Name: Standing on the Line
Genre: Documentary
Cast: Anastasia Bucsis, David Testo

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Arissa M

Paul Émile d'Entrement's 2018 documentary Standing on the Line showcased many different people and interviewed their experiences being an athlete and part of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. There were various point of views and takes on the subjects of acceptance, toxic masculinity and how they've all came out to their families, friends and teams. As per the monocultures, in order to be a male, one must be assertive, dominant, and strong; if one displays emotional openness and respect for others, they are considered weak. This is toxic masculinity and unfortunately has poisoned the minds and viewpoints of many people. Through this documentary, I learnt that everyone's experiences are all different but as shocking and heart wrenching as everyone else's. I sympathize and praise the bravery of those battling the internal conflict to come out and try to be accepted in an environment that had a different picture of them in their minds. It must be such a difficult and traumatic experience but I've learnt that once they've come out then it is such a weight off of their shoulder. Several people in this documentary have commented that their performance have improved in their sport, they're finally able to sleep at night and they feel like a huge weight has been lifted off of their shoulders. While all the stories were all impactful in their own ways, I felt drawn to the story of Brock McGillis. He is a former professional hockey player and was interviewed as a hockey coach to the youth who is gay. His story was particularly impactful because his coming out wasn't necessarily a sit down talk, but in a way that everyone already knew. His parents comment that they knew ever since he was young and the parents on his hockey team comment that they've known and wanted to set him up on a date with a guy named Steve. The way he explained himself made me tear up because you can tell through his words that it was an enormous shock to realize that this weight on his shoulders had been lifted off and the realization of his team sticking by his side and accepting him no matter his sexual orientation mattered so much to him. I would give this film an 8/10 because it wouldn't necessarily be something I would pick to watch but I'm glad I did. I'm grateful to have witnessed the first hand interviews and experiences from different people battling through their hard times. I learnt a lot from this documentary and it changed the way I see toxic masculinity and how different people are affected in their sports because of it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/02/23

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Paul Émile D'Entremont

Director

Anastasia Bucsis

Actor

David Testo

Actor

Paul Émile D'Entremont

Writer

Christine Aubé

Producer

Jac Gautreau

Producer

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Synopsis

Today, to be gay and an athlete remains taboo, even dangerous. When the desire to come out conflicts with the values of teammates, coaches and families, athletes are burdened with the weight of secrecy in an already mentally exhausting environment.

Director: Paul Émile D'Entremont
Producer: Michèle Bélanger, Dominic Desjardins
Screenwriter: Paul Émile D'Entremont
Production Co: National Film Board of Canada
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 23, 2020
Runtime: 1h 20m

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