Pride on Film: A Cinematic Retrospective
by Jasmine Edwards
Queer cinema has always been here, because queer people have always been around, especially in the arts. Looking at you, MGM’s Freed unit, and your long-running nickname of the “fairy unit.” Naturally, the earliest on camera gay content was, at best, subtext or at worst, rampant prejudice. Cross-dressing villains abounded in horror (Psycho in 1960 and The Silence of the Lambs in 1991) and gay men were lonely, natural predators or corrupters to upstanding moral folk (Midnight Cowboy, 1969), or they were noble characters doomed to suffer through the “bury your gays” trope (Philadephia, 1993).
Meanwhile, courageous queer creators continued to champion our rights on and off screen. Paving the way for many movies to come, a few writers and directors pushed boundaries and refused to remain silenced by production codes, censorship, or Hollywood’s hatred. For Pride Month, I’d like to spotlight the most influential of these releases across decades of filmmaking.
These films were influential in both art form and in how they helped portray LGBTQ+ desire, romance, and relationships to (primarily) American audiences. While I watched many queer movies in my youth with both awe and dawning realization about my own sexuality, some theater-goers needed to see queer people on screen to fully understand their struggles. Representation has always mattered, after all. Film exposes potentially unknowing audiences to radically different ideas or approaches to life, setting a standard for empathy that few other mediums have. That’s because movies are more widely accessible; art becoming mainstream helps broaden viewers’ horizons and understanding.
This list hardly encompasses the wealth of incredibly impactful queer films out there; I only scratch the surface of the more diverse international collections. However, my brief list does showcase some of the most meaningful additions to the genre within the United States, many of which broke out of LGBTQ-only circles to become pop culture classics in their own right.
Some Like It Hot
Some Like It Hot (1959) is an absolute gem of gender exploration and expression, which manages to steer clear of overt offense despite being a comedy. Two run-down musicians crossdress in order to join an all-female band, and one ends up kissing his female love interest while in full drag. Meanwhile, the other lead ends up engaged to another man—one who doesn’t break the relationship off even after discovering the truth! For a black-and-white ‘50s release, those scenes sure are meaningful.
My Beautiful Laundrette
Following a Pakistani Briton and his punk lover, My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) astounds with an intimate look at community values as they relate to, and sometimes stand in the way of, personal identity. The film is especially notable for its happy ending, which is unexpected due to the time period in which it was made. After all, gays were often forced to endlessly suffer on screen, and weren’t really “allowed” to be happy in cinema until much later—specifically, post-AIDS crisis.
Bound
Just like the Wachowskis’ later sci-fi project The Matrix (1999), Bound (1996) is on many a queer person’s list of “sexual awakening” movies. Melding mafia drama, female revenge, and coming out into a single slick flick, Bound is an engaging tale of lesbian love, lust, and a refusal to back down no matter the pain or price. Who wouldn’t want to live their life with such confidence? I know Bound revolutionized my concept of who and what I deserve.
But I’m A Cheerleader
This is my first pick that actually revolves around being gay. The other films’ plots have queer dynamics, but don’t necessarily focus on being queer as the main story. While that has merit, But I’m A Cheerleader (1999) is an essential tale for teens who have realized they don’t quite fit into the whole cisgender, heterosexual, white-picket-fence picture. The candy-coated aesthetic also charms during an era of grungy, gritty dramas.
Brokeback Mountain
Recently celebrating its 20th anniversary, Brokeback Mountain (2005) is a timeless, sweeping romance surrounding cowboys and ranchers. It is a tender and tragic portrayal of how queer people stifle and suppress themselves, especially in unwelcoming environments. And while I criticized the stereotypical decision to kill off your queer characters, Brokeback Mountain highlights the realistic brutality queer people face daily all around the world, a sad truth that deserves recognition on film.
Moonlight
Popular movies are dominated by white casts. This is also true of gay movies, which tend to play it safe and appease larger audiences by rejecting intersectionality. But Moonlight (2016) paints a wider picture of homosexuality in the Black community of Miami, Florida. Chiron’s life unfolds across boyhood, adolescence, and adulthood in stages of discovering himself and finding love. Most notable is the protagonist’s soft personality and atypical masculinity, combined with his muscular appearance, which is refreshing to see in any genre.
The Handmaiden
Park Chan-wook’s period drama The Handmaiden (2016) gripped me by the throat and didn’t let me go for its entire runtime. This is a masterful story of deceit and crime that will leave you breathless by the end. But more than anything, The Handmaiden, at its core, is about surviving your trauma, outlasting your abusers, and creating the best version of yourself by force. I believe that truly encompasses the queer experience.