dorian gay

toni 𖤐 19 𖤐 she/they standard enjoyer of dead gay writers, subversive cinema, classic rock, satirical theatre, existentialism, queerbait, etc.

[babyonwire]

Does anyone else think about how Curt probably fucked Arthur because he was dressed like Brian as Maxwell Demon and he wanted to get closure through a kind of spiritual farewell to him

[babyonwire]

Velvet Goldmine does a fantastic job of being a universally queer film in the little moments such as (but not limited to) "making your same gender Barbie dolls kiss" and "using your own blood as lipstick" and "watching a TV show with your parents and trying desperately to not convey any emotion or joy when someone on there shares your identity" and "jacking off to a rock star"

[wildepilled]

what the fuck is radiohead??? you mean thom yorke from the velvet goldmine soundtrack???

[chewbacca]

Velvet Goldmine (1998), dir. Todd Haynes

[marshmize]

[libraryleopard]

in an iwtv velvet goldmine au i think daniel is arthur stuart, louis is curt wild, and lestat is brian slade. btw. except i guess brian and arthur have the reverse reveal of daniel and louis where you learn they did fuck.

[libraryleopard]

I lied. I’m not interested in sex. Put your clothes back on, I’m going to explain the themes of authenticity vs. constructed personas in Velvet Goldmine (1998) dir. Todd Haynes

[libraryleopard]

anyway, here are some thoughts i have had on those themes after watching velvet goldmine for the first time:

okay, so the set-up of the film is about a journalist (arthur stuart) trying to find out what happened to a former glam rock star (brian slade/maxwell demon) following his staged assassination at a concert ten years ago that destroyed his career. with the set-up of arthur writing a kind of "where are they now" piece on slade, you think the film is going to be about him peeling away the layers of slade's persona to discover the real man underneath, but i think the film kind of does the reverse? we do learn some facts about the real slade–he's from birmingham, his birth name is thomas, his father ran a tile manufacturing business–but i think ultimately the film portrays him as someone who kind of exists only as a persona. the public persona of maxwell demon is a construct that literally involves putting on another skin (portraying himself as an alien) and when he publicly kills this persona, slade essentially dies as well. we see people associated with slade in off-stage, personal moments in the present day, like mandy honestly speaking to arthur in her natural accent, but never slade. the only way he can continue on is by creating another persona (tommy stone) because there's no real man left underneath the feathers and glitter.

curt wild as a character exists as a foil to this. he has his own rockstar persona, but it's more of a magnified version of who he really is. his name seems to actually be curt wild, unlike slade, and his persona as this wild (lol) card who likes to shock people with his behavior is rooted in a personal story about the abuse and homophobia of his childhood. slade is initially jealous of this innate ability that wild has to surprise and shock people through his performance and even when they become close professionally and personally, he's only able to engage with this idea of curt wild and not the real man himself, which is why they can't last. i also think that wild's performance of "gimme danger" is interesting because that feels like a moment of performance that's nonetheless channeling raw and genuine emotion?

i think arthur stuart's character ties into this as well. when living at home with his parents in the past, we see him literally hiding parts of himself–his sexuality, his clothing. what speaks to him about slade isn't really the rockstar persona, but how open slade is about his bisexuality. even in a constructed persona, there's an element of authenticity that connects with someone on a real and emotional level. and then i think there's also the fact that arthur in the present day is portrayed as this very gray and straight-laced person working as a journalist, but the layers of his character are unpacked throughout the film until you realize there's this whole side of him that isn't apparent from how he presents himself in the present day. kind of a reverse of slade, who is ultimately nothing beyond his outward persona?

anyway! much to think about! i think this film probably rewards rewatch (and more knowledge of glam rock than i currently have in my brain), but i find these themes very intriguing. and i think it couldn't engage with this ideas at the same level if it was an actual biopic about david bowie and glam rock because it can be less concerned with the facts of reality.

[wildepilled]

there truly are oresteias everywhere for those with the eyes to see

[gayalienwilde]

Rip Bowie, 10 years ago just like in VG that's cra-*they pull me away from the stage with a long cane*

[autosadist]

ive "been" "myself" these past few weeks

[wildepilled]

this song oh my god

[wildepilled]

man for the 5th largest city in the USA these guys sure do coincidentally run into each other a lot

[wildepilled]

his name being hannibal is crazy. get it because it sounds like nibble

[wildepilled]

listening to the normal album by will wood drunk can be classified as a religious experience btw

[wildepilled]

everything is a lot really encompasses my entire range of emotions. alcoholism. st4rvation as a love language. relating to dennis reynolds from iasip. bpd attachment style. unbearable horniness. bpd attachment style. immense rage for people who have done me wrong ft a sample from jim carrey. enjoyment of the moon. occasional hope. alcoholism. fear of failure in a music career. doing hallucinogenics. going buddhist in a manic episode.

[wildepilled]

velvet goldmine is kind of the best movie ever made if you think about it. david bowie rpf with a budget. they somehow make oscar wilde more camp. the best soundtrack of all time. incredible characters. the best costumes. which are even better as outfit inspo. it's set in the 70s. some of the best facial language acting you've ever seen. tastefully confusing nonlinear plot. everyone is gay. ewan mcgregor is in it. and he's a rock star. and he's gay. and gets naked. and has sex with christian bale on a roof. its only downside is that it sucks

[wildepilled]

no you don't get it i have to psychoanalyse that sociopathic closet case from that sitcom or i'll die