Bylers: have you watched the movie Billy Elliot (2000)?
I watched it for the first time a few weeks ago, and oh my god... I was casually enjoying this queercoded coming-of-age story set in the 80s, following Billy (short for William, I happily noted with my Byler brainrot), only to have a mini heart attack when it was revealed Billy's best friend's name was Micheal.
Guys. I have to talk about this movie, and its possible inspiration for some aspects of Stranger Things.
Okay, so this movie came out when the Duffer Brothers were only 16 years old; it was such a hit that it was turned into one of the world's most famous musicals, which eventually came to the USA/Broadway in 2008 when the Duffers were 24 years old.
I can't help but wonder if, like Harry Potter and E.T. and all the other movies that the Duffers grew up with, this was another story that might have captured their hearts as they were growing up.
Plot
Here's a breakdown of the movie (or at least, the most relevant points I want to highlight), with some info taken directly from its Wiki page because that means I can finish this post quicker:
Billy Elliot is a British coming-of-age comedy-drama set in Northern England in the 1980's. In 1984 Billy Elliot, 11 years old, lives with his maternal grandmother, his widowed father, and his older brother - the latter two working as coal miners during the 1984-1985 mining strikes under Margaret Thatcher. (For those who don't know UK politics, Thatcher was the Prime Minister when Reagan was President of the US. Both governments were right-wing/conservative).
Billy's father is heavily depressed, grieving his late wife and struggling to make ends meet for his family during the strikes. He sends Billy to the gym to learn boxing, but despite Billy's efforts to enjoy it, he's unwilling at heart.
We first meet Billy's best friend outside the gym. Michael watches intently as a boy walks by - I noticed this and immediately filed it away as potential queercoding...
Billy is unkindly pushed by the boy as he walks past, which indicated to me that Billy - and probably Michael too - are likely seen as outsiders or losers.
Billy wants Michael to join him in the boxing class, but he's quick to reject the idea. Hitting boys for sport isn't something Michael finds fun at all.
Boxing = acceptable masculinity and conformity, much like baseball is used as a metaphor in Stranger Things. Once inside the gym, Billy notices the ballet class using the gym after the boxing session, and despite it being an all-girls class, decides to join in. Even though he clearly enjoys it, Billy is nervous what other people will think of him.
He only opens up about it to Michael. They briefly ditch the other boys in their sports class, taking a different route so they can speak privately. Michael encourages Billy to continue dancing ballet, to just be himself and have fun. Michael is queercoded further by sheepishly admitting he thinks Billy would look good in a tutu.
Billy is taken aback at Michael's admission, but makes no comment. The scene continues with them in high spirits and laughing together.
Billy hides his ballet shoes under his bed mattress, keeping his lessons a secret from his dad and brother (+ I couldn't help but notice the blue-and-yellow:
The scene above flows directly into a scene of Michael and Billy at school, and we can see Michael's adoring gazes at his best friend (notice the lyrics 'don't look back and I love you' sort of lining up with the moment):
Soon it becomes clear that Billy truly has a rare talent for ballet: the class teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson, believes that he's talented enough to study at the Royal Ballet School in London. She advises him to attend the upcoming auditions, and dance professionally instead of becoming a miner like his father and brother. Billy visits Michael at his house for advice. Michael answers the door wearing his sister's dress, startling Billy, who looks around quickly to check if anyone else can see them. Michael insists he's "just dressing up", and once inside, applies lipstick onto Billy so he can join in on the fun.
Michael likes that Billy is doing the thing he truly enjoys, but he doesn't like the idea of Billy having to move away to London. He expresses that he'd miss him. This scene makes it clear that Micheal and Billy can only truly express their true selves around the other.
When Billy's father discovers that Billy is taking the ballet classes instead of boxing, he forbids Billy to continue. He fears Billy will be considered gay. Billy doesn't seem to care too much now what other people think of him; he loves dancing, and that's all that matters.
(Bonus: Billy fires back at his dad with a comment about the kind of lads that like wrestling...)
