Reflection on LOTR 20 years after the fact. I don& #39;t know how many of you experienced this, but I was 11 when the first movie came out, and I actually think those movies normalized platonic physical affection among my friends.

There was a lot of "no homo" happening in central Indiana, but hey, Aragorn& #39;s the coolest guy you& #39;ve ever seen on TV, and he kisses his bros on the forehead. Why not snuggle your girlfriends while you& #39;re hanging out?

The movie is a tremendous outlier in that it shows honorable, badass adults who kids very much want to be like. These adults also all completely comfortable with strong emotions, tears, and physical affection.