Tyler Perry gets much hell from some folks because his movies seem too formulaic.
But when one considers what USED to pass for the urban African-American movie, one gets a great appreciation for what Perry is doing.
I will never forget the one summer in which I saw several urban African-American movies. I don't remember the year, but I remember that they were all awful.
Pitiful.
Pathetic.
And the worse was how the lgbtq community were portrayed in these movies. It was embarrassing enough how African-Americans in general were portrayed, but the makers of a few of these pictures seemed to go out of their way to portray lgbtqs of color as freaks.
Take for example the motion picture, Woo.
Woo starred Jada Pinkett (before she married Will Smith, got more successful and obviously gained more sense) as a woman looking for romance. That's the plot. The movie didn't make a lick of sense. And the following scene which disrespects the transgender community was enough alone for Woo to be a bomb - which I am glad to say that it was. In spite of its title, this is NOT a funny scene:
And then there was Sprung, which was extremely disappointing because it was actually hilarious in some scenes and starred several of my favorite actors and actresses (who REALLY should have known better). The scene here is of bad quality and it shows how one of the characters gets revenge on another by making him humiliate himself in a police line-up by stripping half naked and saying some sexually suggestive comments.
It's not funny and what makes the scene even worse is the fact that the makers of Sprung just HAD to add a flamboyant gay man (in panties no less) to the scene.
Seeing stuff like this makes you want to fight somebody. It starts at 2:25 and if you to see a better quality of the scene, go here:
Just a reminder to folks. We won a huge victory last week, but we still have a HELL of a way to go.
I'm still trying to find out where the hell was GLAAD when all of this stuff went down.
Past Know Your LGBT History Posts:
Know Your LGBT History - Charles Pierce
Know Your LGBT History - Torch Song Trilogy
The Best of Know Your LGBT History
Know Your LGBT History - Masters of Horror - Sick Girl
Know Your LGBT History - MadTV
Know Your LGBT History - Gimme A Break
Know Your LGBT History - Not Another Gay Movie
Know Your LGBT History - My Beautiful Laundrette
Know Your LGBT History - The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Know Your LGBT History - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
Know Your LGBT History - The Gay Deceivers
Know Your LGBT History - Reflections in a Golden Eye
Know Your LGBT History - Dynasty
Know Your LGBT History - Milk
Know Your LGBT History - Black Shampoo
Know Your LGBT History - Never Too Young To Die
Know Your LGBT History - All About Eve
Know Your LGBT History - Hotel
Know Your LGBT History - The Streets of San Francisco
Know Your LGBT History - Two looks at transgender characters in films
Know Your LGBT History - Flawless
Know Your LGBT History - Mahogany
Know Your LGBT History - Beverly Hills Cop
Know Your LGBT History - Some Like It Hot
Know Your LGBT History - Bring Me The Head of Alfredo Garcia
Know Your LGBT History - Dirty Laundry
Know Your LGBT History - The Willie Witch Project
Know Your LGBT History - Spartacus
Know Your LGBT History - Caged
Know Your LGBT History - The Birdcage
Know Your LGBT History - Maude
Know Your LGBT History - That Certain Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Boat Trip
Know Your LGBT History - Staircase
Know Your LGBT History - Beautiful Thing
Know Your LGBT History - Armed and Dangerous
Know Your LGBT History - The Proud Family
Know Your LGBT History - Suddenly Last Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Gay TV Now
Know Your LGBT History - Stewardess School
Know Your LGBT History - Up the Academy
Know Your LGBT History - Don't be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
Know Your LGBT History - A Different Story
Know Your LGBT History - Victim
Know Your LGBT History - The Color Purple
Know Your LGBT History - Making Love
Know Your LGBT History - A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge
Know Your LGBT History - Noah's Arc
Know Your LGBT History - Ode to Billy Joe
Know Your LGBT History - Adorable Adrian Adonis
Know Your LGBT History - The Night Strangler
Know Your LGBT History - All in the Family
