Humpday Fence-Sitting
My initial inclination regarding Humpday, a Sundance Dramatic Compettion movie about two 30something buddies who decide to fuck each other on camera as a kind of amateur-porn Zack and Miri art project, was to shine it. Any and all movies involving the spreading of male butt cheeks generally gets a pass from me. (And I don't want to hear any homophobic dings about this. Saying "later" to the watching of gay boning in Park City isn't quite the same thing as putting it down or condemning it, God forbid.)
But now I'm thinking "maybe, I don't know, possibly" due to two factors.
One, a form of semi-infectious enthusiasm coming from the "friends and colleagues" of Spoutblog's Karina Longworth, who recently wrote that it's "definitely the domestic narrative competition feature that's come up most in conversation."
And two, my having been invited this morning to a Humpday party and a press day, which...I don't know, conveys a certain confidence and a suspicion that the film, directed and written by Lynn Shelton, might not be a huge problem. Staking a claim to respectability with a party can sometimes mean something. In the same way that it made sense, conversely, that Thinkfilm's Mark Urman decided against throwing a party for Zoo, the horse-fucking movie that played at Sundance '07.
I still say "trust no one" and "caveat emptor" when it comes to any kind of smallish Sundance movie looking for attention by pushing any kind of sexual-behavior envelope. Because, as we all know, any kind of "whoa, haven't seen that before!" buzz tends to turn heads. And the ability to turn heads means next to nothing. Okay, it means something.
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on January 13, 2009 at 5:25 AM
comment #1
actionman
says ...
Karina Longworth is the most misguided "critic" currently typing. Aside from Armond White, of course.
Wells -- I finally saw In Search of a Midnight Kiss. Fucking loved it. Hysterical and honest. And what a way to open the film!
Posted by actionman
at January 13, 2009 8:05 AM
comment #2
p.Vice
says ...
Can't go to the party without sitting through the movie, eh? I feel your pain.
Posted by p.Vice
at January 13, 2009 8:23 AM
comment #3
Karina Longworth
says ...
Oh, Actionman, I'm sure you wouldn't have said that if you'd have known I'd take it as a compliment.
Look, I haven't seen HUMPDAY, and putting a film in a list of "Sundance stuff I'm looking forward to" is hardly an act of criticism, but if I've helped Wells take a step towards moving beyond his knee jerk "little film + gay = no thanks" prejudice, that's a good thing.
Posted by Karina Longworth
at January 13, 2009 8:28 AM
comment #4
actionman
says ...
"Oh, Actionman, I'm sure you wouldn't have said that if you'd have known I'd take it as a compliment."
Futher proof of your inanity. But keep it up with writing shitty "reviews." I'll keep reading them for a good laugh.
Posted by actionman
at January 13, 2009 8:40 AM
comment #5
Josh Massey
says ...
The "little film + gay + apparently ensemble cast" reminds me of the dreadful It's My Party, which is a huge strike against Humpday. Of course, that isn't fair - but them's the breaks.
Posted by Josh Massey
at January 13, 2009 8:56 AM
comment #6
Karina Longworth
says ...
As long as you're reading!
Posted by Karina Longworth
at January 13, 2009 9:05 AM
comment #7
T. S. Idiot
says ...
Dude in the lower right corner seems to be auditioning for The Owen Wilson Story.
Posted by T. S. Idiot
at January 13, 2009 9:05 AM
comment #8
Gabriel
says ...
Actionman, you've really got to see "Silent Light" and then read Karina's review of it before saying that so definitively.
Posted by Gabriel
at January 13, 2009 9:11 AM
comment #9
YRG
says ...
@Wells: That same fear has kept me from watching Brokeback Mountain, Wong Kar Wai's Happy Together, and Milk.
Posted by YRG
at January 13, 2009 9:19 AM
comment #10
actionman
says ...
Gabriel -- really anxious to see Silent Light. First chance I get I'll be in the theater. But I think I'll skip Karina's take on it.
Posted by actionman
at January 13, 2009 9:46 AM
comment #11
the400blows
says ...
