Jenny’s Wedding

Are you guys ready for some Homosexuality 101? Because that’s what Jenny’s Wedding is. This is definitely a lesbian film for straight people. Not in a bad way necessarily; it very nicely holds the hand of the assumed-straight audience and walks them through what it means to be a lesbian and that you should accept them. Is it a little basic for me, a practicing homosexual? Absolutely. But hey, maybe you need a lesbian film to show an elderly relative who’s trying to be supportive but needs the whole “gay thing” to be explained nicely to them by an inoffensive movie. Basically, you’re not gonna show your grandma Blue is the Warmest Colour but you could probably show her Jenny’s Wedding.

Jenny’s Wedding is about Jenny and her girlfriend Kitty who get engaged. Jenny is not out to her parents, currently referring to kitty as her “roommate”. Standard hi-jinks caused by assumptions of heterosexuality ensue before Jenny officially comes out to them. Jenny’s traditional parents who’ve dreamed of their daughter’s wedding struggle with the whole two brides thing. There’s much inter-family angst as her parents come to terms (or don’t) with Jenny’s sexuality and upcoming wedding.

Honestly, I don’t have anything more to say about this movie other than my previous statement that it’s Homosexuality 101. The leads are two straight-passing, white, generally non-threatening looking lesbians. Their relationship is mostly just a lot of hand-holding and emotional support. It’s the kind of lesbian relationship where other characters might make lesbian sex jokes but the two actual lesbians don’t even hint at a sexual relationship with each other. This film does everything in its power to make the lesbians palatable for a straight audience who the filmmakers clearly don’t assume much of.

I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it either. Most other films that are made for a straight audience but feature queer leads require those leads to die or at least have a very, very bad life. It seems like filmmakers assume that’s the only way the straights will feel for us.

This one definitely does angst but it’s not like, societal pressures ultimately kills their relationship or one of them dies. Instead, the angst is because Jenny’s family initially don’t accept her. By the end of the movie though, many family members have become more accepting. The family members who aren’t are portrayed as being in the wrong. And it ends with a happy, gay wedding rather than death and sadness.

Again, for a practicing gay, this film is so basic. I cannot overstate how much this film handholds its audience through lesbianism. But for baby dykes and straight family members, this film might be a good place to start. It even uses Mary Lambert’s song She Keeps Me Warm for fuck’s sake. You don’t get more Homosexuality 101 than that.

Overall rating: 4.4/10

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