Something Trendy in Film Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Something Trendy in Film - Research Paper Example Since that film, other films have worked towards breaking stereotypes and have sought to portray people who happen to be attracted to the same sex, rather than caricatures of a type of human that must fit into a category. The first decade of the century has seen a rise in realistic portrayals of people who happen to be attracted to the same sex rather than conceptualized as gays and lesbians. Stereotyping in film is not a new concept and has in no way been limited to members of the gay and lesbian communities. The way in which film frames many different social groups has created stereotypes that time has had to wash away in order to fully explore the experiences of these groups in American society. One of the most horrific ways in which stereotypes have been created in American cinema was through the ‘blackface’ where African Americans were portrayed with black makeup and white lips, their social position reduced to a comic portrayal and the nature of their character hav ing to fight through the physical manifestations of stereotypical concepts that worked to hide the humanity within them (Benshoff and Griffin 76). Once the ‘blackface’ was wiped away, the social stereotypes varied and struggles were made in order to create realistic portrayals of the members of social groups whose lives had been reduced to specifications made through categorizations. The problem with stereotypes is that while they have a tendency to diminish humanity, they serve a purpose in creating ways in which members of a society can identify themselves and brace themselves against those who are different then themselves. The stereotypes create a standard through which an individual can identify with a group. As an example, a woman who drives a mini-van and wears jeans that are uncommonly high on her hips with a sweater denoting the most current holiday might be termed as a ’soccer-mom’, specifically identifying herself in contrast with a woman who we ars six inch platform heels, a mini-skirt, and a halter top. While no one may actually know anyone who fits into either of these stereotypes, most Americans can identify them with social groups. According to McArthur and Mulvihill, â€Å"If one has proper concern for the other as a real person and shares knowledge for the benefit of relationship, stereotypes and biases will begin to dissolve† (80). While American film has a deep history of stereotyping people who represent African Americans, Native Americans, women, gay and lesbian social groups, the films of the past six years have increasingly begun to show signs of the dissolving of stereotypes associated with people who are attracted to the same sex. A wonderful phenomenon has emerged in which the character of people who are attracted to others of the same sex no longer must affect mannerisms, gestures, and associated tendencies that signal their sexual orientation. The characters that are being developed in modern films are now beginning to be indistinguishable from heterosexual characters, stereotypical effects no longer relevant to the emergence of their portrayals of lives rather than only lifestyles. One of the first portrayals of the social position of gay men in the United States that was made from the point of view of a man who happened to be gay, rather than a portrayal of a ‘gay’ was in Philadelphia (1993) starring Tom Hanks as a man who was a lawyer with a large law firm who contracts AIDS, which