TRC: Ep. 86 In & Out (Feat. Comedian Ricky Glore)

The Recasting Couch Movie Podcast

This (last?) week’s episode is (was?) Glore-ious. Get it? Oh man, I’m doing way too much here. Either way it was rad. We had the very funny Ricky Glore (@rickyglore) on the show to talk about the movie In & Out. Kevin Kline does some very Kevin Kline things, and absolutely crushes his role as Howard Brackett, a flamboyant English teacher in a high school in Anytown, USA (actually the fictional town of Greenleaf, Indiana), whose former pupil Cameron Drake (Matt Dillon) outs him as a gay man to the surprise of the entire community, including Howard himself. Tom Selleck also stops by to drop a surprisingly good performance as Peter Malloy, a sleazy, TMZ/Inside Edition, Hollywood gossip leach who eventually convinces Howard that he’s actually gay. Not that it took that much convincing because Howard is definitely gay. The ensemble cast is rounded out by Joan Cusack, who just nails it as Howard’s frustrated beard bride-to-be. Debbie Reynolds, Wilfred Brimley, and Bob Newhart are just a few of the others that help create this great community that is reacting to this “earth shattering news” (for 1997).

During the show, we ponder just how well this movie holds up from a contemporary standpoint. Ricky gives us his perspective, and that of his brother that has been out of the closet for some time. Ultimately, we feel like this is certainly a positive portrayal of gay people and gay culture, but that’s where it ends. Unfortunately, it was perhaps too early in the gay rights movement to allow for a more sexualized version of Howard to emerge, because the only thing they focus on in this movie is his lifestyle. We aren’t exactly begging for a graphic sex scene, but it takes more than just a fondness for Streisand and pressed clothes to determine one’s sexuality. However, that is apparently a decision the writer specifically made in order to gently ease the larger public into the gay culture, and farbeit from us to challenge the decision, given the success of the movie, and its place in popular culture at the time.

Thanks again for listening. We’ve got some fun stuff in the very near future. If you are going to be at Philadelphia Comic Con Friday, April 12th, check out Mike on the 1:00 panel for improving movies. If you are a die-hard TRC listener, then you may be familiar with the subject matter. If you get a chance, leave us a 5-star rating on your podcast app of choice. This helps spread the word so more people can discover the show and join the recasting craze. If you want to chat about recasting or movies in general, find us on twitter @recastingpod . If you have any movies you’d like us to recast or any mailbag questions, email us at [e-mail]. You all are the friggin’ best. Stay gold Pony Boy.