This June marks the 50th pride month, marked in many countries around the world. As this year’s events have been canceled due to the pandemic, it’s the perfect time to watch a few LGBTQ+ related films to educate yourself about the history of the community.
Milk (2008)
This filmĀ is based on the life of Harvey Milk, aĀ gay rightsĀ activist and politician who wasĀ the first openly gay person to be electedĀ to public office in California.
Directed byĀ Gus Van SantĀ and written byĀ Dustin Lance Black, the film starsĀ Sean PennĀ as Milk alongside Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, Diego Luna, and James Franco.
The film was released to much acclaim and earned numerous accoladesĀ including 8Ā OscarĀ nominations at theĀ 81st Academy Awards.
Moonlight (2016)
AĀ coming-of-ageĀ dramaĀ written and directed byĀ Barry Jenkins, based onĀ Tarell Alvin McCraney’s unpublished semi-autobiographical playĀ In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue. It starsĀ Trevante Rhodes,Ā AndrĆ© Holland,Ā Janelle MonĆ”e,Ā Ashton Sanders,Ā Jharrel Jerome,Ā Naomie Harris, andĀ Mahershala Ali.
The film an Academy Award for best picture and by doing so was the first film with an all-black cast, the firstĀ LGBTQ-related film, and the second-lowest-grossing film domestically to win this award.
Paris is Burning (1990)
In the great tradition of Paris is Burning, the library is now open – and the T is ā this documentary will change the way you look at ballroom culture and the art of drag.
ThisĀ documentary wasĀ directed byĀ Jennie Livingston. Filmed in the mid-to-late 1980s, it chronicles theĀ ball cultureĀ ofĀ New York CityĀ and theĀ African-American,Ā Latino,Ā gay, andĀ transgenderĀ communities involved in it. Critics consider the film to be an invaluable documentary of the end of the “Golden Age” of New York City drag balls.
In 2016, the film was selected for preservation in the United StatesĀ National Film RegistryĀ by theĀ Library of Congress.
Philadelphia (1993)
American treasure Tom Hanks won his first of three (so far)Ā Academy Award for Best ActorĀ for this film, which was groundbreaking in the way it dealt with the HIV/aids pandemic. Directed byĀ Jonathan DemmeĀ and starringĀ HanksĀ andĀ Denzel Washington, the film was one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to even acknowledgeĀ HIV,Ā homosexuality, andĀ homophobia.
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Directed byĀ Ang LeeĀ and adaptedĀ fromĀ the 1997 short story of the same name, the film starsĀ Heath Ledger,Ā Jake Gyllenhaal,Ā Anne Hathaway, andĀ Michelle Williams. It depicts the complex emotional and sexual relationship betweenĀ Ennis Del MarĀ andĀ Jack TwistĀ in theĀ American WestĀ from 1963 to 1983.
Brokeback MountainĀ has been regarded as a stepping stone for the advancement ofĀ queer cinemaĀ into the mainstream. In 2018, the film was selected for preservation in the United StatesĀ National Film RegistryĀ by theĀ Library of Congress.
