Yossi and Jagger (2002/2003)
I don't know very much about the
Middle East and, to be honest, I really don't want
to know. I'm ignorant by choice, I guess you could
say. It seems the tensions over there, fueled by religious
differences and intolerance, will never end. So why
bother?
"Yossi and Jagger" is set in the
Middle East. The characters are all soldiers and serve
a country that has a blue Jewish Star of David on
a white field for their flag. I'm so ignorant of the
Middle East, I don't even know what country that would
be. But, of course, it doesn't matter, because "Yossi
and Jagger" could be taking place in any army, even
the United States Army, and the story it presents
would play out pretty much in the same manner. It's
pretty easy to understand, especially if you are gay.
Yossi is the commander of a troop,
what we might call the Captain, and Jagger, whom is
also called Lohri, is his second in command. It doesn't
take long at all for us to realize the two are lovers.
In a short sixty-five minute film, the filmmaker,
Eytan Fox, doesn't waste a lot of time. Soldiers in
a war zone, as we know, don't usually have a lot of
time to waste. So, within five minutes of the opening
of this piece, the two men are alone and frolicking
in the snow in a lover's game.
The film is well made, well acted
and tightly edited. Nothing much happens and yet the
film is full of events. Fox, a respected filmmaker
in his homeland (whose name is sometimes spelled Fuchs)
is really good at creating all the interconnected
dots in the film. There are a lot of subtle parts
of the story and Fox makes it very clear what is going
on here. This is a nice tight little film that seems
to tell a simple story but it is fueled by much more
subtle nuances and sidelong glances, more so than
your average film, at least.
And even more remarkable is the
music in the film. The nice techno oriented tunes
make the film not only emotionally but also compelling.
This is just foreign enough to give the film a little
flair while also exposing us to the music on another
country that is quite amazing. I'd love to have the
soundtrack to this film if it ever is available in
the states.
Anyway, as the film unspools, by
spending a single day with the company, we learn the
nature of the titular couple's relationship as well
as the intentions of some of the secondary characters.
As for the commander, Yossi is still closeted. He
doesn't want anyone to know he is gay, not even after
the war is over. He is still struggling with his identity.
Jagger, on the other hand, while not open in the army,
is more free and easy about his nature. Jagger wants
to travel with Yossi, to stay in a hotel room with
only one bed. He wants Yossi to meet his parents.
Jagger is a wonderful, fun, open, honest, caring person.
Yossi, while more closeted and serious, has a loving
nature as well and the men seem like a perfect fit.
Their love for one and other is obvious. Their tensions,
while hopefully a bit outdated for American gays,
are certainly relevant to gay relationships in most
of the world and certainly ones that many American
gays can relate to.
In a country in the Middle East,
I can only imagine, a film like "Yossi and Jagger"
must be quite bold and daring. For us, in a somewhat
more politically safe part of the world (although
it seems more and more unsafe every day), in a place
where we presume to have more freedom, a film like
"Yossi and Jagger" seems a bit obvious and a little
"message" oriented. But it reminds us of how far we've
come, and how far we've still to go. With very few
exceptions, this really could be an American film.
Our "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy is a joke. And
while a military with open sexuality allowed would
obviously have problems, there would quite possibly
be benefits as well. "Yossi and Jagger" show us just
how close a commander must feel to his men and how
sending them into battle, no matter how close he is
to them, is a job he must undertake at times. Yossi
sends his lover Jagger into battle. The two men understand
they are soldiers first, lovers second.
The epilogue of "Yossi and Jagger"
is a sweet and poignant moment. We like these two
men and we have feelings for what they are going through.
At the end of the film, we understand there is not
a moment to be lost to fear, especially to the fear
of coming out or to the fear of society. Yossi, especially,
suddenly understands this all too well.
Some ideas are universal, no matter
where you live or what your religion is. A film about
love during wartime reminds us that the war to be
free to love is still being fought every day... nearly
everywhere.
Notes:
An Israeli film in Hebrew with subtitles.
Purportedly based on a true story.
Gays have been allowed to serve in the Israeli army
since 1985.
Yehuda Levi, who plays Jagger, is
apparently one of Israel's biggest film heartthrobs
and although this film was made for Israeli cable
TV, the film was instead released theatrically and
did great business.
A singer named "Rita" is mentioned
in the film and music said to be by her is important
to the plot. I assume this is a real Israeli singer,
somewhat the equivalent of Madonna.
Released in 2002 in Israel, Strand
Releasing is distributing it to arthouses in the US
beginning September, 2003.
I thought that Jagger might be pronouced
with a "Y" sound, like Yaeger, but it is indeed with
a hard "J" sound, as in Mick Jagger's name.
Viewed on 8/26/03 at the Metropolitan
Theater in Austin as a part of Agliff 2003 (Day 6).
Notes on Agliff 2003 - Day 6
I'm really impressed with the films
at Agliff this year. I have not seen one film, not
even a short, that I didn't like. Films like this
one and "My
life on Ice," and "Gender
Bias" have just been amazing. This film was preceded
by the interesting short documentary "Foxhole."
Scott Dinger, Agliff Artistic Director,
got up and did a few announcements before the showing
including the news that "Gone but Not Forgotten" would
be shown during a TBA slot during the forthcoming
weekend. He also mentioned that there would be a free
screening of "Fluff" over the weekend because of the
problem with the sound during the showing on Saturday.
I thought this was a wonderful PR move on the part
of Agliff. I was really impressed.
