As summer gradually turns into the rainy winter Northwesterners are used to, it is time again for queer to begin venturing inside for entertainment. This time will be ushered in by the annual Portland Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. The 12th PLGFF opens Friday night with feel-good family comedy Breakfast with Scot.
The first gay-themed film officially sanction by the NHL and the Toronto Maple Leafs,
Breakfast with Scot represents the first time a professional sports league
has allowed their logo and uniforms to be used in a gay-themed movie.
The movie follows straightlaced gay couple Eric (TomCavanagh), an ex-NHL hockey player-turned-sportscaster and Sam (Ben Shenkman), a lawyer’s ordeal as they are asked to take care of Sam’s orphaned nephew. The brightly-clad 11 year old Scot turns out to be a budding queen, not at all the boy the couple envisioned.
In a world where family-friendly and gay-themed movies are usually at opposite ends of the movie store Breakfast promises to provide a diverse and refreshing way to envision the concept of the contemporary North American family. A child’s flamboyance will test and teach a very conventional male couple something about what it means to have a different gender presentation than what is expected. Though a separate issue, this has been a core issue for gay people around the world and a prejudice new heteronormative pseudo-dads Eric and Sam must learn to overcome if they are to truly understand not only their own community and history, but their loved ones as well.
