10 LGBTQ+ Movies (from the 2010s) to Watch
In honor of Pride Month, here are 10 stream-worthy films
to add to your queue right now
June is the official month of Pride for the LGBTQ+ community, and we’re streaming contemporary LGBTQ+ themed films all month long. But let’s be real—we suggest watching these films, again and again, any time of year. We chose films from the 2010s for easy access to streaming, but there are countless essential classics to watch if you can find them. Stay cool this summer and let’s dive into our top 10 LGBTQ+ friendly movies.
Love Simon (2018)
Directed by Greg Berlanti
What is Love Simon about?
Based on the YA novel, Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens by Becky Albertalli, Love Simon is a beautiful coming-of-age story about a closeted teen. The film adaptation is a modern take on navigating high school romantic relationships.
Brief Synopsis: Simon Spier is done keeping his story straight. This seventeen-year-old boy struggles to balance his friends, family, and the blackmailer threatening to out him to the entire school. Simon gets entangled in an online confession from another closeted gay student who Simon begins communicating with via email. Love Simon is a new tale of familial love and acceptance of one’s true identity despite the pressure of conforming to societal norms.
Circus of Books (2019)
Directed by Rachel Mason
What is Circus of Books about?
A young Jewish couple answers an ad in the Los Angeles Times seeking distributors for Hustler Magazine. What started out as a way to make extra money as a young family trying to make ends meet turned into a lucrative business for Karen and Barry Mason.
Brief Synopsis: Circus of Books is a documentary directed by the porn shop owners’ own daughter, Rachel Mason. The film gives viewers a glimpse into an untold chapter of queer history during the height of the AIDS crisis in the ‘80s. Shop owners Karen and Barry became fully immersed in the gay community in Los Angeles while simultaneously hiding what they did for a living from their family and their devout Jewish community.
The Imitation Game (2014)
Directed by Morten Tyldum
What is The Imitation Game about?
During World War II, the English mathematical genius Alan Turing tries to crack the German Enigma code with help from fellow mathematicians while attempting to come to terms with his troubled private life.
Brief Synopsis: In 1939, Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch) is recruited to crack Nazi codes, including Enigma — which cryptanalysts had thought unbreakable. Turing’s team, including Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley), analyze Enigma messages while he builds a machine to decipher them. Turing and the team finally succeed and become heroes, but in 1952, the quiet genius encounters disgrace when authorities reveal he is gay and send him to prison.
Moonlight (2016)
Directed by Barry Jenkins
What is Moonlight About?
So few stories center on LGBTQIA+ love and even fewer of those stories feature black people. Moonlight is a coming-of-age story that follows the life of Chiron, a black gay man growing up in urban working-class Miami, Florida.
Brief Synopsis: A look at three defining chapters in the life of Chiron, a young black man growing up in Miami. Directed by Barry Jenkins, Moonlight is an epic tale of manhood is guided by the kindness, support and love of the community. It sheds light on the struggles of gay Black men and their struggles to find acceptance and compassion in a rough upbringing.
Carol (2015)
Directed by Todd Haynes
What is Carol About?
Based on the 1952 romance novel The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith, Carol is a romantic drama period film starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara. The movie tells the story of a forbidden affair between an aspiring female photographer and an older woman going through a difficult divorce.
Brief Synopsis: During the Christmas season of 1952, aspiring photographer Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara) is working in Frankenberg’s department store in Manhattan. She meets a glamorous woman, Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett), while Carol is shopping for a gift for her daughter. When Carol departs, she leaves her gloves on the counter, which begins a complicated string of romantic encounters that were considered taboo during the ‘50s.
Out (Pixar Short 2020)
Directed by Steven Hunter
What is Out About?
This short film is part of the SparkShorts series and is both Disney’s and Pixar’s first short to feature a gay main character and storyline. While there have been LGBTQ+ characters in other animated films, Out sets itself apart by having a gay character in the central role.
Brief Synopsis: Out is about a young gay man named Greg who hasn’t come out to his parents, but has plans to move with his boyfriend. With the help of magical interference from a dog, Greg eventually gathers up the strength to come out.
Beach Rats (2017)
Directed by Eliza Hittman
What is Beach Rats About?
An aimless teenager on the outer edges of Brooklyn struggles to escape his bleak home life and navigate questions of self-identity, as he balances his time between his delinquent friends, a potential new girlfriend, and older men he meets online.
Brief Synopsis: Beach Rats follows Frankie (Harris Dickinson) as he attempts to compartmentalize his life by having sex with older men and still making time for his new girlfriend. This becomes increasingly difficult as Frankie runs into the men he meets online in real life. At 19 years old, he lives at home with his mother, younger sister and his father who is dying. Frankie forces himself to keep his sex life a secret from his family and friends.
The Miseducation of Cameron Post (2018)
Directed by Desiree Akhavan
What is The Miseducation of Cameron Post About?
This film is an adaptation of a coming-of-age teen novel by the same title. The protagonist is Cameron Post, a teenage girl who is discovering her own homosexuality in a small conservative town.
Brief Synopsis: Cameron is sent to a gay conversion therapy center for teens once her family discovers she is secretly involved in a romantic same-sex relationship with her girlfriend. The Christian-based conversion camp attempts to “rescue” questioning teens and cure them of their homosexuality. Obviously, the “cure” doesn’t work for Cameron and her new friends at the camp as they plan their escape.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
Directed by Céline Sciamma
What is Portrait of a Lady on Fire About?
Portrait of a Lady on Fire is a period piece that powerfully portrays the mutual attraction between a female artist and her subject. The film is set in 18th century France when same-sex love affairs were not the norm. The movie premiered at Cannes, where it won Best Screenplay and the Queer Palm.
Brief Synopsis: Marianne, a painter, is commissioned to do the wedding portrait of Héloïse, a young woman who has just left the convent. Héloïse is a reluctant bride to be and Marianne must paint her without her knowing. She observes her by day, painting her secretly.
RocketMan (2019)
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
What is Rocketman About?
This film is the epic musical story of Elton John during his breakthrough years in the 1970s and his fantastical transformation from shy piano prodigy to international superstar. Viewers get to see the rise of Elton John and the struggles he faced during his ascension.
Brief Synopsis: Rocketman stars Taron Egerton as Elton Jonh with Jamie Bell as Bernie Taupin. Young Reginald Dwight changes his name to Elton John and collaborates with singer-songwriter Bernie Taupin to become one of the most iconic figures in pop history.