My Life As LGBTQ+: Volume 1

Hotel Transylvania 2

HOLY FUCKING SHIT, THUS MOVIE WAS TEN TIMES BETTER THAN EXPECTED.

SO ME AND GREY WENT TO SEE HT2 TODAY AND BASICALLY THE ENTIRE MOVIE WAS A BIG METAPHOR ABOUT KIDS BEING IN THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY AND HOW THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM ACT/THINK OF THEM.

I HIGHLY SUGGEST GOING TO SEE THIS MOVIE IF YOU CAN, ITS ALSO FUNNY.

Okay so, the plot of the story is that Dracula (main character) has a grandchild, and you don't know if he is a human or a vampire (Because the mom was a vampire but the dad was human). He only has until he turns five to grow fangs, and if he doesn't then you'll know he's human.

Dracula basically spends half the movie trying to teach his grandson (Dennis) how to be a vampire and kind of forces that life upon him. At one point, he even says "I've got to fix this kid, now!". Meanwhile, the human half of the entire family is trying to get him to be human and 'normal', and the mom just wants him to fit in and not get made fun of.

*SPOILER ALERT*

So Dennis's mom eventually finds out that Dracula is trying to 'force' him into becoming a vampire, and she makes the final decision to move to California (The place where the human-father was raised). She scolds her father (Dracula) for not accepting Dennis as he is, even though Dracula had said previously that "No matter what he is, a vampire, a human, a unicorn, I will love him" and she also says this to him, "Maybe you've let humans into your hotel, Dad, but I don't think you've let them into your heart". They plan to move right after Dennis's fifth birthday party at Hotel Transylvania.

At the birthday party, the mother invites Dennis's great-grandfather (A vampire), even though Dracula warned her that he wouldn't be accepting of a human/vampire relationship (Which he wasn't at first). He tries to scare the fangs out of Dennis, and it ends up with a big fight between everyone because everyone wants what's best for Dennis, but unfortunately their ideas of what's best for him are all very different.

Dennis ends up feeling sad and escaping, and gets attacked by one of his great-grandfathers minions. When his friend that was with him gets hurt, he suddenly grows fangs and defeats the minion (as well as the rest that come shortly after). They end up staying in Transylvania because he ends up as a vampire, and they continue the party all happy.

So, how does this relate to growing up as LGBTQ+ you might ask?

For starters, imagine that Dennis being human represents being gay/bi/trans etc., and him being a vampire represents being straight/cisgender etc. This is what it's like, in Dracula's eyes. The moment Dracula realizes that Dennis hasn't 'grown his fangs' or for instance, 'had a girlfriend/shown attraction to girls', he goes crazy trying to "fix" him and force him to be something he's not. This happens so often in situations where a child is gay and the parents do everything to try to 'fix' him. they send him to conversion camps, force him to date girls, and just overall make it seem like being gay is not an option, or that its the bad one.

Now imagine being human represents being straight/cisgender etc. and being a vampire represents being gay/bi/trans etc. At one point in the movie, Dennis's mom and dad go to visit California to see if it is a suitable place to raise Dennis. They visit the dad's family, and while they're there they invite other vampire/human couples and try to make the bedroom as 'vampirey' as possible so the mother would feel comfortable. In this situation, it is made out to seem like being a vampire is 'out of the norm' and that its not want they want Dennis to be. The mother just wants Dennis to fit in and feel accepted, unlike how she felt abnormal and weird when she was young because she is a vampire.

At the end, Dracula learns to accept Dennis for who he is, and Dennis's great-grandfather learns to accept the fact that humans and vampires can get along now. This kind of shows how even people who are homophobic/transphobic etc. can have their viewpoints changed and learn to love and accept everyone.

If you've seen this movie and have any more to add, please comment your thoughts!