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[15 Jun 2008|03:37pm] |
Steamed over Steam:
Bisexual director screws bi community
Last night I saw Steam by Kyle Schickner and was profoundly disapointed. Why would a bisexual director write a bisexual character into his film that reinforces every stereotype about bisexual people that we are trying to erase?
Although he has a film that will get lots of attention by virtue of its leading ladies, actress icons Ruby Dee and Ally Sheedy (and comedian Chelsea Handler in a supporting role), Schickner has wasted this opportunity to present a positive bi character to the world. Instead he chose to present a bi character who is sexually predatory, selfish, cheats on her girlfriend at the drop of a hat and continues cheating for a month until she finally gets caught in the act by her sweet lesbian girlfriend.
Kyle Schickner
When I talked to him after the screening, his excuse was that he had good bisexual characters in his other films.
So what?
If there was a good bisexual character to balance out Niala, the evil bisexual character in Steam, it might be OK. But there wasnt.
Even if it's true that he has written postive bi characters before (I havent seen his other films so cant verify), nobody is watching Steam on a double bill with one his old films. They are watching it by itself and seeing a lying, cheating scumbag bisexual you are urged to hate, in a film where all the good characters are straight or gay.
Niala could easily have been written as a lesbian so there would have been the good lesbian (girlfriend Elizabeth) counterpointed against the bad one, Niala. Or both Niala and Elizabeth could have been written bisexual to create a balance of good and bad bisexuals.
I am profoundly disapointed that Kyle Schickner, a bisexual writer/director with the power, the budget and the perfect opportunity to create a positive bisexual character that could have busted stereotypes, wasted that opportunity and screwed us instead.
With friends like Kyle, who needs enemies?
Feel free to express your feelings to Kyle at fencesitterfilms at aol dot com
http://www.fencesitterfilms.com/
[This is the first time that I have ever criticised a bi person on this blog, cuz I'm all about supporting the bi community. But there's a first time for everything.]
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[15 Jun 2008|06:13pm] |
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“I thought, ‘It’s time you introduce bisexuals properly into mainstream television,’ ” he said, laughing.
Times article on Russell T. Davies highlites bisexuality
Here's a couple of interesting excerpts:
In the scene Capt. Jack Harkness, a swaggering intergalactic hero who exuberantly lusts after both men and women, plants quick kisses on the mouths of both the title character and the title character’s female sidekick as they face imminent death. (Everyone survives.)
Ianto & Jack
“I thought, ‘It’s time you introduce bisexuals properly into mainstream television,’ ” he said, laughing.
Jack & Jack What better way to introduce a charming bisexual character, he asked, than to make him “an outer space buccaneer?” “The most boring drama would be” — here he put on a whiny, fractious voice — “ ‘Oh, I’m bisexual, oh my bleeding heart’ nighttime drama. Tedious, dull. But if you say it’s a bisexual space pirate swaggering in with guns and attitude and cheek and humor into prime-time family viewing: that was enormously attractive to me.”
See full article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/15/arts/television/15lyal.html?th&emc=th
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[15 Jun 2008|07:05pm] |
Torchwood Season Three: The Miniseries
According to TV Guide, the third season of Torchwood will be in the form of a five-part mini-series to run during a single week, rather than a full season. Contrary to the horrible rumors swirling around, the character of Capt. Jack Harkness will return, thank goodness. I cant imagine the series without him...he is really the heart of it.
The Torchwood mini series is slated to air in the UK on BBC1 Spring of 2009. No word on when it comes to BBC America.
So far BBC has only greenlit those 5 hours but there is a possiblity of more.
Bidar is definitely in the "more please!" camp.
TV Guide article: http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-News-Blog/Todays-News/Torchwood-Season-3/800040744
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[15 Jun 2008|07:23pm] |
Gaywashed! Article profiling bi same-sex couple omits B-word...again!
An article produced by Reuters on California same-sex couples about to marry for the third time, profiled bisexual same-sex couple Lindasusan Ulrich and Emily Drennen who were openly bi in their interview. But the word bisexual was omitted from the article and the title published was "Three's a charm? Gay California couples wed again" and begins "For many California gays and lesbians, getting married is nothing new. They've done it more than once -- to the same person."
Especially ironic is the fact that bisexual couple Lindasusan and Emily's photos were used to illustrate the gaywashed Reuters article.
No one wants to believe that bisexual people commit to same-sex partners and if we do, then we are labelled lesbian or gay, no matter how many times we repeat: 'I'm bisexual and please put that in the article."
The same exact thing happened to Robyn Ochs when she and her lesbian partner Peg Prebble got married in Massachusets and were profiled, in an article only about them, by the Washington Post. Robyn requested that she be referred to as bi in the article but presto change-o, she became a lesbian. Kind of bizarre since Robyn's name is pretty much synonymous with bisexuality.
Here's a link to the page where Lindasusan and Emily are profiled: http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN1247845520080613?pageNumber=3&virtualBrandChannel=0
You can see the full article here:
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN1247845520080613?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0
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