Why do gay men love this film so much?

This is an excellent film with great acting and a beautiful script. Men and women both gay and straight should love it because it is fantastic.

They love the way Rock snaps that mill into shape decorating-wise.

Really, I'm guessing they pick up on the high camp factor. I'm a straight woman and that's what I like.

It's a gay man's fantasy: falling in love with a young stud who doesn't give a damn about your age. Women may have the same fantasy, but for a gay guy who's "older," it speaks volumes because the younger guy really does remind him of a time when the older guy wasn't "old."

"Don't call me 'honey', mac."
"Don't call me 'mac'... HONEY!"

I'm not a homo, bighalsy, so I don't know. Not that there is anything wrong with being a homo. I'm not judgmental.

I think a lot of people like it--never knew it had a big gay following.

The obvious answer is that it's about flying in the face of what the "norm" wants from you--and in the end the only person affected by your decision to lead your life your way, is you.

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I'm a big homo, and apart from Rock Hudson, Agnes Moorehead, Douglas Sirk's incomparable direction, and that scrumptious cinematography, I like it because I found Jane Wyman's plight to be extremely relatable to gay people. Can't be with the one you want due to societal disapproval. (Remember, this was the way things were for gay people in the 50s.) Sirk was gay himself, and this theme of the harsh judgment of society was a running motif in his films. Whether it be because of age, social class, or race. The code wouldn't have allowed him to deal with sexuality, or he might have done that as well.

I think because it deals with conformity versus following the dictates of your heart and body. I could be wrong, but I think gay men identify with Cary, for those reasons.