‘Brokeback Mountain’ is boring, ‘Golden Girls’ isn’t funny, ‘Drag Race’ is joyless: Gays share their hot takes on film & tv
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Earlier this year, we asked Queerty readers to list their most underrated queer movies and shows. The responses ranged from ’90s indy films to short-lived sitcoms, most of which are unfamiliar to the broader public.
Just as we expected.
Here’s the thing, though: while gays are grade A stans, we are also top-tier haters. Acerbic wit is key, along with a comfort in going against the grain.
One could say gays are inherently cool with that!
When we asked readers to list their most unpopular opinion about gay movies and TV shows, they didn’t hesitate. Their responses are below…
What is your most unpopular opinion about a gay movie or TV show?
“Milk is one of the worst movies ever made because Gus Van Sant is a patronizing hack.” — Mikey from Seattle
We start with a haymaker of a hot take! Milk isn’t only regarded as one of the best queer movies of all-time, but one of the greatest films of the 2000s. It won two Oscars–with Dustin Lance Black winning best screenplay–and was nominated for eight.
Then again, Mikey didn’t mention Black’s stellar writing or Sean Penn’s Oscar-winning acting. He mentioned Gus Van Sant, the movie’s iconic director. Also known for Good Will Hunting and My Own Private Idaho, Van Sant is a prolific talent.
But Mikey isn’t alone in his criticism of the out gay director. Van Sant’s output has been mixed: his shot-by-shot remake of Psycho was an epic flop and ruined his reputation for years. Ten years later, he resuscitated his bonafides with Milk… according to seemingly everyone besides Mikey 
.
“People continue to see the play and film Tea and Sympathy as a move forward for gay rights and acceptance, which is absurd, because there are no gay characters in it! The message clearly is: If you think you’re a gay man or boy, don’t worry; a generous woman’s genitals will clear all that up. Yech!” — Jordan is Scarsdale, New York
Tea and Sympathy was a product of its time. The 1953 Broadway play (and the 1956 film adaptation) is one of the first mainstream works that even hinted at homosexuality, with its sensitive teenage protagonist, Tom Lee. Relentlessly bullied by his classmates at a New England prep school, the housemaster’s wife shows him support and affection.
Eventually, as Jordan mentions in colorful language, Tommy and the housemaster become romantically involved. These days, her “straight rescue” would certainly be viewed as ick! But in the early ’50s, it might’ve been the only palatable outcome to a mainstream audience.
“Mommie Dearest is one hell of a bore.” — Brian from Princeton, New Jersey
No wire hangers… ever! A camp classic, the big-screen version of Christina Crawford’s memoir regarding her movie star mother Joan Crawford and the alleged abuse she suffered was panned upon its 1981 release. Actress Faye Dunaway was criticized for her exaggerated portrayal of the Hollywood legend, which bordered on Kabuki theater.
And that’s why the gays love it. Almost every season, a new queen portrays Joan Crawford and her caked-on makeup on RuPaul’s Drag Race. The entire audience is enthralled… except for Brian, apparently!
My Lottery Dream Home, specifically David Bromstad. I know the guy’s just doing his thing, but he’s become such a caricature of a gay man. I can’t stomach it. — David in Phoenix, Arizona
The king queen of HGTV is beloved for his flirtatious personality, flamboyant dress and extravagant tats. Fabulous to some and a caricature to others, Bromstad has been unapologetically himself since winning Design Star in 2006.
We imagine David’s views on the reality legend would change if he was presenting him with his lottery dream home…
“It feels like everything these days is just glorified p*rn. A show has to show r*mming, blow jobs and c*m shots. Frankly, it’s a turn-off. I have no interest in watching shows like White Lotus for that reason.” — Rad in Rhode Island
Rad, you nailed the assignment. White Lotus is widely regarded as a deep, multi-layered view into societal issues ranging from gender to opulent wealth. Yet, all you see is… filth.
Granted, there is a fair amount of that, too. More, please!
