Greetings, friends of Scrobblelife! Today we're going to review a film I saw many years ago and rewatched to share with you all. It's called "But I'm a Cheerleader" (1999), directed by Jamie Babbit and starring Natasha Lyonne. It's the quintessential lesbian cult classic, satirical dark comedy.
Let me tell you, when I first saw it, I thought it was hilarious. However, after delving deeper into the plot, I think it's one of the most satirical films I've seen regarding how gay issues were addressed at a family and social level years ago. It portrays homosexuality as an illness that needs to be cured and, at the same time, perfectly exposes the beliefs of the era regarding a social phenomenon that, although accepted today, still faces many prejudices.
I believe love has no gender, and everyone chooses how they want to feel. My grandmother used to say that as long as we don't hurt anyone, are good people, and live our lives to the fullest.
In "But I'm a Cheerleader," the story of Megan, a seemingly perfect high school cheerleader, is told: she gets good grades, plays sports, and is dating the captain of the football team. However, her family and friends suspect she's a lesbian because she's a vegetarian, listens to Canadian music, and prefers looking at pictures of her teammates to kissing her boyfriend.
It made me laugh so much that it was once believed that when a woman was vegetarian, it meant she had homosexual tendencies, which is completely crazy, hahaha, but oh well, those are things people believed, and at that time it was considered... True.
Her family, instigated by Megan's classmates who noticed certain "strange" behaviors, decides one day to send her to True Directions, a conversion therapy camp run by the strict and unhinged Mary Brown (Cathy Moriarty) and Mike (RuPaul), a former homosexual. "Cured."
The whole plot is quite absurd, so much so that you'll burst out laughing. At the camp, the teenagers are forced to follow a five-step program to correct their "deviations," teaching them ultra-stereotypical gender roles (girls clean and put on makeup, boys fix cars and play sports). 😆
At the camp, Megan meets Graham (Clea DuVall), a rebellious girl sent there by her wealthy family. Although Megan initially tries to deny her sexuality and conform to the program's steps, she begins to fall deeply in love with Graham.
This film is quite ironic because the fact that they are locked up there, supposedly seeking a cure or trying to become something they are not, only reinforces the fact that they are... As they are, and that's it; others believe they are "cured" but are only agreeing out of necessity and conventional wisdom.
During the course of the film, despite all the obstacles, Megan and Graham escape one night to a local gay bar with the help of two former campers who are happily living as a couple. That night they consummate their relationship. When they return to camp, they are discovered; Megan is expelled by Mary Brown, while Graham, feeling cowardly, decides to stay to avoid being disinherited by his parents.
On the day of the camp's graduation ceremony, where those who have been "cured" of homosexuality graduate, Megan returns dressed in her cheerleader outfit to perform a pom-pom routine in front of the parents and attendees, publicly declaring her love for Graham. Inspired by the gesture, Graham gets up, leaves the program, and gets into Megan's truck so they can go off together to live their story freely.
The film leaves us with a reflection on the absurd way homosexuality is viewed and also on... The fact is that, no matter how much they try to stop us, we are who we choose to be, whether by our own decision or because it's in our nature.
I used Google Translate
Rating: 85/100
