38 Best Queer Movies of the Last 100 Years
Of course, you could spend the next four years in dissociation as we prepare for the rapid erosion of hard-won LGBTQ+ rights. In any case, the media has not been the best ally in the fight for basic acceptance, and given that one of the new administration’s first executive orders involves pretending that transgender people are not real (a claim that flies in the face of biology, human history and living things). The experience of millions of people shows that the future does not promise anything good.
And while films and media cannot save us, they can represent us. Movies can make a difference in mainstream acceptance (even if only in a small way), and bold independent films can make us feel seen, offer support, or make us angry enough to fight back. So maybe you can go to the movies when you’re not throwing bricks or getting angry at the wall. Below, I’ve highlighted 30 outstanding works of the last century, not so much to argue that each of them broke new ground upon release (though many did), but to illustrate that queer talent was on display in front of and behind the film industry. camera from the earliest days of the medium.
(Instead of listing all the great movies with LGBTQ+ themes and characters, I tried to include a few lesser-rated movies that are just as good—or even better—than the more well-known favorites.)
Michael (1926)
Carl Theodor Dreyer, best known for his 1928 masterpiece The Passion of Joan of Arc , brought similar visual inventiveness to his earlier Michael , the story of a love triangle between a sculptor, his model (titled “Michael”), and the sculptor’s long-running romance. suffering friend. It’s a doomed romance, but not because of M4M’s moralizing about love. This is a story about not being able to see what is right in front of you. And yes, I understand that Michael just doesn’t reach the century mark, given its German release in late 1924, but its American release didn’t come until two years later, so I’ll allow it. You can stream Michael on Kanopy .
Wings (1927)
The very first film to win the Oscar for Best Picture is a World War I story in which a pair of rivals become good friends. Very good friends, if you catch my drift, although it is so ambiguous that it did not arouse suspicion at the time. Throughout the film, the two pilots compete for the affections of the ambulance driver, played by Clara Bow, usually dressed in her deliberately masculine uniform, with bobbed hair and lace-up leather boots. The famous shot, shot across several tables in a bar, features a lesbian couple about to kiss when the camera pans past, but it’s a death scene (sorry for the 98-year-old spoiler) between our two pilots. really seals the deal: if their tender caresses and kisses aren’t downright hilarious, the scene is certainly odd in its depiction of male affection. You can stream Wings on Tubi or rent it on Prime Video .
Mädchen in Uniform (1931)
The story of troubled schoolgirl Manuela (Hertha Thiele), who quickly falls in love with a teacher at her girls’ school Mädchen in Uniform , comes at a turning point in German history: a couple of years ago, Section 175, which prohibited homosexuality, was repealed. and what would later be called the “decadent” Weimar era was in full swing. With kinky women behind the camera and plenty of lesbian pining and kissing on screen, the film was a hit in much of Europe, and lobbying from no less than Eleanor Roosevelt ensured that American audiences would see the film (a detail I adore). . This is a beautifully realized film about romantic longing that never devolves into melodrama; it also invites us to imagine what kind of female-centric films might have been made if there had been more women behind the camera during Hollywood’s golden age. You can stream Mädchen in Uniform on Plex .
Queen Christina (1933)
However, we have decided to determine Greta Garbo’s real gender and sexuality: some say bisexuality is closest to the truth, others say lesbian; she referred to herself as a man most of the time and signed her letters “Harry”, so there were layers here – there is no doubt that her gender-fluid screen persona in roles that were at least coded as bisexual brought her huge box office receipts. in a completely different era. In it, she plays an unconventional, bisexual Swedish queen involved not only in affairs of state, but also in romances with co-stars John Gilbert and Elizabeth Young. All that aside, this is a beautiful historical romance about a powerful and complex woman who has a murderous (often referenced) final shot. You can rent Queen Christina from Prime Video.
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
While I try to avoid queer coding in favor of films with overtly queer characters and content, this becomes more difficult to do in the so-called golden age of Hollywood, when the rules clearly prohibit any such thing. However, there are too many gay characters in Bride of Frankenstein to ignore. The plot revolves around the superbly flamboyant Dr. Septimus Praetorius (Ernest Thesiger), Victor Frankenstein’s mentor since his school days, who breaks in on the eve of Victor’s wedding night to drag him away (requiring only a little convincing) so they can conduct some experiments to see if they can live together. With a plot like this and a strange character in front of and behind the camera , it’s very much like a gay dream. You can rent Bride of Frankenstein from Prime Video .
