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Magic Mike and the Gay Panic

 

Magic-Mike-Movie-PosterLong story short, my dad is a Gilmore Girls fan.  I was a huge fan of the show, and I somehow talked him into watching it.  And, once he gave it a whirl, he loved it.  Now, he’s a big fan of Bunheads, the new show from the Gilmore Brain Trust.  I was talking to him the other day, and he mentioned that there probably weren’t many men his age (he’s 71) who would watch a show about the goings on at a small town dance studio.

He’s probably right.  But, I would argue that any story that is compellingly told should be enjoyable to anybody, regardless of their age, race, sexual orientation, or any other demographic grouping.

A good story is a good story, but often we allow certain divisions to work as a filter to what stories we’re willing to see or hear.  In other words, men shouldn’t dismiss outright a well-told story about characters who are primarily women.  White audiences shouldn’t avoid seeing a great film made by African American, Latino, or Asian filmmakers.

A 71-year-old man should be able to enjoy the funny rat-a-tat banter of Gilmore Girls as much as a smart, 17-year-old young lady would.

It’s with this in mind that I am amused at the way straight male audience are running, fleeing, and hiding from Magic Mike, as if it were radioactive waste.  I’ve brought up seeing it to any number of straight guys, and they react as if I recommended them watch something truly horrifying.

First of all, I think it’s important to note that Magic Mike is a really good movie, directed by an Oscar winning filmmaker who’s done tremendous work over the past 20 years. (Hell, he shot second unit work on The Hunger Games.)  It’s smart, funny, well shot, and really well acted.  Don’t be at all surprised if Matthew McConaughy is nominated for an Oscar for his work in here.  He is really fantastic in a role that reminded me a lot of the Frank TJ Mackey role Tom Cruise knocked out of the park in Magnolia.  There’s a scene toward the end of the movie where McConaughy’s character (who is a kind of sleazy owner of a Tampa Bay strip club) gets on stage and struts his stuff.  The film has really built to showing us how this guy could work a crowd of women and McConaughy just erupts.  Yes, he’s stripping but the energy of it is so great and he looks like he’s having so much fun that it makes for a truly spectacular and exciting sequence.  

Whether you’re male or female or gay or straight, the McConaughy stripping scene is worth the price of admission alone.  It’s bravura filmmaking.

But, mention the subject matter to straight guys and they freak out.  The movie is about strippers, but more specifically (and importantly) it’s about male strippers.  And, as Robert Frost said, “. . . that has made all the difference.”

But, why should it?  Why would seeing a man in a thong be such a traumatic event for an allegedly red-blooded dude?  Are guys that insecure about their own bodies?  Nobody seems to mind seeing jacked-up superheroes in tights that show off their preposterous physiques.  Or, are they just that insecure about their own masculinity?  Are they worried that seeing Magic Mike might be arousing to them?  I think the biggest reason is the last one.  These guys love to see Channing Tatum in something like G.I. Joe or 21 Jump Street (which I loathed), but they’re terrified of seeing his a–.  It’s 2012.  Shouldn’t we have evolved way past that by now?

I was talking to a guy at my job this week, and we were talking about movies.  I told him that I thought Magic Mike was really good.

“My girl wants to see that,” he said.

“It’s a pretty great movie, you should take her to see it,” I replied.

He looked genuinely offended, like I’d said something disparaging about his mother.  And, he seemed to not realize that taking his girl to see it might put her in the mood for a little whoopee.

“Why would I ever go see something like that?” he asked.

“It’s a good movie,” was the only thing I could think to say.  Should there be any other reason?

 

 

 

Chris Spicer, Fanbase Press Contributor

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