Recently a friend sent me this article on “BuzzFeed LGBT” that is titled “11 Gay BFFs In The Movies Who Transcend The Stereotype.” She knew that I was writing a blog on the “gay best friend” and thought that this would be of interest to me. While I enjoyed reading the article, I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, I love that it addressed the issue of the stereotyped gay best friend in television and cinema. However, on the other hand, it subtly states that being effeminate is not an attractive characteristic of the gay best friend.
The description for the article claims, “You know them well – gay, flamboyant and…that’s it. These dudes stole movies from their leading ladies (and men) – and managed to not be total cliches at the same time.” In my opinion, the word usage is too aggressive in calling these gay men who act more according to heternormative rules as “dudes.” Additionally, it is almost as if the author is having a sigh of relief, like “whew! I’m glad that they aren’t SO gay and cliché.” Being flamboyant should never be considered a bad thing. The problem is a uniform portrayal of gay men, particularly gay best friends, in media.
Another point to be made is that most of the gay characters from this article do have many of these gay stereotypes that the author is claiming are absent. Damian from Mean Girls is more definitely flamboyant! I can’t imagine someone arguing against this – he shrieks, loves fashion and talks about pop icons. I think the author should have written the article by discussing the fact that these characters possibly transcend the stereotype because they have a distinct voice and role, that something can be learned from these characters apart from their relationship with their female counterparts. That, in my belief, would garner a more effective argument.
The Gay Best Friend 