Rope (1948)
Although Hitchcock’s adaptation of the play of the same name makes no explicit references to the sexuality of the main characters (which was unacceptable at the time), the director was never afraid to push the homosexual subtext to the very edge, and the viewer needs to be protected enough to see the prissy, fastidious killers Brandon and Phillip ( John Dall and Farley Granger) were simple roommates. The limited setting and experimental filming style didn’t quite sit well with Hitchcock, but the claustrophobic atmosphere and sharp dialogue pleasantly heighten the tension. You can stream Rope on The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video.
Song of Love (1950)
Two prisoners are tormented by a voyeuristic prison guard in Jean Genet’s short film, full of homoerotic imagery that may be less shocking in 2023, but no less effective. The two never come into contact except in a fantasy sequence, but the sight of the two men smoking a single cigarette remains one of the hottest images in cinema. You can also find a movie called Love Song . You can stream Un chant d’amour on Kanopy .
Olivia (1951)
Unavailable for decades, Olivia is almost shockingly frank: in a nutshell, it’s about an all-girls school divided into cliques whose loyalty is fought over by a lesbian couple who run the show. The student-teacher angle is unsettling to the modern mind, but it’s not exactly a prurient film, despite the production. It’s a coming-of-age story about the protagonist, cleverly telling the story of how we have to choose who we want to be, even though we’re constantly being pulled in different directions. You can stream Olivia on Hoopla .
Tea and Sympathy (1956)
Addressing the same issues of masculinity found in other films of the era (such as Rebel Without a Cause ), Tea and Sympathy is an awkward, fascinating look at ideas of 1950s queerness. Tom Robinson Lee (John Kerr) is the new kid at an all-boys prep school filled with gay undertones (think about how the other boys love to bully and idolize their coach – it’s so straight forward that it comes across as a very, very gay undertone). Tom is a shy and fake reader who is criticized by his more openly cruel classmates, and who develops a friendship with the headmaster’s wife that turns romantic. It’s all fascinating, even if it is. doesn’t stand up to close scrutiny, and director Vincente Minnelli certainly knows how to make a compelling film. You can rent Tea and Sympathy on Prime Video .
Suddenly Last Summer (1959)
This crazy Southern Gothic Mystery (based on the play by Tennessee Williams) tells the story of a young man, the son of Katharine Hepburn’s famous Violet Venable, who dies under mysterious circumstances while on vacation in Spain. While Violet was happy to be his partner, helping him meet other men for sexual encounters, she was less interested in letting the world know exactly how he died. She’s perfectly happy to lobotomize one of her son’s good friends, just to be on the safe side; it’s a wild time, right up to the unforgettable ending. You can stream Suddenly, Last Summer on Tubi or rent it on Prime Video .
A Taste of Honey (1961)
When 17-year-old Jo (Rita Tushingham) becomes pregnant with a sailor’s child (he’s long gone by the time she realizes it), she can’t turn to her needy, alcoholic mother for comfort. Instead, she ends up in the arms of Jeff (the great Murray Melvin), a gay textiles student and the healthiest character in the entire film. It was shocking at the time, not only because of the inclusion of a gay character, but also because of the gritty realism that made it a brilliant representation of what was to come. You can stream A Taste of Honey on Max, The Criterion Channel and Kanopy, or rent it on Prime Video .
Victim (1961)
Dirk Bogarde (then closeted) not only plays one of the first bisexual characters in film, but is also a completely sympathetic hero of the story (if he is the victim , as the title suggests). Bogarde, a successful London barrister (sorry: barrister ) who is blackmailed for having periodic sexual encounters with a male friend. It’s a landmark in its approach to queer characters, but just as importantly, it’s a tense and compelling neo-noir, energetically directed by veteran Basil Dearden. You can stream Victim on Max and The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
Queen (1968)
Long hard to find but recently restored by Kino Lorber, the documentary Queen follows participants in a New York City drag pageant run by queen, activist, and trans icon Flawless Sabrina. It’s a loose and joyful portrait of a specific time in queer history, featuring appearances by luminaries of the era including Andy Warhol, Edie Sedgwick and designer Dorian Corey. You can stream The Queen on Kanopy and Kino Film or rent it on Prime Video.
