andy and fergus
At the end are they together?
Was Andy Gay?
I think so, but i'm not certain.
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MovieChat Forums > Newcastle (2009) Discussion > andy and fergus
Well i never questioned that Andy was gay and they ended up together.
I liked their relationship! I really believed it.
If you watch the movie with the director and cinemaphotographer's narration, the director said, it wasn't his intention for Andy to become Fergus' gay partner. The scene on the hill while the other couples are having sex in the tent, Andy wanted to show that he was not offended by Fergus' homosexuality and the masturbation was nothing more than physical relief not sexual...since everyone else was having orgasms, the two just relieved themselves and nothing more. The director said that all the members of the cast 'bonded' before the first day of shooting. Andy and Fergus lived together for a few days to get comfortable with their friendship...but Andy was not meant to be gay. However, if that was the director's intent, he must have failed because TLA Video is touting the gay relationship on their summary of the DVD.
shareAt first it seemed like maybe Andy was gay and was going to help Fergus accept and understand himself but as it went along I began to wonder if I was wrong on that. By the time the movie was over I had the feeling that Fergus already accepted himself and maybe it was Andy that wasn't sure about himself.
I think Andy felt an attraction to Fergus but maybe isn't ready to admit/accept that hes gay. The way Fergus put his arm around him at the end and then was like - ooops sorry - made me think it was something they'd discussed, something they wanted to go real slow with. Thats just me though, when a movie doesn't explain something my mind just makes up the extra scenes in my head.
So I guess the answer is just that we don't know for sure.
Well, im not sure but after the credits there's one more scene where Jesse yells "tell your boyfriend to hurry up" (or something along those lines) and either Andy or Fergus told him to shut up but in a good way
so idk!
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"I hold a PhD in Horribleness. See ya in the aftermath! PEACE!... but not...literally"
It could be that Andy is a totally relaxed, happy straight guy who both wants to make Fergus feel really good about himself, and to share a bit of sexual play also, just for fun. Andy is certainly cool and accepting, so that's possible.
On the other hand, I notice that Andy doesn't pay much attention to the girls who walk by early in the film, but he does pay attention to Fergus. The tenderness and care he shows to Fergus, and the love in his eyes, make me think that (whether he admits it totally or not) Andy is at least bisexual.
Are they together at the end? I read an interview with the cast in which Kirk Jenkins (Andy) said the director left it up to him whether to play Andy as gay. The funny thing is that he then did not go on to say whether he did or didn't play him that way, lol.
There are mixed signals. On one hand Andy and Fergus seem inseparable and lie together in bed while Andy is healing from his accident. And there is the "tell your boyfriend to hurry up" comment at the end -- and Fergus has a smile on his face, which tells me he is not heartbroken or anything, so maybe they really do end up dating.
Like another poster, I noticed Fergus removing his arm from Andy in the hospital bed, but I thought that might have been because it was hurting Andy who had not yet healed, so I'm not sure.
Alas, the director and even the actor make it ambiguous and hard to answer.
But one thing I'm totally sure about. Andy's warmth and affection for Fergus, teaching him to surf, seeking him out, constantly having his arm around Fergus, clearly accepting Fergus's homosexuality, and even beginning to jerk off together with Fergus before they were interrupted by the car scene -- tell me that Fergus must now feel wonderful and very happy and accepted, to have such a warm and loving friend as Andy. Fergus now knows he doesn't need to be ashamed or embarrassed about himself, because Andy has shown him total acceptance and warmth, and has helped him realize that it's okay to like guys.
Perhaps (regardless of whether they end up as a couple), in the end, the warm friendship between Andy and Fergus -- and Fergus now feeling awesome about himself -- are what really count.
I much as I wanted them to be together I didn't think they were.
I just read it as Andy being accepting of Fergus and who he is. The scene in the hospital when he has his arm around Andy I just read it as Fergus fancies Andy and is so comfortable around him that his arm just reaches across and Andy just takes it in his stride.
