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LGBTQ+ movies you have to see — 55 best LGBT films
From Tangerine to Moonlight. All featuring lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, queer and transgender characters
Here are some of the best LGBT films and movies ever made. From drag pageants to moving tales of young people coming to terms with their sexuality, and/or gender. All of these films have an above average rating on IMDB and appear on the site's 'most popular' LGBTQ+ movies lists. They feature lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, queer and transgender characters.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Rebel Dykes
A brilliant and refreshing story of UK post-punk dyke culture, told by those who lived it.
Available on BFI Player as part of BFI Flare.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Sweetheart
BFI says, "AJ discovers it’s not so bad being on a family holiday when she meets flirtatious lifeguard Isla in this smart and funny first feature."
Available on BFI Player as part of BFI Flare.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Disclosure (2020)
Starring Laverne Cox and so many other awesome trans actors, this documentary is "n in-depth look at Hollywood's depiction of transgender people and the impact of those stories on transgender lives and American culture."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Dating Amber (2020)
This new Amazon Original film is a coming of age story set in the 90s in Ireland. Eddie and Amber are discovering their sexuality while navigating the hell of high school.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: My First Summer Kiss
Amidst the grief of losing her mother, sheltered teen Claudia discovers friendship and love for the first time in this beautiful and sublime debut.
LGBT movies - LGBT films The Boys in the Band (2020)
An adaption of a 60s off-Broadway (turned Broadway ) play of the same name, featuring Jim Parsons and Zachary Quinto to name a few. The plot? "At a birthday party in 1968 New York, a surprise guest and a drunken game leave seven gay friends reckoning with unspoken feelings and buried truths."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2020)
Directed by Celine Sciamma, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, is a rare gem - a queer film directed and written by a queer person with actual queer actors! The plot? "On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: The Half of It (2020)
Written and directed by Alice Wu (whose films appear twice on this list!), The Half of It is a very different take on the teen high school rom com drama. The plot? ""When smart but cash-strapped teen Ellie Chu agrees to write a love letter for a jock, she doesn't expect to become his friend - or fall for his crush."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: A Secret Love (2020)
This documentary is bound to make you weep. The plot? "Falling in love in 1947, two women - Pat Henschel and pro baseball player Terry Donahue - begin a 65-year journey of love and overcoming prejudice."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Circus of Books (2019)
This documentary follows a family in which devout parents run a an LGBT adult bookstore. "In 1976 a couple take over an adult book store, and the store becomes the biggest distributor of gay porn in the United States."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Moonlight (2016)
Barry Jenkins' movie about a gay black man growing up in Miami may be known by some for the absolute c*ck up at the Oscars, but they need to know it's an AMAZING piece of important cinema. Mahershala Ali's performance as drug-dealing Juan who becomes a role model for Chiron (played by three actors throughout the course of the film). Naomie Harris plays Chiron's mother and their relationship is heart breaking to watch.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Boy Erased (2018)
Directed by Joel Edgerton (a straight man...) Boy Erased is an adaptation of Garrad Conley's memoir (Conley co-wrote the script with Edgerton, at least). The plot? "The son of a Baptist preacher unwillingly participates in a church-supported gay conversion program after being forcibly outed to his parents."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Duck Butter (2018)
Alia Shawkat and Laia Costa are "Two women, who are dissatisfied with the dishonesty they see in dating and relationships, decide to make a pact to spend 24 hours together hoping to find a new way to create intimacy."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: The Watermelon Woman (1996)
Cheryl is a young, black lesbian who works in a video shop whose side hustle is making a film about a black actress reduced to stereotypical roles. Directed by Cheryl Dune (who is playing a fictionalised version of herself), it is, like Pariah, thought of as a landmark piece of black LGBTQ cinema.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Pariah (2011)
Alike (Adepero Oduye) is a 17-year-old struggling to come to terms with her identity and sexuality in this coming of age drama. The film, directed by Dee Rees, won an award at Sundance when it was released and is thought of as a landmark for black LGBT movies.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: My Days of Mercy (2017)
Starring Kate Mara and Elliot Page, My Days of Mercy follows the lives of two women on opposite sides of a political cause.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Booksmart (2019)
I can't sing Booksmart's praises enough - seriously, I interviewed the stars and wrote a whole thing about it already. It's Olivia Wilde's directional debut, and stars Beanie Feldstein from Ladybird. It's a tale of incredible female friendship between Beanie's character Molly and Amy, who happens to be queer. This is never made a big song and dance of, it just IS part of her. Some of the best LGBT representation on screen in forever. Oh and loads of great sex positive messages too.
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Disobedience (2018)
Starring Rachel McAdams and Rachel Weisz (yes, two straight actors, again...) Disobedience is at least based on the book of the same name by queer writer Naomi Alderman. The plot? "A woman returns to her Orthodox Jewish community that shunned her for her attraction to a female childhood friend. Once back, their passions reignite as they explore the boundaries of faith and sexuality."
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: Blockers (2018)
It's the classic teen prom comedy, except a bit queerer. Three parents desperately try to stop their teenage children from having sex on their prom night. AND ONE OF THE DAUGHTERS IS QUEER. It's a big deal. OK? Also, Leslie Mann and John Cena star. So...
LGBT movies - Best LGBT films: The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson (2017)
Playing a major, MAJOR part in the Stonewall riots, Marsha P. Johnson was one hell of a trans activist and an LGBTQ icon in the '60s. In this documentary film, Victoria Cruz goes in search of answers about Marsha's suspicious death after her body was found in the Hudson river.
Paisley is the former Sex and Relationships editor at Cosmopolitan UK. She covers everything from sex toys, how to masturbate and sex positions, to all things LGBTQ. She definitely reveals too much about her personal life on the Internet.
Lois Shearing is Cosmoplitan's Former Senior Sex and Relationship Writer. They have been writing about sex, sexuality, gender, politics, and relationships for almost ten years. Their writing on these topics has appeared in Mashable, The Independent, Metro, The Advocate, and Byline Times, among others. In 2021, they published their first book, Bi the Way with JKP. They are currently working on two other books, set to be published in 2024. In a previous life, they worked as a content marketer and content writer for various tech start-ups. They continue to be interested in the tech sector and its impact on our lives, relationships, and work, with particular regard to the ways AI will shape our relationships in the future. Outside of work, they are deeply passionate about queer community organising, and run the only support resource for bisexual survivors of sexual violence in the UK: the Bi Survivors Network. You can find them on Instagram and X.
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