Funeral Parade of Roses (1969)
At the height of the Japanese New Wave, writer-director Toshio Matsumoto created this classic, combining ultra-realism with hauntingly beautiful, sometimes psychedelic imagery. The plot takes inspiration from the story of Oedipus Rex and turns it around, seamlessly blending the mythical with the mundane as it follows Eddie (Shinnosuke Ikehata) and other transgender women through vibrant 1960s Tokyo. You can stream Funeral Parade of Roses on Kanopy .
Boys in the Band (1970)
William Friedkin ( The French Connection , The Exorcist ) is directing the film adaptation of the controversial off-Broadway play, controversial because every character is gay or bisexual, and controversial among queer audiences due to the way its characters are often portrayed as self-hating and self-loving. – regret. It’s not exactly an uplifting portrait of being gay in America, but it captures something real, if not always pretty. The performances are almost always superb, and if this is a pre-Liberation period play, there are many other aspects that unfortunately still seem relevant. (The play is still being performed, andNetflix released a new version just a couple of years ago). You can rent The Boys in the Band on Prime Video .
Some of My Best Friends… (1971)
The low-budget melodrama that followed The Boys in the Band , Some of My Best Friends follows the erratic, drunken wanderings of the clientele of a New York gay bar over the course of an evening. While it’s a little overdramatic (and full of tiresomely pitiful characters), it’s less theatrical than The Boys , and more diverse, at least on the queer spectrum. Over the course of the night, we meet gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender characters, as well as a straight character played by none other than Rue McClanahan. The eclectic cast is a big draw, with McClahanan playing the title role alongside that of comedienne and writer Fanny Flagg (best known for her appearances in Match Game in the ’70s and the novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop , which she adapted into a successful film in the 90s). Trans Andy Warhol muse Candy Darling is also here, as well as a few other faces you might recognize if you watched too much TV in the 1970s and 80s. You can stream Some of My Best Friends… on MGM+ .
Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971)
Long before Brokeback Mountain , the queer-themed film received a lot of attention at the Oscars: John Schlesinger’s film was nominated in four categories, although it did much better at the BAFTAs, actually winning five awards, including Best Picture. What’s more remarkable is that, despite the dramatic and even tragic events, the film never once suggests that queerness is the root of the characters’ problems. Murray Head plays a free-spirited bisexual artist who is simultaneously in a relationship with a gay doctor (played by Peter Finch) and a straight counselor (the great Glenda Jackson). The film was not a big box office success, but became one of the year’s biggest critical successes. You can stream Sunday Bloody Sunday on Prime Video .
Woman’s Problem (1974)
At the center of John Waters’ so-called “Trash Trilogy” is “Girl Trouble,” starring Divine as juvenile delinquent Dawn Davenport, whose quest for cha-cha heels leads her down a path of filth and misery more than worthy (and very inspired) Great melodramas of Hollywood. The Pink Flamingos get more name checks, but nothing in John Waters’ oeuvre can compare to Dawn’s Christmas morning madness. “Girl Trouble” is the best and most coherent film from the director’s early, most wonderfully perverse era. You can stream “Girl Trouble” on The Criterion Channel or buy it on Prime Video .
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Al Pacino and the late, great John Cazale (who has never been in a bad movie) play Sonny and Sal, aspiring bank robbers based on two real-life men . Sonny is desperate for money to pay for his transgender wife’s gender reassignment surgery, so he and his friend Sal plan a heist that ends in brutal defeat. With an eye toward queer liberation, the film explores the failures of the counterculture and gleefully thumbs its nose at cops. It’s a stunning heist film – one of the best films of its era and period – and it doesn’t look down on the main character’s bisexuality or his marriage to a trans woman. You can rent Dog Day Afternoon on Prime Video .
Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Despite the majority of the cast being straight, Rocky Horror has gone from being a cult classic to being a rite of passage for your queers, full of gleefully over-the-top characters who either start out as sexual/gender fluid or end up there by the end. It survives because it’s a lot of fun (even if, or maybe because, the plot makes almost no sense) and because it somehow caught on with a heterosexual audience that wants to spend a few hours walking in the wild with Brad and Janet. acting as their capable guides. If they can relax and have fun with Dr. Frank-N-Furter and his gang, maybe there will be hope for this world. You can rent Rocky Horror on Prime Video.
