For Pride Month, what better films are there for movie night besides queer cinema? Here are a few recommendations for movies featuring queer characters and themes, including movies from various genres such as comedy, coming of age, fantasy, and horror.
An official poster for "The Half of It."
“The Half of It”
A coming of age, romantic drama with a queer twist on love triangles. The film followed high schooler Ellie Chu, who ghostwrote her classmates' essays for money. She got a strange request from jock Paul Munsky, to write a love letter to the girl he had a crush on, Aster Flores. As she wrote Paul’s letters, Ellie fell for Aster too.
Despite both falling in love with Aster, Ellie and Paul have an unlikely, wholesome friendship that was the center of the film. The movie deals with what it is like to be closeted and fall in love in a small, close-minded town. It had empowering messages about friendship and confidence.
“The Half of It” is currently available to stream on Netflix.
An official poster for "Everything Everywhere All at Once."
“Everything Everywhere All at Once”
An absurdist multiverse adventure that took the world by storm in 2022, which won multiple academy awards such as best picture. The film followed down-on-her-luck mother and Chinese immigrant Evelyn Wang as she got sucked into a bizarre multiversal conflict.
At the heart of the film was Evelyn’s relationship with her gay daughter, Joy. At first, Evelyn struggled to understand her daughter. But throughout the movie, Evelyn learned to connect to her daughter, eventually becoming proud and supportive of Joy. Not only that, but Evelyn also found a world where she had a wife and hot dogs for fingers.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” is currently available to stream on Netflix and to own on DVD.
An official poster for "I Saw the TV Glow."
“I Saw the TV Glow”
A recent A24 horror film that made viewers question reality. The protagonists Owen and Maddy were obsessed with a fantasy TV series called “The Pink Opaque” that might not be as fictional as it seems.
Maddy was a lesbian and had a realistic, moving coming out scene. Owen’s arc dealt with queer themes as he questioned his sexuality and gender, much of his connection to “The Pink Opaque” alluding to transgender experiences. Despite being ostracized, these two found a tragic connection with each other and their experiences outside of gendered expectations.
“I Saw the TV Glow” is currently playing in select theaters and can be rented digitally.
Review: ‘I Saw the TV Glow’ is a haunting film that challenges reality itself
An official poster for "Nimona."
“Nimona”
An animated feature based on the eponymous comic book written by N.D. Stevenson, who also developed the queer Netflix cartoon “She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.” A comedic fantasy movie about a blood-thirsty shapeshifting girl named Nimona, who became the villain sidekick of Ballister Boldheart, who got framed for murdering the queen. The movie was set in a world that combined futuristic technology with the middle ages.
This movie took queer undertones from the comic and made them overtones. Ballister was in love with another man, Ambrosius Goldenloin, a knight torn between his duty to the kingdom and trust for Ballister. On top of that, the film’s primary message was about accepting people who are ostracized by society.
“Nimona” is available to stream on Netflix.
“Bottoms”
This film is perfect for those who want representation of messy, morally questionable characters. “Bottoms” is a comedy about PJ and Josie, two loser lesbians who started a women’s self-defense club at their high school, or a fight club if you will, as a scheme to lose their virginity to their cheerleader crushes.
The film was witty and wacky, much of the humor being specifically for LGBTQ+ people. Both PJ and Josie were messy characters whose schemes lead to hilarious hijinks. Their respective actresses Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri perfectly landed the comedy and awkwardness of their characters.
“Bottoms” is currently available to stream on Amazon Prime and MGM+.
Review: 'Bottoms' brings queer culture to the big screen
Conclusion
These are just a handful of movies perfect for Pride Month! Though it is also important that queer cinema is uplifted and supported all year-round, allowing for more queer people to create successful art and for representation to reach those who need it.
