Double Standard For Gay Directors
by Jed Lang, 365Gay.com Entertainment



Producers and directors of gay themed films don't stand a chance of making it at the box office.  The Motion Pictures Association of America has seen to that.

The MPAA is responsible for handing out the ratings for films.  And, if a movie has a hint of gay sex it's slapped with an NC-17 meaning no one under 17 can get in. The result: the most lucrative market in America is cut out.  For gay teens it denies them a chance of seeing other gays on screen. For producers it means fewer theaters and less income.

Its a double standard.  Or, in reality, a triple standard. You see, if that hint of gay sex were replaced by straights or lesbians the movie would get a more favorable R rating.

The most recent example is gay Spanish director Pedro Almodovar's new film "Bad Education"

The film features Gael Garcia Bernal of “The Motorcycle Diaries” and Fele Martinez as men who fell in love as Catholic schoolboys, but were driven apart by an abusive, jealous priest.

There is a bedroom scene in the film and that was enough for the MPAA to slap on an NC-17.

Almodovar and distributor Sony Pictures appealed.  The MPAA refused to budge.

Nevertheless, "Bad Education" has received critical acclaim and has been nominated for a Best Foreign Film Independent Spirit Award.