Homophobia's enduring power to destroy us seeps into our bones and Haynes regurgitates it in disjointed screams--physical disease, frustrated fantasies, toxic masculinity. No one gets a normal life, but if you're queer, you never get to pretend, either, not really. Layering over this the monumental stress of the AIDS epidemic paints many of these anxieties in, taking what could be a disturbing view of sexuality into a reclamation, almost, as if Haynes is saying, "if you see us as lepers, I might as well show you what that feels like." He does not eschew camp, but it's part of the message, part of the deconstruction. He does this over and over again, with multiple stereotypes, often one atop the other, distorted them, shoving them through a filter of cinematic conventions twisted into new meanings. The title is a pointed statement of what he's looking at, and what he's feeling.Pride month: 8/30
