MovieChat Forums > Mrs. Henderson Presents (2006) Discussion > I don't get this particular line?

I don't get this particular line?



When Mrs. Henderson asks Bertie if he fancies these women, he replies "I have other intentions."

What does that mean?

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He doesn't say 'intentions', he says 'inclinations'. I'm sure you know what he means. So does Mrs Henderson, after a moment's thought; she giggles and says, 'Oh, how delicious!'.

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Sorry? I still don't quite understand the line? Am I incredibly stupid for not getting it?

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Well, a little naïve, perhaps - unless you're kidding me? He doesn't fancy the girls, he has other inclinations, yes? He's gay, he fancies men. He's as camp as a row of little pink tents, bless him, so it doesn't come as any surprise, except to Mrs Henderson. Perhaps she has led a very sheltered life.

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I don't think it came as much of a surprise to Mrs. Henderson, as she reacted with delight and not shock or revulsion. It's possible she had not looked at Bertie closely until that very moment; when she did look at him after his comment, she knew exactly what he was and what he meant.

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Like I said - "How delicious!"

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Are you really that stupid?

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Takes one to know one, right?

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Bertie is pretty obviously homosexual. Singer Will Young basically plays this character as a 1940s version of himself. Later in the movie Mr. Van Damm says "how fortunate" it is that Bertie is unfit for military service because of a heart murmur, and Bertie and the ladies all giggle cynically at this. This is because gays in both Britain and America were being barred from the military, but the stated reason was not because they were gay. The army wanted to have it both ways by barring gays while not having to acknowledge gays exist. It was easy to pay a doctor to make up a "heart murmur" or some similar cover story for not allowing a perfectly healthy homosexual volunteer to join the service.

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It's simpler than that. Until 1967 homosexuality was deemed illegal. So he'd be a 'criminal'!

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