Comments on: My BIID-centric review of Quid Pro Quo

By: Roger

Roger — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 19:59:11 +0000

The movie was not perfect but it did at least try to address BIID in a (semi) mainstream film for the first time.

I am still waiting for a Region 2 (Europe/UK) DVD version to buy, although I did see an on-line copy of the film some months ago.

By: Claire

Claire — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 12:15:18 +0000

Hey “Your Name”. :o) I’m actually fascinated that you were so interested in the film’s subject matter that you’d seek out this place and post here. Welcome! I’d email you, but you didn’t leave your email address. Feel free to contact me via this site’s “contact” form.

By: Your Name

Your Name — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 09:22:31 +0000

Fascinating. I’m not going to lie. Before this film, I had no idea that this was an actual…disorder. I had not a single clue that there were people who were dealing with these kinds of feelings. I just saw the film, and I found a link on its wikipedia article to this page. I liked the film. I felt that it falls off a bit in the second half- telegraphic its payoff a bit too obviously and a bit too early. However, I can’t lie that it was well-acted and involving. I thought that the character of Fiona wasn’t mean to portray the way that these people ALL are. I think that maybe its because her own problems seemed rooted in a personal trauma and in guilt than in anything else.

Then again, you could tell me that there are plenty of people in your community who have similar reasons for feeling how they feel. I’m utterly fascinated, and you can feel free to email me. I’m horribly curious, but aware of your need for privacy as well.

By: Julia

Julia — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 04:38:33 +0000

Interesting to read you find Fiona psychopathic - I think she’s downright abusive. The situation about her taking his shoes away is only one example. I don’t understand her motives at all, and I’ve seen the film twice by now (the second time attempting to understand her/the film better).

I must say I disagree about the people not being attractive - I think this film is closer to the Gaussian distribution than most others are. I think Fiona is attractive (even though I don’t like her character) and the black man in the group, too, and also there’s a younger man who doesn’t say anything in the group (I think) who looks good on the outside ;)
Usually actors are so much more beautiful on the outside than people in real life would be, so I take this as one of the positive aspects of that film, being closer to reality, just showing “normal” people.
As for being creeps, well, that’s something different, even good-looking people can be creeps ;)

By: Rorschach

Rorschach — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:36 +0000

I realize that the meeting place felt run down and musty but I think that this was done more for cinematic effect than anything else. The writer, in my interpretation, was trying to convey where these kind of discussions happen which typically has been the Yahoo! groups often in poorly maintained groups (TA.org being an exception) with very little web traffic which in some sense is the internet equivalent to what was shown there.

I felt that the members of the group looked rather plain, average, and quite accurate to life. Of course a bit more on the destitute end which I think was again a judgment call made for enhancing the cinematic effect previously mentioned. Having everyone look like they were of middle or lower class helps to create an emotional impression implying that this is secretive, hidden, out of the way and anything but mainstream (which I would say is fairly accurate).

I would have personally preferred that “we” look better (though the guy in the black hat looked like a hotter version of Stumpy {Don’t worry Stumpy, I don’t have a thing for you.]) and all be meeting at someone’s house for a meeting sort of like the shown in Transamerica.

Quid Pro Quo, while being a good movie is not a good introduction to BIID or the TA community, though it is rather silly to expect it to be. However it is an introduction and in that it gains importance. For a first try I must say it wasn’t bad though there is always room for improvement.