Rock Hudson’s Home Movies ignited two ideas in my mind, one after the other: First, the belief that film can be the ultimate form of narcissism, in the sense that it is a film about Rock Hudson, narrated by "Rock Hudson". Then, that film can be a tool to preserve not only beauty and youth, but also the safety that so often accompanies such qualities in the eyes of viewers. Rock Hudson had AIDS, and what is presented as blatant narcissism and vanity (his fawning over his own goods looks and youthfulness, detached from a socially acceptable sense of modesty) could also be read as a fair response to the fear that surrounded sex, sexuality, and disease at the time of his diagnosis and eventual death. Perhaps it wasn’t that Hudson was obsessed with preserving his youth or beauty. Maybe Hudson was fascinated with film’s ability to allow him to step outside of the (then) interpretations of his identity. Here it seems that historical understandings of AIDS and homosexuality are presented as at par with a cultural obsession with youth and beauty. What Rock Hudson’s character presents to us in this film is the cultural fascination with revealing evidence that plagues the identities of public figures. For Hudson, this included his illness, his sexuality, and the fleeting nature of his youthful good looks. His character points out what the media would have liked to have discovered on its own: his difference. Rock Hudson’s Home Movies points out the split between a heteronormative projection of a masculine Hudson (the ideal man that was his public image, as well as his typecasting as characters desired by women), and a more feminine or docile Hudson (his roles that allowed him to earn the trust of females while always remaining single), suggesting that sexual embarrassment is often used for comedic value. Having Hudson point out this divide between the characters he has played makes it seem as though he did, in fact, have a dirty secret he was hiding from the world, and laughing about on his own time. However, by pointing this out himself, his public identity could be re-read as having gained back some of the power that was lost after his difference was originally ‘caught’ by the media.
Written by: Marlee
Rock Hudson's Home Movies is an example of how authorship can affect the reading of a film. Had Rock Hudson's Home Movies not been viewed and a number of Hudson's movies not viewed through a queer lens, many of the students in class would have continued to watch his movies without a thought to his sexuality. It seems that it is easy to not question a man's sexuality when he plays a straight man; while it is very easy and common to question a man's sexuality when he plays a queer character. Had Hudson not been openly gay with AIDS, the scenes focused on in his films would go unnoticed. It seems that there could be similar scenes found in movies with openly straight actors.
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