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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2002)
IL2ÛÛ2 24 on the Side n a February commentary, syndicated columnist Paula Martinac recalls her anger at browsing through her local gay and les bian lending library and finding that “right alongside Desert Hearts, Parting Glances and other classic...movies was The Boys of St. Vin Do cinem atic depictions cent—a deeply disturbing film about the sexual abuse of young boys by Catholic brothers at a o f adult/youth relationships Canadian orphanage in the 1970s.” She is right to be angry. But she should not b lu r an a lre a d y thin line? have been surprised that even queer librarians by Gary Morris unthinkingly coupled homosexuality and pedophilia in this way. The notion that all gay men are either potential or though not always, U.S. indies (L./.E., Happiness, practicing pedophiles has sur they do not equate Eban and Charley), foreign vived beyond all logic, even in h o m o se x u ality imports aimed at small arthouse queer circles, thanks to endur and pedophilia, audiences (Our Lady of the Assas ing homophobia, well-funded instead consigning sins, Ernesto, For a Lost Soldier, right-wing religious and politi the problem to Clay Farmers) or sexually frank Gale Harold cal groups (and their moun individual pathol foreign or cable television shows tain of phony scientific stud ogy or institution (The Boys of St. Vincent, Queer as Folk). The ies) and a fear of adolescent al repression or, in fact that most of these works had only a lim sexuality. a few controversial ited, or in some cases no, U.S. theatrical With movies reflecting the cases, treating it as release suggests the level of anxiety that sur popular mind-set, they should a socially dis rounds the issue and any portrayal of it. be the last place to Ltxik for fair approved but The Boys of St. Vincent (Canada, 1994) portrayals of an issue deemed potentially posi follows the twin templates of too dicey to discuss. Logically, tive force. In repu institutional repression and indi the same impulse that made diating the equa vidual pathology. Based on a 1975 that librarian put The Boys of tion of queer with scandal in Newfoundland, this St. Vincent next to Desert child molester, three-hour made-for-TV drama Hearts should be the driving these works seem shows a Catholic orphanage as a force behind films on the sub to be doing what hotbed of gross physical and sexu ject. Right? some segments of al abuse that’s permitted by an Wrong. A survey (if several society cannot. omnipotent church and a cowed movies and television shows Dylan Baker and Rufus Read in Happiness The first thing local police department. This bru from the past three decades to note is that tal and very timely work never shows a surprising complexity in portraying these most of the films on this subject were made succumbs to the expected gay relationships, with many variations. Typically, outside the Hollywcxxi mainstream, either as cliche. 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