Know Your LGBT History - Tongues Untied
Know Your LGBT History - The Celluloid Closet
Know Your LGBT History - Querelle
Know Your LGBT History - Theatre of Blood
Know Your LGBT History - Strange Fruit
Know Your LGBT History - Designing Women
Know Your LGBT History - The Children's Hour
Know Your LGBT History - Sylvester
Know Your LGBT History - Once Bitten
Know Your LGBT History - The Boys in the Band
Know Your LGBT History - Christopher Morley, the crossdressing assassin
Know Your LGBT History - Midnight Cowboy
Know Your LGBT History - Dracula's Daughter
Know Your LGBT History - Blacula
Know Your LGBT History - 3 Strikes
Know Your LGBT History - Paris Is Burning
Know Your LGBT History - The Women
Know your LGBT History - Soul Plane
Know Your LGBT History - The Player's Club
Special Know Your LGBT History - Fame
Know Your LGBT History - Welcome Home, Bobby
Know Your LGBT History - Barney Miller
Know your lgbt history - The Jerry Springer Show
Know your lgbt history - Martin Lawrence and that 'gay guy' on his show
Know your lgbt history - The Ricki Lake Show
Know your lgbt history - Which Way Is Up
Know your lgbt history - Gays in Primetime Soaps
Know your lgbt history - Boys Beware
Know your lgbt history - The Boondocks
Know your lgbt history - Mannequin
Know your lgbt history - The Warriors
Know Your LGBT History - New York Undercover
Know Your LGBT History - Low Down Dirty Shame
Know Your LGBT History - Fortune and Men's Eyes
Know your lgbt history - California Suite
Know your lgbt history - Taxi (Elaine's Strange Triangle)
Know your lgbt history - Come Back Charleston Blue
Know your lgbt history - James Bond goes gay
Know your lgbt history - Windows
Know your lgbt history - To Wong Foo and Priscilla
Know your lgbt history - Blazing Saddles
Know your lgbt history - Sanford and Son
Know your lgbt history - In Living Color
Know your lgbt history - Cleopatra Jones and her lesbian drug lords
Know your lgbt history - Norman, Is That You?
Know your lgbt history - The 'Exotic' Adrian Street
Know your lgbt history - The Choirboys
Know your lgbt history - Eddie Murphy
Know your lgbt history - The Killing of Sister George
Know your lgbt history - Hanna-Barbera cartoons pushes the 'gay agenda
'Know your lgbt history - Cruising
Know your lgbt history - Foxy Brown and Cleopatra Jones
Know your lgbt history - I Got Da Hook Up
Know your lgbt history - Fright Night
Know your lgbt history - Flowers of Evil
The Jeffersons and the transgender community
But when one considers what USED to pass for the urban African-American movie, one gets a great appreciation for what Perry is doing.
I will never forget the one summer in which I saw several urban African-American movies. I don't remember the year, but I remember that they were all awful.
Pitiful.
Pathetic.
And the worse was how the lgbtq community were portrayed in these movies. It was embarrassing enough how African-Americans in general were portrayed, but the makers of a few of these pictures seemed to go out of their way to portray lgbtqs of color as freaks.
Take for example the motion picture, Woo.
Woo starred Jada Pinkett (before she married Will Smith, got more successful and obviously gained more sense) as a woman looking for romance. That's the plot. The movie didn't make a lick of sense. And the following scene which disrespects the transgender community was enough alone for Woo to be a bomb - which I am glad to say that it was. In spite of its title, this is NOT a funny scene:
And then there was Sprung, which was extremely disappointing because it was actually hilarious in some scenes and starred several of my favorite actors and actresses (who REALLY should have known better). The scene here is of bad quality and it shows how one of the characters gets revenge on another by making him humiliate himself in a police line-up by stripping half naked and saying some sexually suggestive comments.
It's not funny and what makes the scene even worse is the fact that the makers of Sprung just HAD to add a flamboyant gay man (in panties no less) to the scene.
Seeing stuff like this makes you want to fight somebody. It starts at 2:25 and if you to see a better quality of the scene, go here:
Just a reminder to folks. We won a huge victory last week, but we still have a HELL of a way to go.
I'm still trying to find out where the hell was GLAAD when all of this stuff went down.