I haven't seen this film, but it sounds like another example of Sundance being a festival that shows films of notoriety than creativity and artistry. This is one of the main reasons I stopped going to Sundance. It was getting harder and harder to weed through the lousy films just to find one or two gems along the way. For every "You Can Count On Me" film there were ten "Crime and Punishment in Suburbia" films.
Posted by the400blows
at January 13, 2009 10:45 AM
comment #12
nemo
says ...
It's a movie. It's only a simulated spreading of male butt cheeks.
Posted by nemo
at January 13, 2009 10:45 AM
comment #13
arturobandini2
says ...
Jeffrey, you know I dig your blog, especially post-purge. And I wouldn't change a thing about your personality. You fill a void that's been in my life since the L.A. Reader stopped publishing David Lynch's "Angriest Dog in the World" comic strip.
That said, your frequent "ewww, gross me out" references to gay sex make you sound Reaganesque at best, a closet case at worst. I'm starting to wonder if you have any gay friends. If you do, as Jon Stewart would say, they probably hate you.
Posted by arturobandini2
at January 13, 2009 12:15 PM
comment #14
televisiontears
says ...
Hey Jeff, have you seen this movie called Breakback Mountain (or something like that)? It came out a few years ago and its by the guy who did the first Hulk movie. I heard it's super-gross and gay, but the guy who played the Joker is in it, and he's all gay for Donnie Darko. I guess there's even a scene where they're gay boning each other. There's probably a few jokes that late-night talk show hosts could make about that.
But seriously, you can't say "I don't want to hear any homophobic dings". If you don't want to see something simply because it involves gay sex, that is the very definition of homophobia. Your kind of homophobia is almost worse than those who are unapologetic about it. You want to give the impression that you're tolerant and open-minded, but you don't want no fruitcakes touching pee-pees at your film festival. You want it both ways, and guess what? You can't have it.
It seems like your views on gay men boil down to: "Gross - Not that there's anything wrong with that..."
Posted by televisiontears
at January 13, 2009 1:48 PM
comment #15
Josh Massey
says ...
"If you don't want to see something simply because it involves gay sex, that is the very definition of homophobia."
Ok, come on - that's silly. Just because I don't want to watch two guys having sex doesn't mean I'm homophobic. I don't want to see Betty White do it either, but I still love me some "Golden Girls."
Posted by Josh Massey
at January 13, 2009 2:32 PM
comment #16
televisiontears
says ...
Josh, what I'm saying is if that's your sole reason for not seeing a film, that's homophobic. If you're a film guy, as Jeff is, and heard that two men have sex in a very decent film but refuse to see it because of said dude-banging, that's homophobic. I know, Jeff's not saying he definitely won't see this, but it's the sentiment that counts.
It's that same line of thinking that justifies the gay-marriage bans. "It's fine to be gay and all, but I don't want to hear about it." That's intolerance.
Posted by televisiontears
at January 13, 2009 2:41 PM
comment #17
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
"Josh, what I'm saying is if that's your sole reason for not seeing a film, that's homophobic."
Ah, that's a bit of a slippery slope there, bud. As I take it (and please correct me if I'm wrong), this movie is mainly about watching people fuck -- sure, the befores and afters, too, but getting their groove on, nonetheless. If that's the case, I would say wanting to forego the male intercourse scenes would be more "heterosexual" than "homophobic." Calling it "homophobic" would be akin to a homosexual choosing not to watch straight porn as "heterophobic."
Approving of a lifestyle legally and personally bearing witness to it are two very separate entities to me.
I can't believe it, but I'm going to have to side with Massey on this one.
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at January 13, 2009 3:32 PM
comment #18
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
"It's that same line of thinking that justifies the gay-marriage bans. "It's fine to be gay and all, but I don't want to hear about it." That's intolerance."
Not so much. I know a couple gay guys at work, and I wouldn't dream about relaying detailed stories about how much I wanted to a girl. Perhaps said story might gross them out, perhaps they might just react with complete indifference...the point is why would I bother, exactly?