Cruise (1980)
William Friedkin returned to queer cinema (after The Boys in the Band ) with much more mixed results, both in terms of the film’s quality and its reception. Based on the novel, which itself was inspired by a string of real-life murders, the film stars Al Pacino as a cop sent undercover into New York’s leather scene to find the man who is killing his lovers. Focusing on the more extreme, but not entirely unrealistic, elements of the cruise scene of the time, the film sparked protests from gay groups even during filming. Given that the number of popular gay films in 1980 was almost zero, it was difficult for people to resist depictions of homosexual life so heavily prone to violence and fisting, no matter how well-intentioned Friedkin may have been. Ultimately, it’s too stupid and pointless (though often quite fun) to be mad at, and the conversation that has arisen around it has given a voice to a growing cinematic audience. You can rent Cruise from Prime Video .
Desert Hearts (1985)
After the comparatively more progressive 1970s, the 1980s were an era when queer films were either justifiably HIV/AIDS-centric or focused entirely on gay/bisexual serial killers ( Dressed to Kill , Cruise, etc.) . d.). Desert Hearts bucks both of these film trends. the best ways. Vivian (Helen Shaver), an English professor going through a divorce, meets Kay (Patricia Charbonneau), an uninhibited sculptor, at a ranch in Reno. Although Vivian struggles a bit with an unexpected lesbian attraction, the romantic drama avoids tragedy entirely. You can stream Desert Hearts on Max and The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
My Beautiful Laundry (1985)
An early triumph of intersectionality, this adaptation of Hanif Kaueishi’s novel introduces Omar (Gordon Warnecke), the new owner of a ramshackle laundromat, who gets back into a relationship with his punk Nazi ex-boyfriend Johnny (Daniel Day-Lewis). ). This is a great film about class and racism that provides a vivid portrait of life in the 1980s during the Thatcher and Reagan era. It is also a novel that suggests that there is hope that we can move beyond the mistakes of the past, while at the same time reminding us that forgiveness is never guaranteed. You can rent My Beautiful Laundrette from Prime Video .
Paris is Burning (1990)
Ballroom culture is still alive with us, both in its purest form in major American cities and thanks to its entry into the mainstream (more or less) thanks to Madonna and RuPaul’s Drag Race . “Paris Is Burning” captures the joys and sorrows of a particular moment (New York in the late 1980s) when black and Latino gay, transgender and genderqueer performers burned stages in something of a golden age of drag, even in a time of racism, poverty, anti-transgender violence and HIV/AIDS were destroying their lives. In some ways it is a glorious document of a bygone era; in other ways, good and bad, it seems entirely relevant to our current era. When you’re done here, check out 2016’s Kiki , a more recent documentary that updates the history of ballroom culture (what has changed and what hasn’t). You can stream Paris Is Burning on Max and The Criterion Channel.
Live End (1992)
New queer cinema pioneer Gregg Araki’s most famous film is probably Mysterious Skin , but his angry, freewheeling early work The Living End is the purest expression of his talent as a director. Having lived through a decade in which queer people were demonized (even more than usual) and then ignored when they faced the plague, Araki responded with a primal scream in which a pair of HIV-positive drifters kill a homophobic cop and run off to “fuck” . everything” is a thematic journey. You can stream T he Living End on Kanopy or rent it on Prime Video.
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994)
Despite being played by (apparently) cis straight men, the three traveling drag queens at the center of Stefan Elliott’s deliberately campy lark bring a sense of fun and adventure to this Australian road trip. The three real queens, Cindy Pastel, Strykermeier, and Lady Bump, on whose lives the film is based, were originally supposed to play themselves before the studio intervened, so I’m going to take a few points off for this missed opportunity for authenticity. However, the film is fun, funny and positive, very different from most queer themed films of the era. Its worldwide popularity (on a modest budget) almost certainly changed the perception of gay people, especially transgender people, a little. You can stream Priscilla on Kanopy and Tubi or rent it on Prime Video .
Jeffrey (1995)
Although its synopsis is more concerned with finding love and overcoming the fear of death (HIV/AIDS takes center stage), there is a joyful, frothy quality to Jeffrey that is understandably missing from most other films in which AIDS is a major theme. It’s a charming (and sex-positive) rom-com with endearing leads from Steven Weber and Michael T. Weiss and a stunning appearance from Patrick Stewart. You can stream Jeffrey on Peacock , Tubi, Freevee and Prime Video .
Watermelon Woman (1996)
Cheryl Dunye’s low-budget rom-com deserved to have as significant a cultural impact as the era’s other indie video-store-set hit, Clerks, but instead it had to settle for cult status. Dunye plays herself, of sorts, as an aspiring director and young black lesbian exploring the life of a fictional mom from Hollywood’s golden age, the “Watermelon Woman.” Besides being genuinely funny and unpretentious, the film has a lot of smart things to say and asks smart questions about the lives and experiences of queer black people. You can stream The Watermelon Woman on The Criterion Channel or rent it on Prime Video .
