They probably would have been higher on my list if they existed in my area. We have capybaras here instead.

Yeah SG probably didn't adapt to the changes on steam regarding soundtracks.

Priscilla Queen of the Desert is definitely way up there in the top of layered queer characters and most likely will remain so.

Boys don't Cry is so damn tragic but then it's been literally 30 years since Brandon Teena was murdered and it feels we're only going backward when it comes to trans acceptance so it's sadly still too relevant.

I'm ashamed to say I have never seen Torch Song Trilogy. At least not the movie. I saw the plays. Fierstein is such a gifted writer. Imagine the guts to write something like that in the 1970ies.

The Birdcage is a classic. Shockingly enough, one would think it's as stereotypical as it gets when it comes to portraying gay men, especially in a comedy, but there's so much heart and tenderness in the way the characters are written, and played, that it never feels mean or bashing. If you can lend your hands on the French movie (again from a 70ies play), it's well worth a watch too. Great performances.

I have mixed feelings about Philadelphia. It's a good movie in many ways, and it was one of the rare portrayal of the AIDS crisis which dared to have a gay man with AIDS and not some suburban mother who got it in a blood transfusion or such. It's also very well acted and Demme did a great job directing it. Yet somehow it feels a little too rounded to make the whole thing palatable to mass audiences, and at the same time a little exploitative.
However it did make a huge dent in the old Hollywood gay invisibility shield and we may not be where we are with representation if the movie hadn't been made

Oh I never saw that one. Nice cast, I'll check it out.

To Wong Foo, the American answer to Priscilla! Quite funny and with an unexpected cast that does great actually, at a time when it wasn't "cool" or an automatic Oscar nomination to play queer characters.
Definitely not a movie that has been seen as much as it deserves by any audience, queer or not.

Speaking of ballsy, My Beautiful Laundrette was quite a thing at the time it was released. Not only centered around gay men, but an interracial couple at that, and imperfect characters in all their flawed humanity.

I have never seen Happy Together and Maurice (I had no idea they existed really). I'm not a big fan of Ivory's movies but that seems unusual to say the least. Happy Together goes to the top of my watchlist.

I remember watching Paris is Burning a while ago. I think it was at a queer film festival for Pride actually. It's a really good documentary. Not sure how easy it would be to find these days but maybe some streaming services add LGBTQ+ content in June.

Hedwig is an Absolute Must movie on the Pride watchlist every year, although I watched the show many times already and I'm sure I will again. It's a rare successful screen adaptation of a rare stage musical. I love everything about it.

But I'm a Cheerleader is actually a movie that my best bud from college used to weed out his friends before he came out to them lol
He figured if they can't see the humor in this, they're not worth the time. Such a good cast. It was so panned by critics for whatever reason!

Also anything by John Waters is queer AF, glory glory to Divine, etc.

Haha for real! He is a genius. Polyester might be one of my favorite comedies ever. Can you imagine being in high school with Waters and Divine? In the 60s! Must have been demented.

Oh yeah so many tropes, especially when it comes to queer men. Not that queer women are exempt but overall it feels like there has been wider ranging and deeper representation in the past few years, whereas gay men are still pretty much ignored or pigeon-holed in mainstream tv and movies

Both Black Sails and Shameless are excellent examples of portrayals done right. Main characters, not you know... just for the diversity check, all complex and not reduced to their sexual orientation. All kinda tragic but not because they are queer, or at least not directly.

Never saw The Boondock Saints but damn good cast. I'll have to watch it.

Oh, thanks for the reminder! I watched The Boondock Saints as a teenager, and that was ages ago. I barely remember the movie, it's time to re-watch it.

+100 for the recommendations.

Good actors, good written, deep, characters, good stories. All fit together.
In such a "complete package" is it not "unusual" if there are gays, lesbians, queer's. It's normal -in the way of "not different/more of interest as other orientations"- (I hope my words are clear enough with my broken english, and can't be seen in a negative way).
And what i like, it educate the viewers, a bit, that all people are humans. With good and bad sites but without to judge them by which one they love or have sex with.

So more or less "let people live how they want, as long as they don't harm someone". (Which is how i try to live)

No such thing as too obvious. Lots of people have seen some movies many times and others haven't heard about them at all.
Especially older movies like The Crying Game

I know some will have issues with it or with Breakfast on Pluto for casting cisgendered actors in those parts (although I have no idea how Jaye Davidson identifies) but they are so beautifully written and the characters so lovingly portrayed, it really shouldn't make a difference for how great the movies are. And yes the Crying Game kinda makes a twist out of the identity of Dil but it doesn't change the fact the character was written as a person, and not a cliché.

And see, obvious or not, I haven't seen Portrait of a Lady on Fire. And I live in France. I know of it but I haven't had the opportunity to see it yet.

Speaking of obvious, has anyone seen Una Mujer Fantástica? I know it won an Oscar but I don't know if anyone actually watches the Foreign Film winners :P

It might be obvious but it's always nice to see someone mention Sciamma :) When it comes to movies with queer characters her previous works (Water Lilies and Tomboy) are also great.

+1 for Portrait of a Lady on Fire. one of my favs.
and would recommend The Way He Looks, really beautiful

edit: also Pariah

I saw Fucking Åmål at a Pride film festival years ago. Maybe not so easy to find now but it's a good watch

Another good and less known one is "Lapsia ja aikuisia - kuinka niitä tehdään?" but finding that can be even trickier.

Heh just the title probably makes it hard to find. Never heard of it but I'm not surprised as Scandinavian films don't often get a wide distribution, unlike Scandinavian tv shows. Well remakes anyway lol

Weekend is so good! I was really surprised by that one. Not because it's a super indie with a small budget but because I wasn't expecting the writing and acting to be so good in a movie that was so underrated and under the radar.

I remember watching Free Fall after seeing Max Riemelt in Sense8. It reminded me of a French movie at the time but I can't remember what it was now.

The others I have no heard about but they look interesting. Closet Monster and Out in the Dark go straight to the top of my watchlist.

Gay movies are kinda hit and miss. You are pretty much looking at indie films and while there are films that I've enjoyed, I know that they are "good gay films" but not necessarily "good films"

I think that's true of any movie, not just the gay movies. It's only all the more true for queer movies in general because even now most of them are not having an easy time securing budget and distribution but there are a lot of movies I love to watch over and over and I know very well they'll never be Oscar material. It all comes down to affinity with the characters and the mood of the movie.
Just like people, we love movies for personal reasons and we can be more forgiving of their flaws that others would be

Mambo Italiano is actually the last movie I saw on the big screen before I left Canada. It's so Canadian in the best way :D

God's Own Country Note: Haven't watched it yet, but it supposed to be good.

It is good. I personally liked it. It's rich and layered and does not beautify things. You see everything as is. For example, the young man's loneliness and isolation (both physical and mental) are palpable, but you don't feel like they're used to justify his behavior or cast the "halo of a tortured protagonist" over his actions. This complexity and nuance is what I liked most about it.

Just a note if you are planning to watch it. Some parts are quite visceral, so be prepared for that. It's set up in a rural livestock farm, and you'll experience everything that comes with that. I've also had to google some of the local slang, but most of it is understandable if you turn it around in your head a bit.