June was Pride month and due to it also coinciding with lockdown, I spent most of the pride month watching and rewatching some of my most-loved queer movies. So, here’s a rundown of some of my favourite LGBTQ+ movies to keep you entertained, as well as a few notable queer directors who help bring these films to our big screens.
Pride (2014)
Matthew Warchus’s Pride is based on the true story of a group of young lesbians and gay activists who switch their focus from gay rights to miners rights during the 1984 strikes.
The movie is as heartwarming as anything and brings to light the real issues that queer people in the 80s went through, such as police brutality and the AIDS crisis.
Despite such heavy topics, the film manages to be delightfully funny, and watching a group of rough and traditional miners begin to accept help and queer people, in general, reminds you of the love that people inherently have inside them.
Pride also stars Andrew Scott who plays Gethin, one of the owners of London’s first queer bookshop ‘Gay’s the Word’.
Scott came out as gay in 2013 and has worked with many LGBTQ+ charities since, which I think is important as it’s always nice to have people of your community represented in queer media.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
Portrait of a Lady on Fire has quickly become a fan favourite within the WLW (women love women) community, and I see why.
Céline Sciamma’s film is breathtakingly beautiful, set in 18th century France with stunning beach shots and classical music to match. It follows Héloïse, an aristocrat, and Marianne, a painter who has been hired to paint Héloïse’s portrait before her wedding.
However, the two develop a strong and erotic bond, with enough passionate fire to match the painting of Héloïse’s dress on fire.
I’m not going to give away any spoilers because this film is a must-watch for anyone who wants to see the beauty of female queer relationships written through the eyes of an actual lesbian director. Adèle Haenel who stars in Portrait of a Lady on Fire is also an out lesbian, so this film is not lacking in LGBTQ+ representation.
Moonlight (2016)
Moonlight has been one of my favourite LGBTQ+ films since it came out, but with the recent movements for Black Lives Matter, it seems more relevant than ever.
Barry Jenkins’ film covers a variety of topics, such as drug abuse and emotional abuse but the topic I’m going to focus on is sexual identity.
The protagonist of the film is Chiron, who begins the movie as a young Black kid growing up in Miami. His mother neglects him and he seeks refuge with an older drug dealer who mentors him and first ensures him that being gay is not a bad thing.
The movie then follows another two parts, the next as Chiron as a teenager and the final third as him a fully grown adult now dealing drugs in Atlanta.
The film shows just how hard it can be for black people to be openly queer in their communities, which truly represents real life. I feel like this film is a particularly good watch right now if you want to educate yourself more on how queer Black people fit into the Black Lives Matter movement and how police brutality can effect Black LGBTQ+ people even more disproportionately.
It’s also the subject of the famous Oscar’s incident in which they called out La La Land for best picture when it was Moonlight who won and definitely deserved it.
Ryan Murphy
Okay so, Ryan Murphy, who is openly gay, technically hasn’t directed any famous queer movies but he did create and direct Glee (2009-2015) which was truly revolutionary in its LGBTQ+ representation. And not to mention that without rewatching Glee during lockdown, I’m not sure I’d have survived without going stir crazy.
When Glee aired in 2009 it was almost unheard of to have a character like Kurt Hummel, an out gay high school teen, and even more unheard of when he got into a relationship with Blaine Anderson.
Glee continued to break barriers after this, Brittany and Santana became a fan favourite couple and we got to watch the journey of Coach Beiste coming to terms with his gender and becoming a trans man.
Murphy then went on to direct Pose which features over 50 transgender characters who are all played by trans actors, the most for any network series. He also announced on Twitter that he would be donating all profits he earned from the show to various LGBTQ+ charities and shelters.
These are just a few of my personal favourites that made lockdown all the more bearable for me, but I’d like to give a quick mention to a few others I love and recommend such as God’s Own Country, Carol, and Dating Amber. Happy pride month and happy watching!
