Following the US Supreme Court’s federal ruling on marriage equality, and Ireland’s referendum on the same, Jenny’s Wedding will be released in what might seem like perfect timing. Katherine Heigl plays Jenny, a girl with an average American household with a few traditional ideas. They love her but routinely urge her to find someone and get married. They are unaware that she actually has found someone: Kitty, played by Alexis Bledel. The story is about the family coming to terms with a member who is not the person she was perceived, nor the person she presented herself as.
Jenny’s Wedding is a strange offering even at an early stage. Being released so soon after these landmark rulings almost seems old-fashioned already. More than that, the issues of violence and legal representation continue to blight the LGBT community the world over, including in the US. As Bryce Covert (a contributor for The Nation & Economic Policy Editor at Think Progress) noted on the eve of the US ruling, “Important reminder: gay people can now marry in every state but aren’t protected from discrimination in many of them.”. Of course, judgement must be reserved but localised to white, middle-class suburbia, this movie looks to be offering a vision that is particularly safe and rose-tinted.
What are your hopes for Jenny’s Wedding? What questions does it still pose as to the representation of LGBT people in feature films? Or in popular culture generally? Let us know what you think in the comments!
