The Problem With Some Gay Films – Are they sold too much just on sex?

Originally posted on www.biggaypictureshow.com

I’ve previously written a number of articles about gay men in films and on television, such as why it’s important that gay people are featured in the medium of both film and TV and why it is important that we have films that centre on gay people. I do believe that this is important, but as a gay man I also have a number of issues with many LGBT films.

The problem I have with many gay movies is they look just like soft-core pornography. I say this because after moseying around a branch of HMV, I came across a gay orientated film, however the synopsis and even the name of the movie have failed to stick in my mind. This is due to the fact that after looking on the back of the DVD I was greeted by a number of images of half naked men, some of which clearly depicted a sex scene, and this wasn’t an isolated incident to this one particular film.

I’ve watched and seen advertisements for a number of gay specific films that heavily feature naked men, guys wandering around in speedos or underwear, or full-on sex scenes. Now I’m not a prude or have any issue with seeing half naked men, but it does make me wonder, what happened to a good storyline? Now it’s possible these films do have okay plots, but the marketing suggests the only thing the viewer cares about is the beefcake (and quite a lot of the gay-themed movies themselves seem to think the same).

I say this because there aren’t that many films that feature primarily straight characters that are mainly sold on semi-nakedness and people having sex for no apparent reason, but it often feels that the majority of gay films seem to think titillating the viewer is necessary to get them to watch. Of course there are those films that are on late at night on some of the lesser-known movie channels that are solely about straight sex, but the less said about those the better.

Many gay films are like this, which is perhaps one of the reasons LGBT-themed films only have a very limited audience that doesn’t even encompass all gay people. They just sit on a DVD shelf in a shop and gather dust, only to suffer the fate of the bargain bin. It’s probably one of the reasons why a movie like Brokeback Mountain is such as success as – aside from having big name stars in it – it has a good plot and the sex scenes are used to push the story along.

I have a fear that until some makers of gay specific films realise that not all gay men need to see semi-naked actors parade around in tiny briefs, and would instead much prefer to see a well thought out plot and character development, that many gay films will continue to face the fate of the discount shelf. And equally, if gay movies continue to be sold purely on the sex, it undermines a lot of the good work done by filmmakers who do care about making a good film, but who then see that work ignored in favour of marketing it purely on the semi-nude men – which ensures many who would enjoy it won’t watch it, and those who do are disappointed it’s not the sex-fest the DVD cover promised.

After all, if you want to see naked men acting badly and running around in badly scripted films then, surely you can just watch porn; the sex scenes will probably be better too.

The Hypocrisy of Pornography

Originally Posted on www.huffingtonpost.co.uk

For a long time now I've been thinking about the porn debate that I constantly see in the news. Whenever the debate about the negative aspects of porn rears its ugly head the public is always told about the negative effects it can have on women, such as the way it can squash the reality of feminine beauty or portray women as objects designed for one thing. On the other hand we are also told about the negative effects it can have on straight men, such as a rewiring of the brain or contributing to psychological problems.

Anti-porn activist Gail Dines has even discussed how pornography tells a false story about men and women, which ultimately lies about what it means to be male and female.

Now everyone has their own stance on pornography and with access to the Internet and cable channels, whether we like it or not porn looks as though it is here to stay for quite some time.

The reason why it has crept back into the foreground of my mind is due to a little programme on BBC Three called Unsafe Sex in the City. The programme, which is a new take on the fly on the wall documentary series that we've all become accustomed to over the last decade or two, is based in a sexual health clinic in Manchester where we are able to hear and sometimes see what many people have been up to on a night out, and believe me sometimes it isn't pleasant.

During the second episode of the show two young gay men were featured, who as well as having vey active sex lives, worked as porn stars. This got me thinking about the hypocrisy of the porn industry, especially in the world of gay porn.

As the two young men were to feature in a bareback porn movie (bareback being the act of having sex without a condom), they were sent to have full sexual health screenings. Now as many will know porn stars have to be sent for sexual health tests regularly to ensure that a breakout of something doesn't occur, and the man shooting the film explained this during the programme.

However the main reason they appeared to be getting tested was due to the nature of the film they were to shoot, which is where we get into the hypocrisy of it all. As they were to be filming a porno movie where no protection was being used then surely this is the promotion of unsafe sex?

Since the outbreak of HIV during the 1980s the general public, especially the gay community, have been made aware that unprotected sex could lead to the contraction of the HIV virus. As gay men are seemingly at a higher risk, then surely shooting a film featuring two young and vulnerable looking gay men without protection can't be doing anyone any good.

