On Prayers For Bobby

Last night I watched Prayers For Bobby and while the movie stayed true to the schlocky Lifetime formula of crisis-dissent-tragedy-redemption, overall I thought the film was OK, but only for its primary intended audience - the bible-clutching housewives of middle America. Which is fine, of course. Gay folks probably did a bit of eye-rolling for some parts of the movie, particularly its ending, which one Facebooker told me was a little too Longtime Companion-y. (Agreed.) And the scenes in a 1979 Portland gay disco reminded me of how Queer As Folk made Pittsburgh's gay nightlife seem better than Manhattan's. But who knows, maybe in 1979 Portland really was all ripped boys swinging from stripper poles as nitrogen blasts flooded the strobed dance floor.

Mostly though, I had a hard time buying that Bobby decided to off himself exactly when his life had really come together - he'd gotten out of his parents' suburban California home, moved to an accepting Portland, scored a hot boyfriend, etc. But it's a true story and facts is facts. Sigourney Weaver was typically fantastic and I'm always happy to see Dan Butler (Frasier's Bulldog) in anything. Prayers For Bobby did cause me to dutifully tear up in a couple of places, as I am easily manipulated when it comes to young queers. If it got to even me, I'm betting that local PFLAG chapters see a surge in attendance in over the next few weeks.

RELATED: After the movie, I hopped onto Lifetime's message boards where the film got general raves, but also was blasted by some for slamming Christians as cruel and uncaring and for promoting homosexuality in children. Some people, you just can't get through to.