As for the extra scene during the credits it's Fergus telling Jessie to shut up then Andy asking what Jessie said. I think it's just Jessie good naturedly ribbing Fergus and his crush on Andy.
But I can so totally see it from the other perspective and would have loved it if Dan Castle had just made it that little more obvious in favour of Andy being gay :)
I agree with the above comment.
I don't think Andy had any physical attraction towards Fergus, but still wanted to make it clear that he was comfortable and flattered by Fergus' attraction towards him.
I think he simply thought Fergus was a nice guy and just wanted to make him feel at ease and more welcome within the rest of the group. Especially as the other guys (Jesse in particular) gave him such a hard time at the beginning. The "boyfriend" comment at the end from Jesse seemed like just a bit of harmful banter between him and Fergus to show that the brothers have bonded a bit and have become more accepting of each other. At the beginning Jesse didn't want Fergus hanging around his friends at all and was quite nasty about Fergus' feelings towards Andy but by the end he's fine about it.
I'm actually glad that the relationship between Andy and Fergus was played out in this way instead of just making it as simple as them being mutually attracted to each other and getting together. There are plenty of other movies out there that explore the romantic relationships between two gay men, but hardly any that show a simple friendship develop between a gay man and a straight man and the importance that this friendship can have in someone's life, particularly in their teenage years.
No, I think Andy and Fergus are both definitely gay. I think the director was being coy in stating their relationship was not intended to be a gay one. As the saying goes, "If it looks and sounds and moves like a duck then it probably is a duck."
Andy doesn't just want to make Fergus feel comfortable about himself and his sexuality he is definitely attracted to him. He takes Fergus under his wing from the start. He has his arm around Fergus in the SUV. He defends him. The night at the beach he makes a definite pass at Fergus by asking him if he'd like to jack off with him. The next morning Fergus has that "What have I done?" look on his face. He feels guilty about their sexual encounter. However, Andy takes it all in stride by saying, "I know you're up", and asks Fergus to join him in surfing. He and Fergus have a playful underwater scene in which Andy has hold of Fergus.
In the hospital scene I think Fergus says "I'm sorry" for his public show of affection because either Andy's mother (who calls him "Andrew") or a nurse is in the room with them.
At the end I take the "boyfriend" comment at face value. They are a couple.
Andy is much more comfortable in his skin than Fergus is. He encourages Fergus to be likewise.
I don't know, I'm not convinced. Your post (and everybody's elses who are for Andy being gay) makes a lot of good points, but here are my counter-arguments:
1) Andy is obviously very comfortable in his own skin and we can all agree with that. Therefore, if he would be really gay, he would be open about it, he wouldn't be hiding it. And considering how all the guys tease with gay jokes just Ferguson and not both of them (not even when they see them bonding) makes me think that they are all pretty sure Andy is straight. Bottom note: Andy - having the personality he has - would not try to pass as something he isn't.
2) Ferguson seems to be coping with his sexuality (and personality) very well. The only problem he is having is being friends with the surfer dudes, the "jocks". Apart from this, he seems to have a really good relationship with his parents, relatives ... And in the end, when he is giving that pep talk to Jessie, he also explains how early he stopped caring for what Victor and other bullies had to say to (and about) him. I actually really liked how they developed his story. With a gay goth (punk?) kid in a "normal" family you would expect a whole lot of drama, whereas in fact there was barely any.
So I think Andy was straight, he just liked Ferguson because he was cool (and wanted a break from all those surfer-copies) and wanted to ease his way in. And that final scene was just Jessie teasing.
I like that they did not make it one way or the other... no stolen kisses on the beach.
Andy was just a cool guy. Accepting and wanted to make Ferg feel welcome. I KNEW why Ferg was there.. everyone knew why. I think he was just a free spirit who accepted people and in a way felt sorry for Ferg.
Andy had his own issues.. living someone elses dream while his own dreams were quite unknown. He was supposed to be this particular person.
Andy and Ferg had soo much chemistry though, but i think Andy could have had chemistry with a rock, he knows how to gaze.Both actors did a great job.