Hiding in the Backwaters Just one more blog on the net.

What story are you telling here?

Went and saw Latter Days last night. For those unfamiliar with the movie, it is about a Mormon missionary who falls in love with his gay neighbor while serving in Los Angeles. I'm a sucker for a sappy love story, so the fairytale ending was enough to distract me from the film's shortcomings. I like to believe in happy endings. As for a movie to tell "the mormon story" I think it failed...rather miserably. It's biggest problem is it tries to tell two stories and does neither one justice, relying way too much on cliche without taking the time (or not having the time) to develop the characters and the story properly. Mormons will get some of the references, but no one else will. With a title like "Latter Days" it is curious that the Mormon characters are the most one dimensional.

You can't take religious belief and boil it down to a cliche. For example, when Aaron's mother tells Christian she has "lost her son," Christian jumps to the obviously intended conclusion that Aaron's suicide attempt succeeded. But there is so much more to the story than that. Mormon's don't believe that death is the end. Much of their theology is based on the belief that families last beyond death and into Eternity. So while the death of a child is difficult and painful, it's not the end. They believe they will be reunited in the next life. Unless... Everything in Mormonism is contingent on faithfulness. Families being bound together beyond Time is contingent on faithfulness to the commandments of God. Since Aaron's mother believes that homosexuality is not only contrary to the commandments of God, but actually offensive to God, her son has just excluded himself from the rewards that await the righteous and the blessings of an eternal family. Whether her son lives or dies is immaterial. If Aaron continues to "engage in homosexual behavior," she has lost her son forever. That Aaron referrs to his mother as his best friend is a weak reference to the strength of their relationship. To simply dismiss these beliefs as misguided and wrong is unjust and completely ignores how tightly bound faith and identity often are. It's also simply the reverse of that which is perpetrated on homosexuals: "You don't know what you are talking about. You are misguided and deceived. I know better."

Barely summarized is Aaron's struggle with the flip side. If he gives in to homosexuality, he is cut off from his family, also forever. That he loves his family dearly is only vaguely alluded to in a brief conversation in the laundry room that can't even begin to give an understanding of the depth of the feeling of family that many Mormons feel. At one point Aaron tells Christian that Christian does not understand what Aaron would have to give up to be with Christian, but never expounds on it. Completely absent from the movie is the alienation one feels from his own God, and the struggle to find resolution between the contradictions between what one is taught about the nature of God and his own experiences with the divine.

Also glossed over is the brief comment "Now you know my darkest secret" after the near kiss. That is where most Mormon men live with homosexuality, but it is skipped over to deliver some rant about the shallow character of gay men and thus set up Christian's character development. The movie ends up being more about Christian's transition from a shallow pretty-boy to a person with depth and compassion than it is about Aaron's struggle with his religion. We get an indepth look at Christian's grief and loss when he believes that Aaron has committed suicide. Where are Aaron's feelings? A brief five minute monologue summarizing the experience is all he is given.

There are some things in the movie that just didn't work for me. Aaron's companion was way over the top. No missionary I know would go into a person's home and tell them that "God hates homosexuals." His callous, antagonistic approach to others is completely at odds with the missionary spirit espoused by the church. I suppose I can't speak for anything prior to 1986 when I began my own mission experience in Austria. Back then we were taught to respect the beliefs of others and do our best to resolve their concerns with compassion. He is lucky he didn't have me as his training companion. I'd have taken him down a few pegs.

The brief allusion to Aaron as a Christ figure also seemed over the top and too editorial. Based on my experiences and what I know of others', I doubt Aaron saw himself as a Christ figure. If an allusion to unjust persecution was intended, Aaron as the Frankenstein monster being chased by an angry mob with pitchforks and burning torches would be a more accurate metaphor. Mormon men I know caught between their faith and their sexuality tend to see themselves as monsters, misfits and outcasts, not as a sacrifice/martyr. I know some who grow to that belief after coming out. My response is most often, "Oh, puhleeze. Get over yourself."

I thought that the reference to electroshock therapy and institutionalization was a cheap shot. That it happens/happened is not in question. However, Mormons are not the only ones guilty of the practice. As far as I know such radical approaches to "curing" men of homosexuality ceased years ago. There are some to who say it happened as late as 1989. I can neither confirm or deny the rumors. Regardless of the history, it is just one of many stereotypical portrayals that are one-dimensional. Among them are Aaron's parents. Stereotypes always have some basis in reality. I know there are parents out there like Aaron's, but there are also parents like the Hardys who stood by their son and defended him. There are also parents somewhere in between, like my own mother, who do not understand and have difficulty with the choices their children make, but continue to express their love.

I guess my greatest disappointment with the film is that is does no justice to the difficulty many men have coming to terms with their sexuality and their religion. It certainly did no justice to mine. I often wonder if this story will end up having to be told by a non-Mormon, someone who will have to take the time to understand the complexities involved before they can tell the story in a way that does it justice. I think that perhaps we who have fought/fight that struggle are too close to it. There is much we assume, much that is second nature that is left unsaid and hampers others' ability to comprehend. "Latter Days" doesn't really seem to attempt to bring understanding and enlightenment. Mormonism seems merely a plot device to add some extra complications to a love story.