There are a lot of straight peoples' sex lives I don't want to hear about, either. For that matter, there are some friends' sex lives I don't want to hear about (esp. if they're banging someone I used to be entangled with). Not allowing people to engage in particular behavior is intolerance. Not wanting to hear about (or watch) said behavior? That is a matter of personal preference, my friend.
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at January 13, 2009 3:42 PM
comment #19
MilkMan
says ...
I look at the pictures that make up the poster for this film and I find, oh brother, that I want to go horrorshow on all of these people. Can we all make a resolution to make 2009 free of smug urban white people with facial hair and wacky hats? Please. I can't take it no more. I think I'm going to be sick. Make it stop.
Posted by MilkMan
at January 13, 2009 3:49 PM
comment #20
Gabriel
says ...
I don't think it's homophobic. A significant limitation in terms of what to see - My Own Private Idaho, Mysterious Skin, Six Feet Under, and the movies YRG listed would be pretty tragic omissions from my film diet - but it's not an act of intolerance.
Posted by Gabriel
at January 13, 2009 4:13 PM
comment #21
Ray
says ...
Who cares about the homosexuality in it?? I find the whole "let's make a shocking movie so we can get a deal" mentality that's obviously behind this movie much worse than male butt cheeks akimbo.
Posted by Ray
at January 13, 2009 4:21 PM
comment #22
televisiontears
says ...
CitizenKaned, it seems like we're getting into an art vs. porn argument here. Sure, maybe the film leans towards the latter, and if it does, the argument I'm making definitely doesn't apply. To clarify, I think it's close-minded for a film-lover to disregard what could be a great film because of the gay content. People watch porn to appeal to their sexual preferences. Films are for the people. A good movie about sex should transcend those preferences. Lots of gay people love films with heterosexual sex scenes in them. They don't say "If it's a guy and a girl fucking, forget it".
The gray area comes when sex scenes are superfluous and designed solely to arouse the audience. Then it becomes more porn than film. When a movie has scenes like this, there's absolutely nothing wrong with saying "no thanks". But if the sex scenes are integral to character and story, the game changes. Jeff saying "any and all movies involving the spreading of male butt cheeks generally gets a pass from me" seems to mean he doesn't care if the film is good or the sex scenes are important. It's the gayness that counts. I just felt the need to call him out on it.
Posted by televisiontears
at January 13, 2009 4:26 PM
comment #23
televisiontears
says ...
And btw, I do agree that Humpday very well might be shit. I'm not defending the movie, it's Jeff's mentality that I was calling into question.
Posted by televisiontears
at January 13, 2009 4:30 PM
comment #24
KC
says ...
i don't care how deeply you feel it, being grossed-out by hott gay action is pretty fratty and totally retrograde. if heterosexual women had a gut reaction that inclined them to take a pass on any movie with Sexy Girls In Your Face then well there's 98% of cinema history out the window
Posted by KC
at January 13, 2009 5:29 PM
comment #25
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
I see your points, television, and my porn/cinema analogy -- as you smartly pointed out -- wasn't very apt. I realized that moments after i posted it...one is solely designed to sexually arouse, while the other (we hope) generally has higher purposes in mind, and much more going on under the surface (no matter how much skin is exposed on that surface).
However, I still do stand by my overall point that passing on a film due to guy-on-guy action (or girl-on-girl action, pig-on-guy action, what have you) is not an act of intolerance. However, it *is*, as you noted, absolutely an act of close-mindedness and, as Gabe noted, not conducive to establishing a large and eclectic taste in film, culture, etc.
I think we are pretty much in agreement here. I just think some pesky semantics got in the way and I misunderstood the first go-round.
KC -- by and large, that's a pretty disposable "98% of cinema history" that I really wouldn't miss too much. And methinks your definition of both "sexy girls" and "in your face" are awfully loose to come up with that ridiculously high of a percentage. And I'm not sure what watching a movie with a sexy person has to do with watching two people engage in sexual intercourse onscreen. Those are two entirely unconnected visual dynamics, so I'm really unsure of the point you were trying to make there.
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at January 13, 2009 6:31 PM
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