Billy Elliot was a very powerful and emotional film for me. It had both humor and seriousness and kept me waiting to see what happened next. The thing that struck me most about the film was when Michael openly admits to Billy about his sexuality and tells him he has feelings for him. It struck me the most because I wasn’t expecting this element to be part of the movie. I think this unexpected constituent played out very well and added an important layer to the movie. It made me think about how if 11 year olds can accept it with ease and not judge one another because of their sexuality, why can’t older, more “mature’, and “experienced” people do the same? I thought it was a very emotional and powerful moment when Michael tells Billy of his feelings for him.
One way I can relate to this film is Billy’s passion of dance. Throughout the movie, Billy’s love for ballet is shown very significantly and it made me think of myself. When I was younger, I would lock the bathroom door and start thumping my feet and moving my hands to songs on my walkman and later on, my iPod. My dad would end up knocking on the door 10 minutes later wondering what in the world I could be doing. I used to be very shy and didn’t want others to see me dancing so freely and with such ecstatic. After going to a wedding a few years back, it all changed. One thing I know, at Indian weddings, you must let yourself go. So at the reception of the wedding, after dinner, all my friends got up to dance. I didn’t know what to do with myself, but it didn’t matter because they dragged me along to the dance floor. After a few songs, the beat really got me. I just let my feet do the thinking and starting to slowly move my hands. That’s when I realized, I wanted to show the world that I can dance and my love for dance. Just like Billy.