Whilst things are tense with his Dad, Billy remains passionate about his dancing. He secretly continues his lessons with the help of Mrs. Wilkinson. Meanwhile, Mrs. Wilkinson's daughter, Debbie, expresses romantic interest in Billy... but he seems unsure on how to proceed with her approaches. After pillow fighting, when given a clear opportunity to kiss her, he doesn't take it.
Eventually, Debbie asks Billy if he fancies her. He skirts around the question, making it clear that he's never considered Debbie romantically.
At the end of this scene, Debbie explicity asks Billy if he wants to "see her f*nny" (yikes)... Billy, uninterested and arguably uncomfortable, brushes her off with a firm "nah", and walks away. Whilst I'm sure many would argue that this doesn't necessarily mean Billy isn't straight, I think having him explicity reject her advances here, along with everything else in his narrative, is heavy queercoding.
Anyway. Moving on.
When Billy's older brother is arrested during a clash between police and striking miners, Billy misses his audition for the Royal Ballet School. Mrs. Wilkinson decides to tell Billy's family about the missed opportunity, but Billy's father and brother are outraged that Billy has continued with his ballet. Whilst his brother and father judge him, Micheal freely allows and even celebrates Billy.
At Christmas, after building a snowman together, Micheal wonders out loud if maybe Billy should just run away and join a dancing troupe somewhere else. When Billy tells him not to be stupid, Micheal concedes... he doesn't want Billy to go anywhere.
When Billy complains that his hands are cold, Micheal places them inside his own coat. The boys share a charged moment. Billy seems confused; Micheal shy (+ notice the rainbow Xmas lights framing Billy).
Billy learns that Michael is gay, and has feelings for him. Billy acknowledges that just because he likes ballet, it doesn't mean that he's gay too. This could be confirmation that Billy isn't gay - maybe he's ace, or unlabelled, or still questioning - and yes, it's absolutely true that his love of ballet is no indication either way of his sexuality.
But whilst this scene is, on a surface level, an unrequited love confession, it's also not explicit confirmation on Billy's sexuality (just like him turning down Debbie wasn't either). It's just very interesting when you compare the way Billy handles Debbie's feelings for him, to how he handles Micheal's feelings for him.
Note that Debbie is placed as Billy's female "love interest" in the same way that Micheal is his male "love interest" - both of them parallel the other in their feelings for Billy, and both of them express that they'll miss Billy if he goes to London.
Billy and Michael then sneak into the empty gym together. Billy gives Michael a tutu to wear, and they share a very sweet moment. Billy can dance, become his true self; meanwhile Micheal can wear something feminine, also feeling more like his true self (bear in mind he's just come out to Billy moments before this too).
They're both completely free together.
Unfortunately, on his way back from the pub, Michael's father notices that someone has broken into the gym. He fetches Billy's dad, who watches Billy from the sidelines, and realises his son is truly passionate, and truly talented, about his dancing craft.
Although stunned at first, he resolves to do whatever it takes to help Billy attain his dream. This is a huge turning point in the movie - Billy's family have come to accept him. They love him, no matter what.
There's another scene of Billy and Michael at school, which I think underlines how close the two of them still are. (This was also the scene where I heard Michael's name said for the first time, and practically fell out of my chair...)
With the help of his family and the community, Billy is finally able to attend his next audition in London. Sometime later, the Royal Ballet School sends him a letter of acceptance, coinciding with the end of the miners' strike, and Billy leaves home to study in London - but not before saying goodbye to Michael, reciprocating the kiss on his cheek.
In 1998, 25-year-old Billy performs as the Swan in Swan Lake whilst his father, brother, and Michael and his (assumed) current partner or friend watch with awe and pride from the audience.
Sexuality
Okay, so, disclaimer: it seems the mainstream reading of Billy and Michael's relationship is that Michael is gay but Billy is not. I can't help but disagree with this take! I don't condemn it, but I just don't think that's what this movie was telling us (and I don't understand why they included certain scenes otherwise, e.g. the ones with Billy rejecting Debbie, or Billy reciprocating Michael's kiss on the cheek).
