Spin-Off Blogathon!

The amazingly awesome Sati at The Cinematic Corner created this really interesting Blogathon. If you'd like to partake, you can find the original article here.

Here are the rules:

1. Choose a character that you love and would like to see as a leading character in the movie and write why you chose this character and what that movie would be like 

2. Don't choose leading characters or supporting characters with lots of screentime, the goal is to focus on minor characters who have between 1-5 scenes. However if you really loved a character who is on screen for more than that, go for it.

MY CHOICE IS:

Billy Elliot was an Oscar nominated film by Stephen Daldry. It is set in a coal mining town, where almost all of the miners are on strike. People can barely afford to eat, and the only pass time for the young children are: school, boxing for boys, and ballet for girl's. This is a film about a young man named Billy Elliot, who chose to do ballet, and overcame all of the adversity that came with it. 

Michael Caffrey was Billy's best friend, who fully supported him in his efforts to become a ballet dancer. He is one of the kindest, most down to earth young men I've ever seen in a film. What makes him so interesting is the secret that he hides. 

Michael likes to dress in women's clothing, and wear make-up. Imagine the kind of inner conflict this poor boy had to deal with... and the social stigma that he would have to face in the future. He lives in a town filled with sexist, bigoted miners that believe men should act a certain way. What I loved most about Michael, was the way he could see the silver lining in everything. He was the one supporting Billy, even though it was he himself who faced greater troubles. There were many scenes where I just wanted to give him a hug, because life must have been very confusing for him. 

I would love to see a film about Michael, because there just aren't enough films that show the struggle of transgender children. 

If Stephen Daldry made a film dedicated to Michael's journey to acceptance, then that would be a ground-breaking and remarkable piece of cinema. *SPOILER*, By the end of the movie 'Billy Elliot', you see Michael all grown up wearing women's clothing and sitting next to what appears to be his boyfriend. He looks like he made it into some kind of art community, and... he just looked happy. Imagine how powerful this story could be for a young transgender child struggling to come to terms with their feelings. Now this is a character that would be remembered for generations to come.