Making Love (1982) — Time Capsule of Bi-Sexual Erasure
How a progressive movie for its time reveals today’s misunderstanding of bi-sexuality.
For older millenials, director Arthur Hiller’s career was the backdrop of their at-home movie watching experiences. Visiting Hiller’s IMDb page took me back to the days of the video section of my dad’s liquor store. Each movie poster was designed to fit an 11x8 VHS box, to be displayed face forward in long rows on wire shelving. Taking Care of Business, Silver Streak, The Lonely Guy, all directed by Hiller, collectively brought back a zeitgeist I had long forgotten.
Making Love (1982), too, was a film for its time and place. This isn’t a film about Ethical Non-Monogamy (ENM), or multiamory. The main character, Zack, lies and cheats. So there will be no rose 🌹 system for this review.
But still, I found the film’s handling of bisexuality and the possibility of an open marriage interesting. For all its cheesy tropes, Making Love is a thought-provoking watch.
Making Love, I admit, is not palpable for modern viewers. Opening with a dissolve of softly lit portraits of the three main actors and drippy music belonging to the Highway to Heaven soundtrack, it’s almost unbearable. But hang in…
