shown little interest in Ginger or Mary Ann)?
Just as Americans, save for the hard religious-right flank, seem
OK with domestic partnerships but not marriage, they seem OK with
gays in the media but only if they're de-sexed ("Will & Grace"
being the ultimate example). Over time, the comfort level with both
gay marriage and physical displays of affection should increase,
but it won't happen soon.
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