Making Love

1982 was my coming out year.I was 19...I had just embarked on my first gay relationship and it was a voyage of discovery living in London at that time. I used to frequent the Black Cap in Camden town..still a gay pub..and I remember it was abuzz with anticipation when this film came out. EVERYBODY talked about going to see it. Things are more mainstream and things just don't have that same 'buzz' any more. But 'Making Love' was OUR Brokeback mountain. The 80's were a great era in many ways..they were just the beginning and I am sure 'Making Love' went a long way to making gay people feel good about themselves. I did remember feeling sorry for Kate Jackson's character though..I think I even cried for her. But was pleased also for the guys to be so open. The film was an underrated one and deserved more recognition.

MAKING LOVE was dismissed as a rather routine melodrama despite its "controversial" subject. This is a pity, for this film is years ahead of its time in the frank and non-judgmental approach it takes to same-sex love. The on-screen kiss between Michael Ontkean and Harry Hamlin was in some ways the "shot heard round the world;" although not sexually explicit, this movie has clear and frank lovemaking scenes between the two men. This has yet to be duplicated in a mainstream Hollywood film; eleven years after MAKING LOVE, Hollywood gave us PHILADELPHIA, a "groundbreaking" film in which the lovers don't even kiss! This is progress?

Unappreciated in its time, MAKING LOVE has held up surprisingly well. Yes, it is a rather routine romance; except for the gender-switch, there isn't much here that is new or unusual. Yet, oddly, this is exactly what makes this film so appealing. Homosexuality is not seen as a problem except where it coincidentally creates one; the love triangle is handled in almost exactly the same way it would be if the husband had an affair with a woman. The stars are attractive and sympathetic and all give extremely appealing and deeply felt performances. If you saw it in 1982, it's worth a second (even third) look. If you've never seen it, it's a treat.

I don't understand the number of reviews that refer to this movie as being "ahead of its time." The time was clearly right for this movie. By 1980 the gay and lesbian community had finally become fed up with movies portrayal of homosexuals as either the predatory lesbian or the flamboyant faggot who best case ended up alone and bitter at the end of the movie or worst case ended up dead. When scripts for "Cruising" and "Windows" were leaked to the gay and lesbian community (with their depiction of gay men and lesbians as the underbelly of society, stalkers, and murders) there were attempts to disrupt location shoots and when the movies opened there were protests and boycotts (with posters saying "Stop Cruising" and "Close Windows"). I have to believe that this sent some sort of message to the studios, because two years later, 1982, "Making Love" was released (along with "Personal Best").

Though I don't believe this movie was ahead of its time, I do believe it to be groundbreaking. Prior to 1982 positive depictions of gay men and lesbians in film were either rare, covert, or nonexistent. 1980's "Happy Birthday, Gemini" was a positive (though not really well done) coming out comedy, but completely devoid of any even remotely sexual physical contact. What made "Making Love" (and "Personal Best") unique was not just that that they dealt with gay/lesbian subject matter in a more positive way, but that the characters actually had sex. After decades of heterosexual sex being portrayed as everything from curtains blowing in the wind to anal sex with butter in "Last Tango in Paris," this was the first time homosexuality in mainstream film was anything more than theoretical (though sex between Ontkean and Hamlin was portrayed more as a rolling around wrestling match than as the title "making love").

This film is flawed, it is soap opera like and melodramatic, and the documentary style talking to the camera scenes don't really work. But, there is no denying that it is a big step forward from the films of just two years before. It is a step that got us to the point where there now are characters in film who just happen to be gay and lesbian, because in society there are people who happen to be gay and lesbian. Even though it might not be a great film, it is an important film.

A few final comments about the actors. First, I never understood the common wisdom that "playing gay" would kill a career. If "Clash of the Titans" didn't kill Harry Hamlin's career nothing could. Second, I've always been disappointed in Kate Jackson's career. She became a TV star in an era where the crossover from TV to movies was difficult. Then she was unable to do "Kramer" because of "Charlie's Angles" obligations. Then she did this movie and her performance was ignored because it's not the sort of film that the Academy is going to recognize (and ironically she would have been up against Streep had she been nominated). I wish her better things than another "Satan's School for Girls" sequel.

I saw this when it first came out. I was 20. I had never seen a film about gay men before - except Boys in the Band - on late nite TV. That film scared me. This one made me feel good and positive about myself. It is warm and sad and happy and realistic. (well if we were all successful LA tyes, anyway) Credit goes to Ontkean and Hamlin for taking on these roles at the time. Jackson is terrific. She has a scene in the phone with her estranged father that makes you realize why she was first choice for Joanna Kramer in Kramer vs Kramer. Wish this would come out on dvd.

I believe that given this film was made in 1982, in the early stages of the AIDS epidemic, it IS groundbreaking.

For me, it was the film that helped a struggling 10 grader come to terms with his sexuality. Therefore, I recommend this film to anyone who wants to know what it is like to admit to yourself that you are in denial and being self-deceiving. It follows a man's journey through self-discovery and the unfortunate damage that this type of discovery can bring to a family, friends, and other loved ones, when the reality is finally admitted. Anyone who cannot see this for what it is may need to do some self-discovery work of his or her own to ascertain what is living just below the surface that is presented to the public.

Although the plot and story are a bit simplistic by today's standards, in its day it was revolutionary: a former TV star (Kate Jackson), up-and-coming hunkies star (Harry Hamlin), and the gorgeous guy next door type (Michael Ontkean). Even the sex scene between the men was too much for many in that time.

Al in all, I would say that it is not as bad as many have commented and it is not a tour-de-force of acting either. Just good, old-fashioned melodrama, American-style.