Sure, it's a landmark film, but the adaptation to the 1967 play lacks any real merit about homosexuality; in fact, it presents a very negative view on the subject of gay people and how they act. Granted, it's filled to the brim with witty dialogue and filled with riveting drama, but the wittiness is pelted too much to the viewers face and begins to wear them down, especially due to the fact that all the wittiness is almost always centered at humiliating or degrading another character. The film has, in almost all ways, a negative effect of homosexuality and the way people view it. The utter self-hatred which is filling all the characters would make a 70's-era movie-goer think that virtually all gay men are incredibly flamboyant man-whores who are spiraling into an abyss with their abuse of marijuana, alcohol, and sex. If you name a stereotype about gay men it's contained in this film: ascots, silk sweaters, prada shoes, drugs, alcohol, promiscuity, and even the fact that they always think straight guys are secretly gay. All things considered: yes, there are in fact homosexuals who have the utter self hatred and horrible actions of the characters in this film, but to be a film maker making the first film about open homosexuals, making one such as this which almost degrades the gay lifestyle is not what any choice should have been. It's tacky. Oh, and I didn't even mention the racist slurs.