PRAYERS FOR BOBBY! OUTFEST 2009
Until last night Alek and I did not get the chance to see Prayers for Bobby when it aired on Lifetime back in January. This movie based on a true story features an incredible Sigourney Weaver as Mary Griffith.
Mary Griffith is a devout Christian who raises her children with the conservative teachings of the Presbyterian Church. When her son Bobby confides to his older brother he may be gay, life changes for the entire family. Mary believes that God can cure him of what she considers his "sin" and desperately tries to rid him of his homosexuality which leads to Bobby jumping off a freeway bridge into the path of an oncoming eighteen-wheeler truck killing him instantly.
This is the story of a young gay man gone too soon and the journey of a mother questioning herself and her church's interpretation of Scripture.
On the picture above the real Bobby with his mum and below Ryan Kelley in the role of Bobby.
This is such a powerful movie. It echoed so many things of my personal life. Not that my parents were religious but it's about acceptance and love, which is something we're all looking for no matter what our background is. Bobby is so many of us, Bobby could have been me when I questioned myself, Bobby could be any kid whose self-esteem is crashed to the ground.
I do rarely share what is personal to us on OhLaLa, but we do receive a lot of letters from gay kids from all over the world thanking us for doing what we do, which at first surprised me, but I realized that it is not about what we post on this site but more about who we are as two men loving eachother and being able to live the life we wanted.
Sometimes I take things for granted, but I remember when I was a kid in my bedroom not knowing what my life will be, not knowing if someone out there will ever be able to love me ... I would have loved at that time to see the things kids can see today. But I was strong like so many of us and just knew deep in me that I was going to be OK.
Sometimes in life we feel connected to people we never have met, and after watching this movie I felt like Bobby is a part of my life. The final scene of the film features the song "Here I Am", by Leona Lewis, which did not help my sobbing.
There will be a screening of Prayers for Bobby at the Outfest Festival here in Los Angeles on July 19th. You can get more information and book your ticket HERE. Panelists will include executive producers Daniel Sladek, David Permut and Chris Taaffe, screenwriter Katie Ford, Ryan Kelley ('Bobby'), Scott Bailey ('David') and PFLAG National Executive Director Jody Huckaby.
You can watch the trailer below. And for those who haven't seen this movie and will not be in Los Angeles on July 19th, you can watch the movie in the second part of the post, it is divided in 9 youtube videos. Not the best way to experience it but better than nothing.
