The big Iraq news this week may end up being the Wachowskis rumored new film which would be set in Iraq and have a gay theme. Jeff Leins (News in Film) explains, "According to Deadline's Mike Fleming, the concept is a cinema verite style treatment that begins in the near future before spanning back over the current war in Iraq. Though the Wachowskis have tackled futuristic concepts before with The Matrix trilogy and homosexual relationships with 1996's Bound, this is an original concept written by Andy and Lana Wachowski -- formerly Larry before transitioning from male to female -- and will become their next film if they're able to find financing."
Whether this is rumor or fact, two things are known:
1) Movieline needs to explain to writer Andrew Bailey that Afghanistan is not in Iraq.
2) Movieline needs to explain to writer Andrew Baily that gay does not mean someone's a cross-dresser.
In a really bad article, Bailey struggles repeatedly for the facts. First up, he's telling readers about "recent viral videos of military men stationed in Afghanistan blowing off steam with Lady Gaga and Ke$sha impersonations" -- the latter video was shot by US service members in Iraq.
Bailey then writes, "But instead of Corky and Violet, the doomed homo love interests at the heart of The Hard Locker (come on, how can you not call it that?) are a U.S. soldier and an Iraqi civilian. We can already see the art-imitating-life plot point involving the soldier dressing up his lover as Lady Gaga as they surreptitiously gallivant around Afghani war zones, dodging artillery fire in the name of the love that dare not speak its name." A US soldier and an Iraqi civilian have an affair and Bailey sees this taking place in . . . Afghani war zones? Does he even know where Afghanistan is? Could he find Iraq on a globe?
Then there is the issue of the US "soldier dressing up his lover as Lady Gaga". Uh, why? Lady Gaga would draw the wrong kind of attention in either Iraq or Afghanistan. And why does a gay love story mean someone's got to be in drag? He can't let it go, revisiting the topic again with, "Nicolas Cage is too old to play an enlisted soldier but you know he'd kill in the role of the American G.I., who, in the throes of courtship, steals his Iraqi lover's wigs and gowns to wear around the barracks for all that dancin' time with his buddies. We know Jimmy Franco digs the drag -- and he's very gay-friendly, not to mention Oscar worthy." One paragraph, he's seeing the Iraqi man cross-dressing, now he's seeing the US soldier cross-dressing. Does Bailey know any gay men? If so, could they please enlighten him to the fact that cross-dressing isn't a requirement for being gay.
We get it. Bailey wants to be in drag. That's fairly obvious. But does Movieline really need to flirt with homophobia and stupidity?