The Agliff 2003 trailer is getting
a little boring because us festival fans have seen
it so many times. But an amazing "cult" aspect has
begun to appear. When Bruce Weatherford shushes some
lesbians in front of him during a scene, some of us
in the audience have begun to go "Shhhh" with him.
It's fun and adds a whole new dimension to the trailer.
I watched this film alone but after
the film I saw Craig in the lobby. I just didn't want
to seem to pushy, so I didn't say Hi. I know it's
dumb but I like him so much, I just don't want him
to think I'm obsessing or anything, so I didn't talk
to him. I was also still in a pretty depressed mood
from the "John" situation.
Anyway, a got a big smile on my
face when I was driving home and my cell rang and
the number display said "Craig!" (We had exchanged
cell numbers the night before driving to Starseeds
in case he got lost).
Now... I feel bad because I lied
to Craig and told him I hadn't seen him there that
night when, in fact, I had. For one thing I was driving
and it was hard to hear each other and, therefore,
it was just too hard to explain to him my weird reasons
for not saying Hi. I couldn't figure out exactly how
to explain to him that I wanted to give him space
so he doesn't feel smothered by our newfound friendship.
Like I say, I was delighted he called me. That made
me so happy. He's such a sweet guy. I'm sure he'll
forgive me once I explain my reason for fibbing, which
I will have to do in person.
I went home and my roomie Amanda
and I ordered Dominoes and watched "Queer Eye" and
"Boy Meets Boy." The "QE" was the one where they help
the little gym rat who has the long blonde hair and
ends up looking like Bon Jovi. I love the "QE" guys.
They are so much fun and so beautifully engaging.
This is one of the greatest things ever to happen
to gay culture. (They also reran the second night
of "QE" on Jay Leno on this night, which I had forgot
to record the first time around, so I was glad to
get to see it. It was good but Jay Leno is such a
stupid straight guy. He's really a bit of a homophobe
and he doesn't even know it. What a square!).
I love Jai on "QE" by the way. I
cannot help it. I think back to before dating JK last
year, before the beauty of young gay men was made
obvious to me. A few short months ago, I wouldn't
have given a guy like Jai a second look. Now I am
so fucking into that! Jai is so fucking adorable and
seems like he would be so much fun to be around. God,
I love him. Stop me.
Amanda and I also caught the rebroadcast
of the second-to- last "Boy Meets Boy." I was boycotting
this show for the sake of principle but somehow I
got totally involved in it over the last couple weeks.
We are down to 3 guys and the news that one is straight
devastated James and his fag hag. I loved how they
took the news. James is such a class act - and classic
queen - he swallowed it. When they told him one of
the guys was straight, he was furious and yet he swallowed
it, took a breath, smiled and simply said, "Wow."
It was an amazing moment in television and in gay
history. He should have stormed off the show and told
them to go fuck themselves. Instead he remained calm
and a gentleman and his fag hag threw a fit for him.
Good for her!
So - who is straight?
Well, Wes is obviously gay, don't
you think? He has to be. No question of it. I think
James might pick Wes because he is the only one who
is obviously gay. I think Wes is adorable but he is
not what we call "LTR" material. The LTR stands for
Long Term Relationship and I don't see Wes as truly
the type who is ready to settle down. (He thinks he
is, which is another reason he is not). Still, if
James is smart, he will pick Wes, spend a wonderful
year or two with him and blow him off when the inevitable
break-up comes.
Brian - Amanda thinks he is the
straight guy. I don't. I think he is a shy guy who
grew up in a small Southern town and he just isn't
as open or as flamboyant as Wes. Brian and James could
live happily ever after. But, if I were James I wouldn't
stake my heart on picking Brian. There is a small
chance he is the straight guy and this could be devastating
to James (and us).
Franklyn - I think he's the straight
one. He's straight in the sense that he likes women
but will escort for a price and will let you fuck
him in the ass for an even higher price. In that sense,
yes, he is straight. Franklyn is as cute as hell and
not fem at all and it would be easy to fall in love
with him. (Remember also that on the last episode,
the producers made James pick one guy from the three
pairs that they lined up. The other guy who walked
up with Franklyn was the straight guy. By pairing
these two, they ensured one straight guy would be
in the final running in my book).
One thing is for sure - whoever
the straight guy is: SHAME ON HIM!
There is one other possibility that
no one has really mentioned and that is this: What
if the producers of the show have lied to us and to
James in order to insert more drama into the proceedings!
Imagine if all of the guys were indeed gay, their
last dates with James would have been so romantic
and he could have truly fell in love with one of them.
But because he was on the defensive, his whole manner
changed and he was not himself with the three guys.
I guess the producers think that it is far more interesting
to watch someone play detective than it is to watch
them be a Casanova.
The other thing this brings to mind
though is just how good gay guys are at being detectives,
or at least how good some of us are. When you are
gay (and live in the straight world), you meet guys
all the time who say they are "straight" and it often
takes a great deal of detective work to figure out
if they "can be had" or not. Just because someone
identifies as "straight" doesn't mean that they won't
engage in something that others would consider "gay"
with a guy that they truly like. (I kinda discussed
this in my review of "Camp"). So James, if he deals
at all with the straight world, in his social life
or his work, knows that sussing out a guy's true nature
and what he may or may not possibly "be" is much more
complicated than asking "Are you gay or are you straight?"
You know I'll be tuned in next week
to the conclusion of "Boy Meets Boy."
