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From Caged to Carol, we remember some of the best lesbian films from the USA.
Selina Robertson Updated: 16 August 2018
In 2016, Todd Haynes’ Carol , starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara , was voted the best LGBT film of all time , making it perhaps the most acclaimed so far in a long lineage of fine lesbian films from the US – but what came before?
Morally conservative Hollywood cinema has had an anxious yet intriguing relationship with depicting lesbians in the cinema. Heterosexual directors have offered audiences glimpses and whispers of lesbianism through a leering gaze, more invested in a sexual mistrust of Sappho’s sisters (what do lesbians do in bed?) rather than anything honest or real. Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s absorbing documentary The Celluloid Closet (1995) charts Hollywood’s uneasy rapport with homosexuality.
Yet there are plenty of lesbian whispers in the 1930s films of Greta Garbo , where she famously plants a morning kiss on the lips of her lady-in-waiting in Queen Christina (1933), or Marlene Dietrich bending her gender in Morocco (1930) and declaring, “Husband? I never found a man good enough for that.” Lesbian icons in their day and both rumoured to be bisexual, these formidable sexy women, together with Katharine Hepburn in Christopher Strong (1933) and Sylvia Scarlett (1935) and Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity (1944) and Walk on the Wild Side (1962), kept the brassy, sexually ambiguous roles coming.
Each of the recommendations included here is available to view in the UK.
So it is with purpose that we skip over the 1960s, the Decade Horribilis of cinematic lesbians, whose desperate, lonely, sexually neutered lives were more prone to choosing enforced heterosexuality, madness or suicide. Doomed lesbian schoolteachers of The Children’s Hour (1961), “nature’s mistake” in The Haunting (1963) and others, be gone! Happily these negative stereotypes were later smashed up with the advent of 1990s New Queer Cinema ( Go Fish , The Incredibly True Adventures of Two Girls in Love ), the queer activist Riot Grrl movement and the ‘lesbian chic’ media frenzy of the 1990s.
Let’s look back at 10 landmark lesbian films made in the USA.
With the global online domination of Orange Is the New Black (2013-) well under way, a list would not be complete without a women-in-prison drama. Adapted from the story ‘Women without Men’, based on real-life prison experiences, director John Cromwell ’s nuanced noir/melodrama was nominated for three Oscars, including best actress ( Eleanor Parker ) and best supporting actress ( Hope Emerson ).
A teenage bride is sent to the clink for helping her husband in a bungled robbery. She subsequently becomes hardened after encounters with a brutalising prison system and fellow inmates. Although the lesbianism is not explicit, the film is rich with subtext, with several characters coded as queer. It’s a tough, socially conscious film with some fabulous campy moments. Agnes Moorehead and Hope Emerson are especially good as a caring but impotent prison governor and a sadistic villain screw more interested in “her gals”.
Barbara Hammer , the pioneering lesbian artist and activist, is having a moment. Dyketactics (1974) is widely credited as the first lesbian film made by a lesbian, and her work is now reaching mainstream audiences at international galleries and museums. Inspired by the proto-feminist film canon of Maya Deren , Hammer shot several significant films in the 1970s. Double Strength is the last of these films exploring lesbian identity, desire, physicality and sexuality through avant-garde strategies. Hammer places herself and her lover at the time, a trapeze artist, in the 16mm frame to explore the different stages of the relationship, investigating the cinematic rupture between fantasy and reality.
There is a rich history of North American experimental lesbian feminist cinema sadly still unavailable in the UK on DVD, including works by Jan Oxenberg , Su Friedrich , Yvonne Rainer , Sadie Benning and Jenni Olson .
Lizzie Borden was inspired to make her radical lesbian feminist sci-fi tale of activism and guerrilla warfare out of growing distress at the splits in the women’s movement. “The bars and the organisations are segregated white-black-Latina,” she said at the time. It’s set in an imagined future, 10 years after a socialist revolution that has left the patriarchal power structure in command, when a band of female anarchists go to battle against capitalism and militarism.
The cast is a roll call of radical feminist intellectuals and artists of the time. This includes musician Adele Bertei , Florynce Kennedy (real-life civil rights lawyer and badass feminist), Sheila McLaughlin (director of 1987’s She Must Be Seeing Things ), Kathryn Bigelow (still the only woman to win the best director Oscar) and Honey (J.C. Honey Campbell), the face of the film, staunchly defiant in her Afrofuturist sisterhood and solidarity.
Up until The Kids Are All Right (2010), Donna Deitch ’s film Desert Hearts was widely considered to be the best mainstream fiction film about lesbians in love, with a rare happy ending as a welcome bonus. It’s a semi-remake of The Misfits (1961) and the two (straight) lead actors Helen Shaver and Patricia Charbonneau are outstanding – they certainly had the sizzle when it came to the film’s famous sex scene.