I may be wrong but in the same way it is perceived that women may think they have to act and perform a certain way during sex because of porn, then surely the same principal can be applied to naïve or impressionable gay men, which in this case could prove dangerous. Along with this the constant normalising and sometimes glamorising of unprotected sex may also be undoing much of the good work by various charities; who are trying to get people to wrap it up and prevent the spreading of this virus.

But It looks as though whilst the porn industry is acting as though they care by sending their stars for check ups they are merely doing it to cover their own backs in case anything happens to one of their performers. But when it comes to the everyday person in the street who goes out on a weekend looking for a good time, it appears they don't actually care that much as they continue to turn out pornography such as this to the masses.

Issues with pornography aren’t so straight

There has been a constant debate surrounding the issue of pornography over the last few years that has looked at the issue surrounding men and women, and in particular problems such as; women becoming objectified by men, how porn can squash the beauty of a real woman to man, how it’s both sexist and degrading towards women and how porn appears to eroticise rape, which can have a universally detrimental affect on men and more dangerously women.

This issue has been highlighted on multiple occasions and has primarily focused upon the issues surrounding the way men view pornography, and as for quite a few men it is their first introduction into the world of sexual activity, and how it can ultimately affect their view of a woman and create damaging affects for relationships later in life.

Within this issue surrounding pornography there appears to be something that has been overlooked. In the mainstream press, where this topic is covered quite a lot, the key debates surround how heterosexual men consume porn and ultimately treat woman, and how this can be dangerous for the women in question. What is majorly overlooked is the detrimental affect that pornography can have on gay men, because like their straight counterparts gay men consume pornography just as much and for many is their first foray into sexual activity, and for many it can be viewed as their first form of sexual education.

With no system of teaching young gay men about sex or how to have safe gay sex within schools, many young gay men will first be introduced to it through the use of pornography. Even though there are outlets and charities around for boys dealing with their sexuality there is still a pressure of coming out at a young age, and bullying still occurs on a regular basis making it harder for them to approach these outlets. This therefore makes the use of a bedroom laptop with its one click highway to the world of pornography one of the only ways they can learn about such things.

And this can most definitely have an extreme detrimental affect on young gay men.

Firstly there are the major problems it can cause for their self-esteem as young men strive to look like the ripped six-pack wielding stars of these porno films. This issue isn’t just exclusive to the gay community, it can affect straight men and women, as young people struggle to realise that the images portrayed are not that of regular body type. But with 48% of gay men saying they would sacrifice a year or more of their lives in exchange for the perfect body, in a study commissioned by the Central YMCA, the Succeed Foundation and the University of the West of England’s (UWE) Centre for Appearance Research, it is apparent that constant exposure to the perceived ‘ideal’ is having a negative effect on these young men.

But the issues don’t appear to stop there for gay men, with it already appearing to be one of the factors to enforcing negative body image it can also have a harmful effect on day to day lives and self esteem. In gay porn men are frequently seen hooking up at the gym, in a park, in a classroom or from just bumping into someone walking down the street, which can leave a long and impressionable effect on gay men. From seeing this they can assume that gay men hook up everywhere, so the next time they are propositioned they may assume this is the only way to attain sex and continue. You only have to look at the way that social media and smartphone apps are increasing the promiscuity of young gay men. It is seen as the norm now to flick onto Grindr and sleep with the next man within a 30ft radius, or advertise yourself as looking for a casual hook up on Gaydar. This overly sexualised culture can be seen as an offshoot of pornography, where after indulging in it for so long the next step is clearly to use your internet not just for some solo fun but to find the nearest person willing to sleep with you.

This effect to ones self esteem can’t be good as eventually they turn into a real life sex toy for whoever wants them. This is what they see in porn, so why shouldn’t they indulge in it?

This however leads on to the more serious and ultimately most damaging affect of gay pornography on young men. Barebacking, the act of having sex without the use of a condom, is appearing to become ever more popular, you only have to look on websites such as Gaydar to discover how many men are actually looking for it. It doesn’t help that the sales of barebacking porn is completely outselling every other form of gay porn around. This is ultimately self destructive, as a casual barebacking encounter could result in the HIV virus.

HIV rates are on the rise, with new diagnoses in the men who have sex with men group increasing by 70% in the last decade, with more than 30,000 men who have sex with men living with the virus, with an estimated third of these not being aware of it.

With barebacking pornography showing young gay men that this is ok, how long is it until they too have been infected with the disease?

The issue of pornography has been tackled greatly over recent years, but needs to be approached on many more fronts and looked at in all communities. It’s all good warning men of the dangers and saving women from potential risks. But something needs to be done to help save young gay men from themselves and a possible life long illness.