{"id":248682,"date":"2015-05-22T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-05-22T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/stranger-than-fiction\/"},"modified":"2015-05-22T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2015-05-22T07:00:00","slug":"stranger-than-fiction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/stranger-than-fiction\/","title":{"rendered":"Stranger than fiction"},"content":{"rendered":"

Director discusses film that profiles an LGBT activist who becomes an anti-gay preacher<\/strong><\/p>\n

Por Ken Williams | Editor<\/p>\n

In a true story that seems more like fiction, \u201cI Am Michael\u201d \u2014 FilmOut San Diego\u2019s Closing Night showcase \u2014 delves into an LGBT-rights activist\u2019s shocking religious transformation into an outspoken anti-gay Christian preacher.<\/p>\n

Michael Glatze, a charismatic Dartmouth graduate with a degree in English literature and creative writing, eagerly advocates for gay rights as co-founder of Young Gay America and YGA magazine. Michael and his longtime partner, Bennett, live the typical gay life in San Francisco, partying with the boys until dawn. But when Bennett, an architect, takes a job in New England, Michael reluctantly comes along, setting the stage for a remarkable and almost unbelievable change after a health scare forces Michael to confront his mortality. After withdrawing from his partner and friends and agonizing within, Michael suddenly renounces his homosexuality and embraces evangelical Christianity and its anti-gay bigotry.<\/p>\n

\"(l-r)<\/a>
(l-r) Zachary Quinto and James Franco share a somber moment in the movie, \u201cI Am Michael,\u201d which will close FilmOut this year. (Courtesy of \u201cI Am Michael\u201d)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The controversial film premiered with considerable buzz earlier this year at Sundance. It stars James Franco as Michael and Zachary Quinto as Bennett. The cast includes Charlie Carver as the young Tyler, who would become part of a \u201cthruple,\u201d or a three-way relationship, and Emma Roberts as the young woman Michael would eventually marry. Look for memorable supporting roles performed by Daryl Hannah, Leslie Ann Warren and others.<\/p>\n

\u201cI Am Michael\u201d is inspired by a 2011 New York Times Magazine article titled \u201cMy Ex-Gay Friend,\u201d written by Benoit Denizet-Lewis. The article generated a national dialogue, catching the attention of James Franco and his production company, and they optioned the material for a possible movie.<\/p>\n

Justin Kelly then came aboard as co-writer with Stacy Miller, and he would go on to direct the movie under the mentorship of the legendary director Gus Van Sant.<\/p>\n

Kelly told Gay San Diego that the creative team took great pains to be as fair as possible in telling Michael\u2019s complicated story. Both Kelly and Van Sant are openly gay, so they wanted to keep their personal feelings in the background.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal from day one \u2014 me, Gus, James \u2014 was to take a neutral, non-judgmental approach to telling the story,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

At a time when LGBT issues are moving forward at a staggering speed \u2014 from gay marriage argued this spring at the U.S. Supreme Court, Olympic hero Bruce Jenner coming out as transgender, and U.S. states beginning to ban \u201cex-gay\u201d therapy as junk science \u2014 a film like \u201cI Am Michael\u201d appears timely and relevant.<\/p>\n

Kelly said the filmmakers\u2019 goal was less about sending a message and more about starting a conversation between people who support the LGBT community and those who don\u2019t really understand the issues.<\/p>\n

\"(l-r)<\/a>
(l-r) Charlie Carver and Zachary Quinto become romantically linked in \u201cI Am Michael.\u201d (Courtesy of \u201cI Am Michael.\u201d)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe film is really about the power of religion and belief,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

In Michael\u2019s case, the fear of dying triggered a search for the meaning of life and an unquenchable thirst for faith. Just as Michael had poured his heart and soul into fighting for gay rights, he suddenly switched gears and devoted all his energy into his newfound fundamentalist religion.<\/p>\n

In doing research to write the script, Kelly went to Wyoming to meet Michael, who at the time was still studying at a seminary. Michael showed up at the meeting, holding a Bible, spouting anti-gay rhetoric.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was very bizarre to me, very intense,\u201d Kelly said. \u201cI\u2019m gay. I didn\u2019t grow up with a religious background. I grew up with John Waters as an idol.\u201d<\/p>\n

After meeting Michael and interviewing his ex-partners and friends, Kelly came away with a series of clues about why he believes the religious transformation occurred. This is the heart of the movie. The one thing that struck him was that Michael did not change his sexual orientation because of \u201cex-gay\u201d therapy.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t go through conversion therapy,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

Franco seemed the perfect choice to play the role of Michael; Kelly said they share the same charisma and a common smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith James onboard, I thought Zach was a great fit,\u201d he said. \u201cBeing a gay actor was a bonus. I love having an out gay actor play the part of Bennett.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"James<\/a>
James Franco plays Michael Glatze, an LGBT activist who becomes an antigay preacher. (Courtesy of \u201cI Am Michael\u201d)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Quinto, who has perfected the art of playing the villain in movies and on television, is cast against type and playing a softer character in \u201cI Am Michael.\u201d Kelly marveled at how Quinto grasped the character of Bennett and \u201cmade him a real guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the movie, Michael cannot terminate his emotional connection to Bennett even after he declares he is a heterosexual and marries a woman he meets at the seminary. Many viewers will wonder if Michael truly is the man he claims to be, as it raises the tantalizing issue about the fluidity of human sexuality where not everyone is 100 percent straight or 100 percent gay.<\/p>\n

Kelly notes the hot-topic debate of \u201cchoice\u201d vs. \u201cborn that way\u201d when it comes to sexuality. He thinks it is a superficial argument when there are still places worldwide where people can be stoned to death simply for being gay or accused of being gay.<\/p>\n

\"Screen<\/a>The film\u2019s story ends in 2013, when Michael was still proselytizing against homosexuality. Two years later, Michael has apparently toned down his rhetoric.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is no longer anti-gay because of this film,\u201d Kelly explained.<\/p>\n

\u2014Ken Williams es editor de Uptown News y Mission Valley News y puede ser contactado en <\/em>ken@sdcnn.com<\/em><\/a> o al 619-961-1952.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Director discusses film that profiles an LGBT activist who becomes an anti-gay preacher By Ken Williams | Editor In a true story that seems more like fiction, \u201cI Am Michael\u201d \u2014 FilmOut San Diego\u2019s Closing Night showcase \u2014 delves into an LGBT-rights activist\u2019s shocking religious transformation into an outspoken anti-gay Christian preacher.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":248683,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"Stranger than fiction","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11547,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-248682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-features","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248682","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=248682"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248682\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/248683"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=248682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=248682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=248682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}