Just Some Random Stuff…
So I just watched 2012’s animated movie, ParaNorman, the story of a boy who could see and interact with ghosts, a weirdness that made the people of his town to either ridicule him or be wary of him. He eventually used his gift to break a curse that had hovered over the town for decades. Accompanying Norman (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee) in his journey to unravel the mysteries of this curse were his cheerleader sister, Courtney (voiced by Anna Kendrick), his high school friend, Neil (voiced by Tucker Albrizzi) and Neil’s buff but slightly imbecilic brother, Mitch (voiced by Casey Affleck).
So, of course, as they screech and scream and run their way through zombies and the eerie prescence of a witch, Courtney found time to flirt unabashedly with Mitch. After spending half the film Mitch, Courtney wraps up the evening by asking the jock for a date. Nothing fancy, just a movie. Mitch, aloof as ever, misreads the invite and reveals that his boyfriend loves “chick flicks.”
I didn’t see that coming, aswear. My surprise at the injection of LGBT into such a family movie escaped from me in a burst of laughter. I was especially amused when I considered that at the time of the movie’s release in 2012, kids across the world would be dragging their parents to see a strange animated horror-adventure yarn, and they’d wind up watching the first openly gay character in a kiddie flick.
The throwaway nature of the joke is key, not because the filmmakers are trying to slide something past us, but because the quick punchline is played with such flippancy it renders the character’s sexual orientation otherwise irrelevant. In the world of ParaNorman, Mitch is gay and everyone’s fine with it. This ties in with the movie’s lessons about bullying and fear of those who are different, but it does so subtly, quietly. Maybe it’ll plant a seed in the minds of some younger viewers, who might begin pondering, hey, it’s OK for Norman and Neil to be different, and then that train of thought might float over to hey, Neil’s brother is different, too, and that’s also OK.
This alone is a very, very cool thing. But here’s even something cooler: the nature of the joke suggests Mitch is out. He’s completely casual about talking in public about his boyfriend. How’s that for radical, suggesting the school’s star quarterback and probably the most popular kid in town is openly gay. That’s a hell of a role model to toss to teens lurking in the closet, and could very well help lead to a generation which has no use for the closet.
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15 Comments
chestnut
February 15, 13:52Wow! Love it! I haven’t seen “paranorman”…yet(my LASTMA jacket wasn’t back from the cleaners the day I wanted to go and watch d movie,lol), but I will look for it. I do dream of a world where parents can tell their kids stuff like: “oh,I ran into headmaster’s boyfriend at the gas-station today,and he invited us to dinner at their house…and we’re going!”
SN: pinky, u’re just amazing with words; I still can’t get over it; everytime is like the first time,lol.(U did write all that up there,not a review from some site or magazine,right?)
pinkpanthertb
February 15, 13:54Lol
tobby
February 15, 14:02Looks like I’m gonna have 2 see dis one
Deola
February 15, 14:04I enjoyed Paranorman just like i did Boxtrolls. They aren’t your typical animated movies which makes them pretty cool.
There was a gay character in the golden globe winning, how to train your dragon 2. The character Gobber the belch voiced by Craig Ferguson came out in that movie too. Although his wasnt as easy to catch like this one.
Another LGBT Animated character is Korra and Asami from the Legend of the Korra…they are bisexual I think. They came out in the series finale. The world is progressing yo!!!
chestnut
February 15, 14:13Wait, Kora is gay????!!! I knew it! Those pants and those shoes…lol
Deola
February 15, 14:17Lol, yes she is, I was pleasantly surprised when the creators of the show coupled her with Asami instead of going the predictable route of having her end up with Mako.
Mercury
February 15, 19:36Jeeezzzuuss!!!, Chesty……those pants and shoes…..really!!!!, LMAO!!!
Max
February 15, 14:51I have the box trolls .. Haven’t had time to see it yet.
I have Empire
Suits
Scandal
The flash
The vampire diaries
The originals to deal with.. Phew!
Mercury
February 15, 14:11Wow, I gotta see this movie.
Eros
February 15, 14:19They didnt exactly come out, it was just implied that there was something more than friendship between them after all the boy drama they both suffered. Micheal Dante DiMartino later confirmed that the two characters were intended to be gay.
Colossus
February 15, 14:54Actually he did confirm that they are gay, not intended to be but actually are.
Max
February 15, 14:49Yeah.. I was surprised when I watch it.. Watched it in 2013. His sister is an annoying and selfish bitch.
Chizzie
February 15, 15:41You are just seeing it? it is in my opinion the best animation there is…ive seen it several times, its also a bit macabre and grim though, sometimes I wonder if it were really intended for kids and young adults.
There’s a scene where the protagonist goes to his dead uncle’s place to retrieve a book, he meets his uncle’s corpse and the book is held tight in the hands of the corpse, an apparent cadeveric spasm, which is a phenomenon that occurs in traumatic deaths. Anyways the boy struggles intensely with corpse, till he finally retrieves the book,where he must then proceed to read it on a graveyard. its entertaining and all but then when u think abt it…a 10yr old child or so playing with a corpse shouldnt be considered entertainment.
JustJames
February 15, 23:10Now the thrill I’d have gotten from that line would be gone.. Biko there’s something known as “spoiler alert”. Try and put it before you tell the outcome of a movie or book or whatever so those who want to enjoy the ride the book or movie or whatever offers can steer clear of the article.
Maybe warn people to steer clear of the comments too cause I’m seeing massive spoilers to movies I hoped to see. Thanks s lot KD.
The P
February 17, 18:48In “Justin”, one of the soldiers seemed to be gay too. “Location, location, location…”