Episode 005: But I’m a Cheerleader
“A naive teenager is sent to rehab camp when her straitlaced parents and friends suspect her of being a lesbian.”
Directed by Jamie Babbit, she had been looking to create something that they had wanted to see in media but that nobody else was making. The final version of the film is not actually the film that the director had original hoped for, as there was double standards around what was seen as too sexual for this film due to its queer focus!
This week we are reviewing But I’m a Cheerleader, a 1999 film about a teenager being sent off to a conversion camp by her parents. And this episode I am joined by the one and only Sister Alaska Lott to also get their thoughts on this lovely bit of queer media. As such, the points written below are a mash-up of both our opinions, as we both had quite similar feelings on this film as you will find out ;)
You can either listen to the podcast above, or you can read below for a majority of the transcript of the podcast! Now as always, our discussion will begin with a brief summary of the film followed by spoiler free thoughts and feelings. This will be followed by an in-depth discussion of some of the key plot points that occurred and we will then finish off with my overall rating of the film and a heads up about what we are looking at next time. If you have not had a chance to watch But I’m a Cheerleader and don’t want to hear any spoilers, then please feel free to skip the detailed section and listen to it afterwards if you so wish.
While watching queer films growing up as a teenager, there did seem to be a period when films would have a certain aesthetic behind them that gave the impression of having a budget but it not being very big. So not super glossy but better than a camera held by a bunch of film students, and so there is a real nostalgia feeling when going back to re-watch this film. Some of the aesthetic choices in the film also seem very deliberate which will be touched on more in the spoiler filled section.
The film does seem to be a caricature of society at the time, holding up a mirror to both gender roles and stereotypes. In this way it is essentially framing itself to be deliberately ridiculous, keeping its tongue firmly in its cheek. However, as well as being set up as a comedy, the film also has a more serious side to it due to the main topic it looks at: Conversion Therapy (or as we know it, Conversion Therapy). It’s interesting that a film from over 20 years ago is still relevant today, as conversion therapy is something being debated in the UK just now with a consultation out around the topic but also recent headlines on the Conservative government’s mishandling of the entire process. So, with this film we also get quite a satirical look at a very serious topic for the queer community.
In terms of representation, the film does not have the most accurate representations of the queer community, but that is not the purpose of the film. The film is set up instead to give a snapshot of things and to poke fun at some aspects of society and as such, the film does play into some stereotypes that have not aged very well. It is true what they say, art never withstands the test of time as there is some dated 90’s aspects to the film when it leans on these stereotypes. But as we are looking through this with a lens of satire, things are slightly easier to not take too seriously.
Since there is the ability to get more depth from the film with its symbolism, it allows the watcher to go beyond the surface level of just presenting stereotypes of the queer community, and instead get new insights on multiple viewings of the film. And as the film can be quite charmingly cliché at times, it is something that is very easy to watch multiple times.
As one example of getting new meanings upon multiple viewings, there is one character that could be read as not cis gendered. This is left vague though so it can go either way with the viewer, but the key thing we learn from this character is to not assume someone’s sexuality based on how they present themselves to the world. In fact, it’s a lesson we should all be aware of not to pre-judge people on any facet of their lives solely based upon their appearance!
This is also the first piece of camp media that has been covered in the podcast! In the UK we are used to quite a bit of camp (especially as it is historically a large part of the UK drag scene) so it is always welcome to see camp represented on the big screen, even more so from when it is other parts of the world producing the film as it helps us get different viewpoints on the camp experience.
Final Feelings and Recommendation
Sister Alaska Lott would definately pass you their copy of the film since it is very light-hearted, a good comedy, and overall quite a positive film for our queer characters in the end. Sister Babeushka agrees, especially since it does have some good re-watchability to it! P.s. We have heard there is a musical that might also be worth checking out if you want a more modern and all singing and dancing version of this film!
Overall, we both gave this 7 out of 10 pom poms as it is a cult classic for a reason, and even if it does have some dated aspects that can be done a bit better by more modern media, it is a film with a lot of re-watchability that is still fun and enjoyable.
SPOILERS AHEAD
Now, just a reminder that at this point, I will be going into a more detailed analysis of the film which means there will be spoilers! If you haven’t managed to watch But I’m a Cheerleader yet and you don’t want anything spoiled, then this is your last chance to avoid the discussion. Or you can go ahead and close the page, go watch the film and then come back afterwards to finish reading. I promise we won’t mind. Still here? Well then, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
There is a certain absurdity to the whole idea of an intervention which requires Megan’s boyfriend and friends to steal ‘evidence’ of her apparent queerness to confront her with. Not only is this quite a betrayal of Megan’s trust with these people, but when it takes place there isn’t even a feeling of “Oh no I am caught” but instead Megan still doesn’t know what the concern from people is. It gives us the fact that people are intrinsically just who they are and she has not yet had the time to process who she actually is before people have come up with their own conclusions.