Deitch pours on the slow-burning seduction and it works; it’s a masterclass in portraying lesbian desire. Camille Paglia saw the film 11 times on release and the cast of The L Word (2004-09) studied the sex scenes to get tips. With an evocative sense of place – 1950s Nevada – a steady stream of country & western music and a punchy supporting cast, this was the first Hollywood lesbian film made by a lesbian director intended for mainstream audiences.
If the 1980s was a decade of performing butch and femmes identities, the 1990s brought the lesbian ‘sex wars’. Feminists debated pornography and BDSM, while fundamental questions about the nature of sex and sexuality were hotly contested. Step in Monika Treut , German lesbian filmmaker, performance artist and writer.
Treut’s fresh, complex, radical lesbian feminist art films chimed with sex-positive educator and performance artist Annie Sprinkle (Sluts and Goddesses Workshop) and “academic rottweiler” Camille Paglia, two of the decade’s most brilliant bad girls. Together they made Female Misbehaviour , a series of four shorts that explored the boundaries of female and QTPOC (queer and trans people of colour) sexuality. It’s fearless, funny and subversive, and Paglia said the film was “a totally accurate picture of my everyday life as a social and sexual alien”.
A defining film in the New Queer Cinema movement (a term coined by critic B. Ruby Rich) and the first feature film made by an African-American lesbian, Cheryl Dunye ’s fascinating and cheeky self-styled ‘Dunyementary’ sets out to perform, reconstruct and investigate her own history. Dunye plays a 20-something struggling filmmaker who becomes obsessed with finding an African-American actor from the 1930-40s known only as ‘ The Watermelon Woman ’.
Both personal and political, Dunye’s films explores black non-representation in Hollywood cinema and the director has since gone on in her career to build a vital visual culture about black lesbian life. Dunye credits filmmaker, activist and academic Michelle Parkerson as an inspiration.
Lisa Cholodenko ’s The Kids Are All Right might have been the first lesbian-directed feature film to be nominated for an Oscar, but it was her debut feature High Art that captured the hearts and minds of international critics and audiences hungry for stories from the queer margins. Cholodenko delivered a gem of a film, a reworking of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972), set in a dirty cool New York loft, full of complicated women with melancholic love lives.
Photographer Nan Goldin was the inspiration for the film, and Cholodenko was perfectly inspired to cast Ally Sheedy (freed from The Breakfast Club) and Patricia Clarkson as the No Wave lesbian couple, dependent on heroin and each other.
A decade ago at Sundance another milestone in US lesbian cinema was reached. Lesbian director Alice Wu wrote and directed the first mainstream Asian-American lesbian film, a comedy of manners called Saving Face . Similar to Nisha Ganatra’s Chutney Popcorn (1999), the film posits lesbianism at the centre of a drama about the cultural tensions between immigration, assimilation and sexuality within multiple generations of an Asian-American family.
With the canny casting of legendary Chinese-American actor Joan Chen as the film’s matriarch, and with Will Smith as one of the film’s producers, Wu delivers a nuanced film shot in the Chinese-American enclave of Flushing, Queens that is honest and taboo-busting but full of love for her screen characters. Wu has yet to make another film.
There is a coven of American female drummers. They are small, but they are loud. Many are referenced in Hit So Hard – Karen Carpenter, Alice de Buhr (Fanny), Kate Schellenbach (Luscious Jackson), Gina Schock (The Go-Go’s) – and then there is its subject, Patty Schemel from Hole. Hit So Hard, made by P. David Ebersole , is a glitz and gutter film about Schemel’s life, her lesbian sexuality, her music and her addiction.
It’s brilliantly raw and intense, hard to watch at times, and not just because of Courtney Love’s bizarre biscuit-munching. It harrowingly documents Schemel’s descent into addiction hell. The film comes in the wake of many superb films about jazz/punk/queer core girl bands starting with Tiny and Ruby: Hell Divin’ Women (1989), Prey for Rock & Roll (2003), Rise Above: The Tribe 8 Documentary (2003) and most recently The Runaways (2010), although Joan Jett’s sexuality barely gets a chord change.
The complexities and transformations of boihood are deftly crafted and intensely explored in Dee Rees ’ striking debut Pariah , a film championed by Meryl Streep . It’s a classic coming out story, with connections to Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (1989) for its depiction of a closeted teenager growing up hard in a religious home. However, Pariah is significant because of its rare QPOC (queer person of colour) subjectivity.
Rees was Spike Lee ’s student at NYU and Lee later became executive producer on her film. The film’s memorable opening sequence finds the film’s protagonist Alike, a baby macho in action, in her local Brooklyn dyke bar, full of swag, hitting on girls with her best boi friend Laura. “Sexuality is not an issue”, Rees wrote, “[Alike and Laura] are people, and that’s just part of who they are.” The film smashed it at Sundance 2011 and Rees has gone on to direct Queen Latifah in HBO’s Bessie and episodes of much-loved hip hop drama Empire (2015-).
News, features and opinion on the world of film.
Explore the history of film in list form.