Past Know Your LGBT History Posts:
Know Your LGBT History - Charles Pierce
Know Your LGBT History - Torch Song Trilogy
The Best of Know Your LGBT History
Know Your LGBT History - Masters of Horror - Sick Girl
Know Your LGBT History - MadTV
Know Your LGBT History - Gimme A Break
Know Your LGBT History - Not Another Gay Movie
Know Your LGBT History - My Beautiful Laundrette
Know Your LGBT History - The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Know Your LGBT History - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
Know Your LGBT History - The Gay Deceivers
Know Your LGBT History - Reflections in a Golden Eye
Know Your LGBT History - Dynasty
Know Your LGBT History - Milk
Know Your LGBT History - Black Shampoo
Know Your LGBT History - Never Too Young To Die
Know Your LGBT History - All About Eve
Know Your LGBT History - Hotel
Know Your LGBT History - The Streets of San Francisco
Know Your LGBT History - Two looks at transgender characters in films
Know Your LGBT History - Flawless
Know Your LGBT History - Mahogany
Know Your LGBT History - Beverly Hills Cop
Know Your LGBT History - Some Like It Hot
Know Your LGBT History - Bring Me The Head of Alfredo Garcia
Know Your LGBT History - Dirty Laundry
Know Your LGBT History - The Willie Witch Project
Know Your LGBT History - Spartacus
Know Your LGBT History - Caged
Know Your LGBT History - The Birdcage
Know Your LGBT History - Maude
Know Your LGBT History - That Certain Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Boat Trip
Know Your LGBT History - Staircase
Know Your LGBT History - Beautiful Thing
Know Your LGBT History - Armed and Dangerous
Know Your LGBT History - The Proud Family
Know Your LGBT History - Suddenly Last Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Gay TV Now
Know Your LGBT History - Stewardess School
Know Your LGBT History - Up the Academy
Know Your LGBT History - Don't be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
Know Your LGBT History - A Different Story
Know Your LGBT History - Victim
Know Your LGBT History - The Color Purple
Know Your LGBT History - Making Love
Know Your LGBT History - A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge
Know Your LGBT History - Noah's Arc
Know Your LGBT History - Ode to Billy Joe
Know Your LGBT History - Adorable Adrian Adonis
Know Your LGBT History - The Night Strangler
Know Your LGBT History - All in the Family
Know Your LGBT History - Tongues Untied
Know Your LGBT History - The Celluloid Closet
Know Your LGBT History - Querelle
Know Your LGBT History - Theatre of Blood
Know Your LGBT History - Strange Fruit
Know Your LGBT History - Designing Women
Know Your LGBT History - The Children's Hour
Know Your LGBT History - Sylvester
Know Your LGBT History - Once Bitten
Know Your LGBT History - The Boys in the Band
Know Your LGBT History - Christopher Morley, the crossdressing assassin
Know Your LGBT History - Midnight Cowboy
Know Your LGBT History - Dracula's Daughter
Know Your LGBT History - Blacula
Know Your LGBT History - 3 Strikes
Know Your LGBT History - Paris Is Burning
Know Your LGBT History - The Women
Know your LGBT History - Soul Plane
Know Your LGBT History - The Player's Club
Special Know Your LGBT History - Fame
Know Your LGBT History - Welcome Home, Bobby
Know Your LGBT History - Barney Miller
Know your lgbt history - The Jerry Springer Show
Know your lgbt history - Martin Lawrence and that 'gay guy' on his show
Know your lgbt history - The Ricki Lake Show
Know your lgbt history - Which Way Is Up
Know your lgbt history - Gays in Primetime Soaps
Know your lgbt history - Boys Beware
Know your lgbt history - The Boondocks
Know your lgbt history - Mannequin
Know your lgbt history - The Warriors
Know Your LGBT History - New York Undercover
Know Your LGBT History - Low Down Dirty Shame
Know Your LGBT History - Fortune and Men's Eyes
Know your lgbt history - California Suite
Know your lgbt history - Taxi (Elaine's Strange Triangle)
Know your lgbt history - Come Back Charleston Blue
Know your lgbt history - James Bond goes gay
Know your lgbt history - Windows
Know your lgbt history - To Wong Foo and Priscilla
Know your lgbt history - Blazing Saddles
Know your lgbt history - Sanford and Son
Know your lgbt history - In Living Color
Know your lgbt history - Cleopatra Jones and her lesbian drug lords
Know your lgbt history - Norman, Is That You?
Know your lgbt history - The 'Exotic' Adrian Street
Know your lgbt history - The Choirboys
Know your lgbt history - Eddie Murphy
Know your lgbt history - The Killing of Sister George
Know your lgbt history - Hanna-Barbera cartoons pushes the 'gay agenda
'Know your lgbt history - Cruising
Know your lgbt history - Foxy Brown and Cleopatra Jones
Know your lgbt history - I Got Da Hook Up
Know your lgbt history - Fright Night
Know your lgbt history - Flowers of Evil
The Jeffersons and the transgender community
Do you know the film Dirty Laundry? It only starts urban, when a kid shows up at the Manhattan apartment of a successful magazine writer and announces that the writer is his father. They then go south to sort out what's going on, and it becomes a family story. Then the writer's boyfriend shows up to find out what's really going on. I enjoyed the film. I'm not familiar with any of the actors, but the DVD jacket blurb assumes that some are well-known.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of urban African American films, one I would love to see you cover in this series is Car Wash.
ReplyDeleteIt may be rose-tinted memory, but I remember the Antonio Fargas character in that film being one of the very first positive gay images I ever saw. Certainly stereotyped, but it really struck me when I saw it as a kid t see a self assured queer character, and that the only homophobia I remember comes from the "bad guy" of the film.