Bound (1996)
Queer themes abound in the work of Lana and Lily Wachowski, by far the most successful trans directors in the history of the genre. This transgressive lesbian neo-noir, their very first film, throws bright sparks in its depiction of the relationship between dueling femme fatales, Gina Gershon’s Corky and Jennifer Tilly’s Violet. Queer characters in films of the time may have been the butt of jokes, anger, or sadness, but Bound made a compelling case that same-sex attraction was just plain hot . You can rent Bound from Prime Video .
Happy Together (1997)
The elliptical narrative and deliberate pacing may have put off some viewers, but Wong Kar-wai’s frank tale of a gay couple (played by Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu-wai) who travel from Hong Kong to Argentina to escape an extremely troubled and even an abusive relationship is a poetic triumph. Don’t let the title fool you: these two aren’t really supposed to be together, but the performances are mesmerizing and Wong’s style is as beautiful as it is memorable. You can stream Happy Together on Max and The Criterion Channel or rent it on Prime Video .
All About My Mother (1999)
Thanks to the New Queer Cinema movement, the ’90s became an absolute golden age for films with LGBTQ+ themes, often driven by righteous anger at the repressive, almost genocidal ’80s. On the other hand, Pedro Almodóvar’s films do something different: they are colorful and joyful, even as they speak to uncomfortable truths. Here, grieving mother Manuela goes on a journey of sorts to find her son’s father, Lola, a trans woman who doesn’t even know she has a son. Along the way, she meets up with her old friend Agrado, herself a transgender sex worker who, among the film’s many eclectic characters, is Manuela’s support and the most fully realized person in the film. You can rent All About My Mother from Prime Video .
Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)
Rather than describe this film about a German rock singer whose botched gender reassignment surgery leaves them with the titular evil inch, I’ll just sing the entire soundtrack from start to finish. That’s the impact the film has on me and so many other people. You can rent Hedwig and the Fatal Inch from Prime Video .
Weekend (2011)
Andrew Hay’s romantic drama about two strangers spending a big weekend together is so naturalistic it almost feels like a documentary. It captures the feel of a modern relationship (even a short-term one) that still feels fresh, even after more than a decade. You can stream Weekend on The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
Pariah (2011)
Dee Rees brings a confident and confident style to Pariah , not to mention a stunningly beautiful visual style that makes it unlike any other film. It’s a powerful and deeply personal coming-of-age story that never feels like a lesbian message movie and signals a new era of more complex storytelling centered on queer characters. You can rent Pariah from Prime Video .
Mandarin (2015)
This is probably the most fun you’ll ever have watching a girl/buddy/revenge comedy film about two trans sex workers who hunt a man who did one of them wrong. As heartfelt and zany as it is, it moves us ever more firmly into an era of cinema in which increasingly complex oddballs make their way onto the screen. Shot on a pair of iPhones, director Sean Baker and company demonstrate the intimacy and spontaneity that modern technology can bring. You can stream Tangerine on Max or rent it from Prime Video .
Rafiki (2018)
Banned in the film’s homeland of Kenya, Rafiki follows a pair of women, Kena and Ziki, as they begin a flirtatious relationship that develops into romance. Although there are hints of tragedy in the story of legally and socially forbidden love, it is also bright and cheerful, both in its story and its luxurious appearance. Rafiki can be rented from Prime Video .
Knife+Heart (2018)
Things get birdy on the set of a French gay erotica film during this ultra-stylish, colorful, psychedelic tribute to not only the Italian gali of yore, but also the golden age of 1970s porn. You can stream Knife+Heart on Shudder, Freevee and Tubi, or rent it from Prime Video .
Disclosure (2020)
Sometimes it helps to have everything laid out in front of us, as Disclosure does in an entertaining yet methodical manner. Featuring trans celebrities including Laverne Cox, Jamie Clayton, Chaz Bono, Michaela Hae Rodriguez, Candice Cayne, Lilly Wachowski, Leo Sheng, and many more, the book explores the history of trans representation in film for (some) and for the greater good. evil. (for the most part). The main argument is that transgender people are much larger (and much more diverse) than their cinematic counterparts, and that progress in terms of authentic portrayals, while being made, is slow. You can stream Disclosure onNetflix .