“To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar is fake as f*ck and not in a potentially edifying but ironic way. It’s the ultimate sop to straights that U.S. film culture has ever produced, and needy gays sucked it up at the time (and now, unfortunately) because they did not respect themselves or their own cultures.” — Rick the Cinesexual in Mexico City
“I hate To Wong Foo because I feel it is a pale imitation of Adventures of Priscilla. [Wesley] Snipes and [Patrick] Swazye aren’t believable as drag queens and the humor is weak and stale. I always get mad shade whenever I tell any gay friends this. I love John Leguizamo but he couldn’t save this movie.” — Charles in San Jose
Believe us, we do not want to argue about film with a cinsexual! And Charles isn’t the only person who views To Wong Foo as a satirized version of Adventures of Priscilla, a more overtly queer Australian film with a comparable premise.
But similar to Tea and Sympathy, perhaps To Wong Foo is best viewed as a product of its era. Released in 1995, the road trip comedy presented a positive portrayal of drag queens [despite the fact that they never get out of drag!], who were played by two of the biggest hunks in Hollywood. That may not be groundbreaking today. But it was back then.
“I’m not a fan of Will & Grace. I’ve tried watching it many times and I’ll chuckle every once in a while. I feel it is a “gay show” made for a straight audience. Jack and Karen are fun, obviously, but kinda overrated. Will is a sterile, safe gay man for a heterosexual audience and Grace is somewhat annoying.” — Charles in San Jose
“Will & Grace was poor. It was like watching a gay Amos ’n’ Andy.” — Sean in Ferndale, Michigan
Repeat after us: product of the times. The 1998 sitcom aired at a time when there were few out gay characters on TV [or out celebrities in real life]. But yeah, the lack of diversity, prevalence of stereotypes and cheesy dialogue doesn’t hold up. But it was progress nonetheless.
“The Golden Girls: I just don’t get the appeal. I’ve tried watching it and had to give up. It’s not funny (maybe it’s different humor to what us Brits are used to). And just not at all interesting.” — Louis from the U.K.
Put Louis down as another contrarian! Hey, we get if The Golden Girls can seem a bit dated. The humor isn’t as bitting as today’s.
But 40 years later, we can say the show’s humanity is still poignant. The girls tackled topics like AIDS and treated queer issues with dignity. Plus, Betty White, Bea Arthur, Estelle Getty, Rue McClanahan were some of the foremost allies of their time.
To us, The Golden Girls is pastel-colored comfort food.
“The reboot of Queer as Folk was as terrible as people said it was. It was like watching paint dry.” — Oliver in Staten Island, New York
“Fire Island was a garbage film.” — Bosco in NYC (But it did not feature a garbage game of “Heads Up.”)
“The international seasons of Drag Race are more interesting than the U.S. franchise.” — Andrew in London
“I watched half an episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race, and I couldn’t get into it. My local drag scene featured people who all had day jobs and used drag as their getaway playground, doing the best with what they could afford within their means. It all had a very charming DIY feel to it. RPDR feels overly polished and joyless to me.” — Bull in San Francisco
There’s no doubt that RuPaul has brought drag race into the mainstream. Though there are many positives attached to that–drag queens are now more popular and success than ever–there’s a grit that’s been lost. The show has long been criticized for sanitizing the intrinsically subversive art. Even the earlier seasons were more raw than today’s product. That’s what happens when your show becomes a hit and doing drag is no longer niche.
“I agreed with Larry Kramer when he said Philadelphia is an achingly mediocre movie. I found it impossible to believe Tom Hanks and Antonio Banderas were in a relationship; they barely even touched or spoke to each other. But I guess in the ’90s you had to bypass the actual relationships to get a green light for a film.” — Roger in Palm Springs, California
Roger nails the sad reality: it’s unlikely Philadelphia would’ve been such a success in 1993 if it was more sexual. The protagonist, Andrew, is fired from his law firm after getting diagnosed with AIDS. He is portrayed as a dignified and decent man–a stark contrast from the popular imagery of gay people at the time. But yes, he is desexualized, and the movie follows the all too familiar gay tragedy trope.
