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Michael Cera's subtly homosexual character (SPOILERS)


I'm surprised no one's mentioned this one yet, but perhaps I'm looking too much into some of the scenes and character interactions. I forget the actor's name, but aside from Brink I'm referring to the one who played Augustin (Sara's boyfriend) as the other male character. If you rewatch the movie, really pay attention to the scenes with Brink and Augustin. Brink is constantly vying for Augustin's attention (asking to watch a movie, playing roller tennis, etc.), especially when Augustin is talking to the female characters and/or about Sara. Augustin's sister even awkwardly asked Brink "if he ever had a girlfriend," which Brink quickly explains away before changing the subject. Augustin's sister again makes an almost knowing comment during the scene when Alicia was hypnotized and giving Brink a lap dance; the sister said Brink "wouldn't know what to do" and "look how uncomfortable he is" (which he actually was). Even when Alicia later sexually assaulted Brink with her crotch, Brink was clearly disgusted and mortified by the experience. Check out just before Sara returns -- there's one scene with Brink dressed up as "that dog" (NOTE: he attacks Augustin FIRST) and again in a private conversation between Brink and Augustin. For the latter, Brink makes a snide comment about Sara's dysfunctional family heritage. Augustin, perhaps offended, walks away and Brink is left moping, as if sad that Augustin doesn't acknowledge Brink's affections.

Augustin was the most understanding character to Alicia outside her sister/cousin (didn't catch the familial relation), which someone who is more sensitive and in touch with his emotions tends to act. Brink (Michael Cera's character) was buffoonish but generally harmless; however, he grew aggressively more critical or obnoxious when around the women in the story. Why would Brink be interested in what Augustin was dreaming about when waking up with the erection? These only male characters in the story share a secret.

Here's my (somewhat obvious) interpretation of the Brink/Augustin relationship: Brink is "in the closet," trying his hardest to deny his homosexuality, but his effiminate personality and his outward attempts at heterosexuality ("I love p*ssy") are an undeniable giveaway. Augustin is perhaps bisexual, possibly having experimented once with Brink, hence Brink's subtle jealousy over Sara. Again referencing the scene where Brink is trying to get Augustin's attention to watch a movie, Brink asks Augustin about his sexual exploits, seemingly touching himself at the thought of it. He's also too overtly trying to mask his homosexual feelings by announcing his "wish that Alicia was here to keep him warm." That wasn't for him but rather Augustin, maybe to get a reaction out of him. What do you guys think?

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[deleted]

To answer daima8's question, I just sensed a closeness between the Brink and Augustin characters that possibly bordered on quasi-romantic. Think of the relationship between Matt Damon's and Jude Law's characters in the movie The Talented Mr. Ripley: The bathtub scene did imply a subtle attraction that the latter denies later on in the story, thereby spurning Tom Ripley (Matt Damon)--who incidentally was also a character jealous of his male love interest's adoration of a woman.

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[deleted]

He was very obviously homosexual and the other characters allude to this constantly. There was nothing subtle about it. At all.


"I'll book you. I'll book you on something. I'll find something in the book to book you on."

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Yeah, he even was talking about being in love with his sister's boyfriend right in the beginning

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I didn't pick up on that at all. I think you're reading too much into this.

Now his character in This is the End....

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so no one saw the behind the scenes then... where the Director said it himself that he had a thing for the other guy... you are dumb.

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I don't know if it was him being homosexual or just being attracted to Alicia and not knowing how to express it. He definitely in a sexual manner towards Augustin but I think it might have been because he had a bunch of pent up sexual energy and didn't really know what to do with it. He knows he wants a blowjob from Alicia but he has no idea how to get one from her so he just blurts out, "Hey Augustin, give me a blowjob", turning it into a joke instead of just talking to Alicia. Other weird ways he tried to seduce her involved him teasing her, dragging his fingernail across the couch, and just telling her to try new things. The guy was kind of a weird *beep* the whole movie and I think it was just sexual frustration.

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I think Michael Cera's character was an obvious "closet-gay", and, being this script writen by a chilean guy, it is obvious like that. I'm chilean. I'm female, but I know how "machistas" are here.

Please excuse my terrible redaction, english is not my native language.

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[deleted]

When he acted straight, he seemed to be overcompensating for something for sure.

Even though she was acting pretty batsh*t, I'm not convinced a straight guy would react the way he did to Juno Temple rubbing her gatita in his face. And even if it just took him by surprise, he got WAY too defensive about it later.

Regarding the "machistas", Chile (like the rest of Latin America) is more homophobic than the US, but there are plenty of closeted homosexuals there. And there's not really much of a door on the closet.

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I totally agree. I interpreted much of what you point out the same way, and I am fairly convinced that the character was intentionally written that way.

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