Friday, April 14, 2017

Jason goes to SFFILM--Day 8

Another movie on Wednesday. This time the YouTube documentary of a YouTube star, THIS IS EVERYTHING: GIGI GORGEOUS. Born Gregory Allan Lazzarato, he was an outgoing boy (when he was a boy) and a champion diver. He was also a gender non-conformist, who did makeup tutorials online as Gregory Gorgeous. He didn't really surprise any of his family when he came out as gay. He did terribly confuse his dad David for a few seconds when he later announced he's not gay...then she explained she was transgender. And she started on the medical path to become Gigi Gorgeous.

I have to pause and give a shout-out to David Lazzarato, who is a very traditional, conservative father and if very open about his surprise at how Gigi's life as turned out, but has always been there to love and support her (even when he screws up and calls her Greg or uses male pronouns.) I don't have kids of my own, but he did make me think about how I'd feel if I were in his shoes. In my mind it came down to, 'Would I rather have a happy daughter or a miserable son?' And that answer was easy, and I suspect, without him saying it, that it was part of his thought process, too.

Anyway, back to Gigi, she's a woman now, and a celebrity. And good for her. She's vivacious, entertaining, and endlessly upbeat. She really appears to love her life (and own it...those are probably related.) That celebrity aspect is the other really fascinating aspect. Because in the past, people were celebrities for playing a role. Actors, of course. But even sports stars were famous for one skill they had, which hardly defines their entire character. So if you tell someone you met a celebrity, the first question they tend to ask is "What is she really like?" Well, with the YouTube generation, it's possible to become a celebrity for being yourself. I knew hardly anything about Gigi before seeing this movie. But I know enough that I can answer the question. What is she really like? Exactly what you see on YouTube.

Running Time: 92 minutes
My Total Minutes: 426,065

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