“Call Me By Your Name is a movie about an adult groomer seducing an adolescent boy knowing full well he was going to dump him. Wrong all the way round.” — Steven in California
There is legitimate queer criticism of Call Me By Your Name, especially around the power dynamics of 17-year-old Elio’s age-gap relationship with 24-year-old Oliver. But with all due respect to Steven, we think his outright disavowal is a bit reductive…
“In Love, Simon, Nick Robinson’s portrayal doesn’t seem to reflect how many contemporary gay teen boys look or act.” — William in Texas
Robinson was 23 at the time playing a teenager. But William has a valid point, considering the gay teenage romcom was made for a very PG audience. But that doesn’t mean the ferris wheel scene wasn’t a little bit cute.
“Xanadu is terminally lame as a movie and doesn’t deserve gay cult status. It’s not even good bad camp!” — Jay in High Falls, New York
“I HATED The Birdcage. I saw it in the theater with a bunch of old women. They thought it was hilarious. I thought it was homophobic as hell. The scene where Robin Williams is trying to teach Nathan Lane to be manly or whatever was cringe inducing. Gene Hackman was wasted in the movie. Dianne Wiest was just sad.” — David in West Virginia
“The Birdcage is just cringe. It’s gay minstrel comedy at its worst, designed for straight people who can watch it and laugh and laugh–oh, ho ho ho, look at those silly gays, they’re so funny and and swishy, hahaha. Ugh, it’s just the worst. Same goes for To Wong Foo. These sad attempts at camp aren’t even clever–it’s like watching the dumbest hetero bros try to be funny as drag queens when they aren’t clever or funny.” — Martin in Miami Beach
We did ask for unpopular opinions, so I guess we should’ve expected the anti-camp sentiment. The Birdcage is both unapologetically queer and atavistic. We agree with David that the “act like a man” scene is 
Also, Val is the worst!
“Heartstopper doesn’t grab my attention. I tried, but nope!” — Greg in Ohio
Awe, there will be no disparaging of Joe Locke and Kit Connor in this space! The two actors are cuties and their show is cute, too. But yeah… it is just cute. If you’re looking for something edgy or provocative, keep scrolling.
“HBO’s Looking is overrated and dull, Netflix’s Glamorous is ridiculous and insipid, and HBO’s And Just Like That … is the sloppiest intentional murder of a fun show.” — Carlos in California
Very incisive, Carlos! We’re guessing you didn’t enjoy this week’s finale?
“I absolutely worship the quick sand that Luke MacFarlane walks on, but I ABSOLUTELY hated Bros. Billy Eichner’s constant whining and screaming his lines absolutely ruined this movie for me. I know, I’m an awful gay…” — Gay Dad in Los Angeles
“Saw Bros and came away from it wondering who was supposed to be the audience. Billy Eichner seemed to have a checklist of gay characteristics and behavior and plodded through without artfulness or wit. Poppers, Grindr hookups, hot Silver Daddies with twink hangers. Sexless sex scenes with actors in tighty whities. Useless waste of time for too little talent.” — Gregory in Columbia, Missouri
“I think more of the community should have gone to see Bros. When it came out I remember a lot of people having a lot of criticism about it. But I can’t name a single gay rom-com that has come out since. Plenty of gay tragedies though.” — Mike in Illinois
These three responses encapsulate the reaction to Bros. The 2022 rom-com gets points for representing a lighthearted and positive portrayal of gay people, which is still rare in Hollywood. But the dialogue and humor is hackneyed. We could live without ever hearing Grindr get mentioned in a gay movie again, thank you very much.
“I watched Brokeback Mountain about a year after all the hoopla about the movie; and to be honest, it was kind of meh to me. Lovely scenery, lovely two actors. But meh.” — Karlis in Riga, Latvia
“I’m so so so sorry guys, but I found Brokeback Mountain so so so boring. I literally fell asleep every time I tried to watch it.” — David in North Bay, Ontario
The 2005 classic is back in theaters, exposing a new generation of younger gays and theys to the groundbreaking film. As Queerty‘s Henry Giardina recently wrote, “When homophobia was everywhere and good faith queer representation was almost nowhere, the film gave queer people an earnest, loving portrait of a same-sex relationship, even if it did come to a tragic end for both men.”
That may seem a little boring today. But it was important back then.
That seems to be a theme.
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