LGBTQ: Movies

"The wry, incisive debut feature by Cheryl Dunye gave cinema something bracingly new and groundbreaking: a vibrant representation of Black lesbian identity by a Black lesbian filmmaker. Dunye stars as Cheryl, a video-store clerk and aspiring director whose interest in forgotten Black actresses leads her to investigate an obscure 1930s performer known as the Watermelon Woman, whose story proves to have surprising resonances with Cheryl's own life as she navigates a new relationship with a white girlfriend. Balancing a breezy romantic comedy with a serious inquiry into the history of Black and queer women in Hollywood, The Watermelon Woman slyly rewrites long-standing constructions of race and sexuality on-screen, introducing an important voice in American cinema."

"As a sci-fi obsessed woman living in near isolation, Beverly Glenn-Copeland wrote and self-released Keyboard Fantasies in Huntsville, Ontario back in 1986. Recorded in an Atari-powered home studio, the cassette featured seven tracks of a curious folk-electronica hybrid, a sound realized far before its time. Three decades later the musician, now Glenn Copeland, began to receive emails from people across the world, thanking him for the music they'd recently discovered. Courtesy of a record collector in Japan, a reissue of Keyboard Fantasies and the praise of Four Tet, Caribou and more, the music had finally found its audience two generations down the line. An intimate coming of age story spinning pain and the suffering of prejudice into rhythm, hope and joy."

" A single mother Lydia, who is abandoned by her husband, meets the small village's Doctor Jean Markham who has recently returned to her hometown when Lydia's son Charlie is taken under the doctor after being bullied in school. When Lydia and Charlie are unhoused because of Lydia's earnings from her work are not adequate to pay the rent, Jean invites them to stay in her home and she and Lydia soon develop a friendship and maybe something more."

"France, 1760. Marianne is commissioned to paint the wedding portrait of Héloïse, a young woman who has just left the convent. Because she is a reluctant bride-to-be, Marianne arrives under the guise of companionship, observing Héloïse by day and secretly painting her by firelight at night. As the two women orbit one another, intimacy and attraction grow as they share Héloïse first moments of freedom. Héloïse portrait soon becomes a collaborative act of and a testament to their love."

"A woman returns to the community that shunned her for her attraction to a childhood friend. Once back, their passions reignite as they explore the boundaries of faith and sexuality."

"A young black man struggles to find his place in the world while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami."

"Desperate for work, Martin finds a temporary job at Eugenio's house. When Eugenio recognizes Martin as one of his long lost childhood friends, he offers him work for the summer. As they re-connect and their relationship grows beyond friendship, social differences that grew between them since childhood could prove to be a challenge too difficult to overcome."

"Closeted advertising executive Adrian returns to his Texas hometown for the holidays during the first wave of the AIDS crisis. Burdened with an unspeakable tragedy in New York City. Adrian looks to reconnect with his preteen brother Andrew while navigating his relationship with religious parents Eileen and Dale. When he reaches out to his estranged childhood friend, their unresolved issues force Adrian to confront an uncertain future that will significantly alter the lives of those around him."

"Everyone deserves a great love story, but for seventeen year old Simon Spier, it's a little more complicated. He hasn't told his family or friends that he's gay, and he doesn't know the identity of the anonymous classmate that he's fallen for online. Resolving both issues proves hilarious, terrifying and life changing."

The remarkable love story inspired by the lives of artists Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener. Lili and Gerda's marriage and work evolve as they navigate Lili's groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer.

In this high energy, smash hit musical, black gay teen Brad is taken in by the ragtag members of the struggling House of Eminence (led by aging ball-legend and house mother Queer Latina). Featuring music by Beyonce music director Kim Burse, and choreography by Beyonce dance master, Fran Gaston Jr., this exuberant musical directed by Sheldon Larry was inspired by Paris is Burning, and is an uplifting ode to the wild, funky and heart-aching life of this underground subculture.

Spring. Yorkshire. Young farmer Johnny Saxby numbs his daily frustrations with binge drinking and casual sex, until the arrival of a Romanian migrant worker for lambing season ignites an intense relationship that sets Johnny on a new path.

E.M. Forrester's story of two Edwardian-era Cambridge graduates that fall in love, but must abide by British society's strict norms regarding homosexuality.

Petra von Kant is a successful fashion designer who carries on a melodrama of erotic attractions with two other women in her claustrophobic apartment.

"A unique look at the life of celebrated American author Patricia Highsmith based on her diaries and notebooks, and the intimate reflections of her lovers, friends and family. Focusing on Highsmith2s quest for love and her troubled identity, the film sheds new light on her life and writing. Most of Highsmith2s novels were adapted for the big screen; the best known of these are Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley. Carol, a partly autobiographic novel, was the first lesbian story with a happy ending to be published in 1950s America. But Highsmith herself was forced to lead a double life and had to hide her vibrant love affairs from her family and the public. Only in her unpublished writings did she reflect on her private life. Excerpts from these notes voiced by Gwendoline Christie, beautifully interwoven with archival material of her and her most famous novel adaptations, create a vivid, touching portrait of one of the most fascinating female writers."

"Seven transgender individuals share their experiences of what it is like to be born the wrong sex, the path to transitioning, and their lives afterward."

"A passionate coming-of-age tale set amidst the conservative confines of modern Tbilisi, the film follows Merab, a competitive dancer who is thrown off balance by the arrival of Irakli, a fellow male dancer with a rebellious streak."

"Profiles four transgender women who come out late in life. Focuses on the theme of what it means to leave behind one's male identity."

Viewers will see the nail-biting behind-the-scenes story that traces the marriage equality movement's historic progress and reveals the masterminds who fought.

"During the winter of 1952, British authorities entered the home of mathematician, cryptanalyst, and war hero Alan Turing to investigate a reported burglary. They instead ended up arresting Turing himself on charges of ₁gross indecency,₂ an accusation that would lead to his devastating conviction for the criminal offense of homosexuality. Little did officials know they were actually incriminating the pioneer of modern-day computing."

"It's the summer of 1983 in Italy, and Elio, a precocious 17-year-old, spends his days in his family's villa transcribing and playing classical music, reading and flirting with his friend Marzia. One day, Oliver, a charming American scholar arrives as the annual summer intern tasked with helping Elio's father, an eminent professor. Elio and Oliver discover the heady beauty of awakening desire over the course of a summer that will alter their lives forever."

"U.K. gay activists work to assist miners during their extended strike of the National Union of Mineworkers in the summer of 1984."

After Ray decides to transition from female to male, Ray's mother, Maggie, must come to terms with the decision while tracking down Ray's biological father to get his legal consent.

Chet and Todd are estranged gay brothers who grew up in a small town in Central California. While bad boy Todd ran off to Los Angeles and is now out and proud, Chet stayed at home (and mostly closeted) to run the family store and to care for their dying father. When Todd returns home broke and homeless, long-simmering resentments boil to the surface as the brothers confront their differences and similarities.

A Chinese-American lesbian and her traditionalist mother are reluctant to go public with secret loves that clash against cultural expectations.

Two women from very different backgrounds find themselves in an unexpected love affair in 1950s New York. As conventional norms of the time challenge their undeniable attraction, an honest story emerges to reveal the resilience of the heart in the face of change. A young woman in her twenties, Therese is a clerk working in a Manhattan department store and dreaming of a more fulfilling life when she meets Carol, an alluring woman trapped in a loveless, convenient marriage.

Alike is a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur and younger sister Sharonda in Brooklyn's Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. Wondering how much she can confide in her family, Alike strives to get through adolescence with grace, humor, and tenacity - sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, but always moving forward.