Miriam Bale , Anne Billson , Mark Cousins , Jemma Desai , Bryony Dixon , Jane Giles , Pamela Hutchinson , Nick James , Violet Lucca , So Mayer , Henry K Miller , Nathalie Morris , Nick Pinkerton , Jonathan Romney , Jonathan Rosenbaum , Claire Smith , Kate Stables , Francine Stock , Isabel Stevens , Matthew Sweet , Ginette Vincendeau , Thirza Wakefield , Ben Walters , Catherine Wheatley , Rob Winter
So Mayer , Ania Ostrowska , Sight & Sound Editors
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Turn on one of these LGBTQ+ flicks to see yourself onscreen.
Even though the LGBTQ+ population is on the rise in the United States, lesbian and gay relationships are still underrepresented in much of popular media. But the good news is, a more diverse array of human experiences is appearing on screen just about every year. According to the 2020 GLAAD media report , of the 118 films released from the major studios in 2019, 22 included LGBTQ+ characters. That's the highest percentage of inclusive films in the report's history. And that representation really makes a difference. Media that shows LGBTQ+ people normalizes love and relationships between two people of the same gender, educates viewers on the long and difficult journey we're still taking toward equal rights and reinforces the fact that that gay, lesbian and LGBTQ+ people are just that, people who deserve to live loud and proud.
For newly out or young viewers, that validation is especially important as it can make them feel seen and heard in their experiences. That's a powerful thing, especially for those who don't otherwise have a safe place to be who they are. No matter your favorite genre, one of these movies focused on lesbian characters will be the perfect choice for your viewing pleasure. Be warned, though: some of them are a little hot and heavy. We've made a note of that where applicable, so you can save them for date night. Whether you want to help your LGBTQ+ teenager feel accepted or need a good film to watch with your partner, you'll find something to love on this list.
A wealthy woman and a department store clerk begin an illicit affair in this must-watch LGBTQ+ film set in the 1950s. Adapted from the cult classic The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith, it depicts how unexpected romance can change your life.
Fans of comedian Tig Notaro will love this tear-jerking documentary about life after a devastating cancer diagnosis. If you also cried your way through her stand-up set where she announced it, show this to a friend.
Many of us first watched this sleeper hit when we were teens ourselves, and it's well worth revisiting. It's poignant, hilarious and endlessly quotable.
Charlotte is a troubled musical prodigy and Elizabeth is a new star student. Before long, they find themselves starting down a dangerous path with sinister results. This LGBTQ+ thriller will send shivers down your spine.
High schooler Adele has barely begun exploring her own identity when she meets blue-haired, free-spirited Emma. Adele's friends don't accept her as she really is, so she grows even closer to Emma. As you may be able to tell from the poster, this one's best for adult audiences.
A comedic spoof on the Charlie Angels franchise, D.E.B.S. centers around the unlikely love story between the leader of an elite group of teen spies and a supervillain. You don't have to be too familiar with the original story to love this fun, flirty romp.
Like so many besties, Naomi and Ely have a firmly established "no kiss list" to protect them from getting romantically entangled. But in a surprising twist, they both come down with the hots for the same dude, even though Ely's a lesbian. Turn rom-com stereotypes upside down with this quirky, fun film.
Starring Ali Shawkat of Arrested Development , this intimate drama redefines what love between two women can look like. After getting fed up with the lies and deception their previous relationships have involved, two women spend 24 hours with each other to see if they can do any better.
Tear your eyes away from the poster image for a second, because the story is just as enticing. It follows the love story of Tala, a London-based Palestinian woman who's planning her wedding when she meets and falls for Leyla, a British Indian woman.
Simone's trying to work up the bravery to come out as a lesbian to her conservative Jewish family when she develops a crush on a dashing male chef. This snort-worthy comedy covers the spectrum of romantic attraction, with lots of heartfelt and funny moments along the way.
Comic book artists Holden and Banky have been buds for more than 20 years, but when they meet Alyssa, it could throw a wrench in their friendship. Holden falls hard, but there's just one problem: Alyssa doesn't date men. This fun comedy also has an excellent throwback soundtrack.
From the minds that brought you There's Something About Mary comes this cringeworthy holiday comedy. A woman brings her girlfriend home for Thanksgiving, intending to come out to the whole clan. But then her male roommate shows up and, well, let's just say it doesn't go as planned.
In 1901, Elisa Sanchez Loriga assumed a male identity to marry her lover, Marcela Gracia Ibeas. This classic movie is based on that riveting story, with beautiful scenery to boot. If you're a fan of foreign films and love stories, this one's perfect for date night
After Nina Shah's father dies, she has to move back to Glasgow to help keep her family's restaurant afloat. That's where she meets Lisa, who owns half. Romance (and lots of tasty-looking food) follows. Grab a snack before pressing play.
Most buddy comedies focus on two straight dudes, so check out this female-fronted flick for a change of pace. Sasha (who's a lesbian) and Paige (who's straight) are best friends, and always put their relationship first. But then Paige meets a new guy that threatens their unbreakable bond.
Buckle in for a dark crime thriller by The Wachowskis that follows Corky, a lesbian ex-con-turned plumber who
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