Giving Michael an unrequited crush on his best friend is frustratingly a lot more palatable to a mainstream audience, so I'm wondering if the time it was produced/released (90s/early 00s) is the main factor here, or whether they expanded on Billy's sexuality in the musical version to make him more hetero?? (and the musical is definitely the most famous version of the story these days). However, in this movie, Billy already makes it very clear to Michael halfway through the movie that he accepts him as gay, and that their friendship is not ruined by Michael's romantic feelings for him - so why then would we end the movie with Billy echoing Michael's romantic sentiments by kissing him on the cheek at the moment of their parting? And a somewhat flirty "see you", promising they'll see each other again? It's a very bittersweet moment either way. The two best friends will likely be separated for many years whilst Billy attends the school in London, although I'm sure the audience can expect them to keep in touch via phone or letters. In fact, that's confirmed by the canon narrative, because how else would Michael have known that Billy was debuting as the Black Swan when they're 25 years old? Billy's father and brother act like they haven't seen Michael in many years, but recognise him from Billy's childhood. Maybe Billy and Michael have been in contact the whole time. Maybe Michael moved out of the small country town long ago, and found himself in the big city, just like Billy did? I'd like to think so. Michael is shown to have a partner or friend at the end when they're adults - perhaps this is another reason why the mainstream audience read Michael as gay, and Billy as not? There's no indication either way that Billy has a partner, man or woman - it's left completely open. The existence of Michael's potential partner suggests that Billy and Michael aren't currently together, but that's it! Personally, I just couldn't help but read Billy's kiss to Michael at the end as Billy coming to terms with his budding sexuality (or that he was, at the very least, now open to the idea he may not be heterosexual, and is no longer ashamed or afraid of it). I think that was a powerful character arc for its time.
To me, Billy is dealing with internalised homophobia throughout the entire movie. He fears being perceived as gay because of his interest in ballet, and denies it several times. The fact he loves to perform ballet is NOT relevant to his sexuality! This is a point made explicit in the movie, and I love that. But what is relevant is that he rebuffs the girl who has a crush on him, yet reciprocates a romantic gesture with the boy who has a crush on him. Like, hello?? The subtext is crying out.
Byler nation, I'm begging you to watch this movie so you can form your own opinion on this.
Themes
The themes of Billy Elliot echo many of the themes found in Stranger Things, including grief, family, love, self-acceptance, and most notably, the celebration of the non-conforming. Homosexuality and "queerness", a taboo subject in the 1980s, is also at the forefront of this story.
Billy is not Will, and Michael isn't Mike - rather, they're both a mixture of each. Will, Billy and Michael are all from poor, working class families. Mike and Billy share a position where two members of the opposite sex harbour romantic feelings for them. All four of them subvert gender norms in different ways, some more obvious than others. Michael's self expression and even gender exploration is found through trying on makeup, or crossdressing; Billy's self expression is found through the art of dance. Both of them reject the restrictive inhibitions (and forced conformity) of their community... just like Will, and hopefully Mike come S5. Like Will's escapism into art, fantasy and DnD in Stranger Things, dance is a metaphor for Billy's passion, as well as his escape and frustration.
"Billy's subversion of traditional masculine "gender performativity" is highlighted against the contrast of extreme masculine working-class society. With this focus, Billy Elliot has the position of being "the first mainstream British entertainment to directly interrogate homophobic prejudice as a function of patriarchal society.
The impact of its empowering message of acceptance entered public discourse and education campaigns thanks to the prominence and financial success of the show." - x
Bonus parallels
I just wanted to add this particular moment because... well, you know. I'm making this post for the threads it shares with Stranger Things.
(Context: Billy is answering a question about how it feels when he's dancing).
And then, here... a letter is read from, from Billy's deceased mother, addressed to him. Dear Billy.
And finally:
So what do you think, Byler nation?
