Are we raising a nation of wimps by castrating movie heroes?

Check out where I live.

 

Read Bram Stoker's Dracula, the grand daddy of "modern" vampire books and movies, from which all following vampire books and movies are bases on. There are a couple of pseudo lesbian scenes in the book, but not forgetting Dracula was written in the late 19th century.

Great read by the way. I read it first time as a teenager then again as an adult. This is one book that scared the crap out of me.

 

No it wasn't. Bram Stoker had a couple of lesbian scenes in his book, but not as graphic as Ann Rice's writings.

Dracula also lusted after Jonathan Harker but in a more darker way.

 

No way. Unforgiven. The last 10 minutes of that movie ranks up there with the end of Apocalypse Now. The redeemed becomes a sinner again out of need, plus brilliant homoerotic imagery.

 

You really should read through the entire thread.

I have read Dracula, and i don't agree with you on those parts. They are ambiguous enough that homosexuality can be read into them, but all that is is just an inference.

 

That's the great thing about literature, you can read into it what you like. The scene where Jonathan Harker is making his escape from the castle and he stumbles upon the female vampires in the room has very strong lesbian tendencies.

Also the relationship between Mina Harker and Lucy can be deemed as lesbian, in a very 19th century way.


Stoker didn't invent vampires, literature was written about vampires centuries before Stoker, but he paved the way for the modern depiction of vampires.

 

Hey, if you were turned on by all that masculinity then that's your business.

I actually agree with this. The kid is a total pansy, but he spends the entire movie determined to man up. And he gets the crap beaten out of him along the way. Still doesn't quit.

 

Okay, how can a guy running into three women who want to have sex with him be interpreted as lesbianism?

Lesbianism is between two women.

If they're women who enjoy both men and women then it's bisexual.

Other than that, having a threesome or foursome with attractive women is a very common fantasy for guys, and is not homosexual in any way shape or form.

Now, if he had that fantasy about guys, then it could be considered homosexual.

And nobody's explained to me why Twilight appeals to girls. You'd think an abusive and creepy child molester would put people off.

 

Yes, we were talking about movies, and you turned it partisan with your previous "neo-con" rant. See how that works?

 

Eastwood > John Wayne.

 

So it's Sylvester Stallone's eloquence that you miss? Schwarzenegger's many subtle layers of acting? Perhaps Segal's commitment to character?

Besides, I don't think those guys were really the height of masculinity. Sure, they were buff and they shot an amazing number of people, but how many Vietnam vets do you think really shaved their armpits? Those guys were powdered and preened and awfully appearance-oriented.

Okay, maybe not Segal. I think he had hairy armpits. But you see my point.

"Are you willing to die for this?"

"Yeah -- I am."

That's manly.

 

I absolutely agree.

John Wayne never made a good movie. He was average, at best.

Mr Eastwood, on the other hand, is a brilliant actor, producer, director, and composer.

Clint is one of the best things to ever come out of Hollywood.

 

If movie heroes determined our masculinity as a nation, then I think the Vaudeville era would have already made us all rather... "uninhibited."

 

This also brings up the question of what happened before movies? Were we just in the middle? Were we floating between manliness and womanliness like a bunch of hermaphrodites?

 

That sounds like an excellent script for a David Lynch Western.

"No Country for Old Men... or Women"

 

Well I know Twilight helped me in one way.

Thanks my mostly 3rd shift schedule and lack of exposure to sunlight I'm a bit on the pale side and I'm told all the time I have an uncanny resemblance to "Edward's Father". I play the part to the hilt. LMAO

Quite a few hot cougars and lonely housewives have found themselves enthralled by my charms because of it.

 

I think you're letting some latent tendencies seep out here. You're being way too critical of minor details that most guys who watch those movies didn't notice and couldn't care less about.

 

you watching a Tom Cruise flick, who'd have thunk it? how was the beach volleyball scene in this one?

 

Hey, you guys were the ones who brought up the possibility that these movies might have an effect on the masculine qualities of the audience. I think it's safe to say that any fan of bodybuilder action movies is throwing stones in a glass house, in that regard.

Don't get me wrong. Stallone made some amazing movies. First Blood and Rocky are real works of art that made big contributions to cinema. And Schwarzenegger has the kind of ridiculous, charismatic ego that can only come from posing in your underwear in front of crowds of people while Wagner is playing in the background, making him the perfect guy to play characters like Conan or the Terminator.

But is shaving your armpits really a minor detail?

Just because audiences didn't consciously realize that the movies they were so avidly watching were awash with homoerotic undertones doesn't mean that they weren't affected, does it? Isn't that the criticism of modern Hollywood, that they're trying to turn everybody gay? If they are, it's not because they just started. They were making movies that were all about the worship of the male (but not necessarily masculine) form way before Twilight came along.

Besides, the most badass action hero of the eighties was Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, in Aliens. That movie is the perfect synthesis of guy movie and chick flick, which tends to make for the best overall movies.

 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1600195/

Actually a pretty bada** movie. Taylor Lautner surprised me.