Through this experience we see that society has this unrelenting need to define and label people to know how to deal with that individual. In this we see society choosing a sexuality that they feel best fits being thrust upon Megan rather than allowing her the space for her own self-discovery of her own label, which is against the principle that people need to be given the time to understand themselves rather than being dictated to by wider society about how they should identify. In fact, the whole concept of coming out be slightly silly at times since it treats it as if all people should have a label they need to declare, however people are more complex and fluid than this simplistic approach. Labels won’t always fit neatly on to people as humanity works on wide spectrums, and there is never a clear-cut line between straight, lesbian, gay, or any other options out there!
Once we get to the camp True Directions (oh and what a name that is after the hype of a certain boyband ;) ), we are introduced to a range of different teens, all of whose parents have decided that ‘Gay is not OK’. And from this we get a range of stereotypes presented to us, with the most interesting side character being Jan. Not only are they key for reminding the viewer that gender presentation does not equal sexuality, but they can also be read as a character who is not cis and may even be intersex, giving us some nuance on not just sexuality but gender identity too.
The film itself has a very distinct visual style which does contain a lot of importance and meaning which might have been missed when the film first came out since there was quite a bit of criticism on its initial release. Although we are aware of the bright bold primary colours that we are exposed to at True Directions of the blue for boys and pink for girls, there is another colour scheme aspect before this. The straight world has quite a reduced colour palette, being primarily made of browns and beiges. The exception to this is our main character Megan, who appears in yellow when not forced into the hetero-normative colours at True Directions, almost as if she is trying to conform into the straight world but not quite managing to pull this off.
Another interesting aspect of the camp is that it contains a lot of fakery. This ranges from the flowers that we see the camp director Mary planting at one point, to the cars and vacuums the teenagers interact with being non-functional, to even the bedspreads that people are sleeping on being shiny plastic sheets. It’s interesting to have all this fakery around the conversion camp since we know that you can’t ex-gay someone and so everything that is done at True Directions is as fake as the surrounding pieces of the environment. Conversion therapy, when you scratch the shiny surface of it is all fake, only providing more trauma for those that have been involved in it and not actually making a difference to that person’s sexuality.
When we get to the teenagers sneaking out to the gay bar, we enter an interesting section as the film as there is a completely different aesthetic and feel to this section when compared to the rest of the film. After we have spent most of our time in the film getting to see how ridiculous the heterosexual world can be when it is forced upon us, we get to have a different viewpoint on how to live our lives which is further symbolised by the change in aesthetic. In this we also see one of the most emotionally balanced pair of adults in the gay couple, as they have chosen to live their own lives without pushing an agenda and are much more fulfilled and well-rounded for this.
When we are sneaking out to the gay bar, this is shortly after Megan has already betrayed two of her fellow campers when she caught them making out, showing that she is starting to buy into the narrative she is being force-fed. However, she is then being quickly exposed to people who are not willing to drink the Kool-Aid and so it creates an interesting contrast for her and acts as a real period of growth and learning. And at this point of learning, it is where the love between Megan and Graham properly blossoms.
However just as quickly we are then back to True Directions the next day for a horrible bit of hate picketing fellow queer people, with it in fact being targeted at the queer people they had been out at the gay club with the night before. In this case not only are the kids being taught how to be straight, but they are also actively being encouraged to hate people for no justifiable reason. This very quick turnaround of bonding with people in a meaningful way to then actively hurling abuse at them must be such a head fuck for these teenagers! And as a side note, the sign “Dicks are for Chicks” is brilliant since that can clearly be taken more than one way if you have your trans reading glasses on ;)
The end of the film we have the graduation for those that have made it to the end of the course to become ex-gay with all the teenagers’ parents invited along to celebrate this ‘miracle’. While we see this being set up, we also see Dolph and Megan planning to go back and save their respective partners from making a toxic choice and to encourage them to live their authentic lives. And during this rescue attempt, we see two very different reactions. Clayton comes along almost immediately with Dolph, even taking time to make-out, while Graham actually resists the attempt under the scrutiny of both her parents and the camp directors’ eyes. In fact, Megan not only asks her to come with her but even does a very cringey cheer in her cheerleader outfit, all while facing down the heckles from Mary and the glares from the other parents gathered there. It’s interesting to see those two different reactions from Clayton and Graham since there isn’t one single path to self-acceptance and at times this can take several different attempts before we can be sure of who we are.
Yet as the director wanted to see, we do actually get a happy ending to the film with Graham running to the truck and choosing to be her true self with Megan. Then just when we think the film is over, we get a sneaky wee mid-credits scene of Megan’s father introducing people to a friends and family of homosexuals meeting. It shows us that at some undefined time from Megan and Graham’s escape from True Directions, her father has managed to change and decide to be a decent parent to his child and accept her for who she is. It’s another cherry on top of the happy ending, and although there is a desire to know how this played out, the key focus of this piece of media has been Megan’s journey of self-discovery.