Yahoo LifestyleThe 17 Best Movies With Lesbian Characters That Are Legit Good
- 1/18
The 17 Best Movies With Lesbian Characters That Are Legit Good
You know how it seemed for a second that every new movie with lesbian characters was set multiple decades, if not centuries, in the past with like... lots of longing looks over candlelight? No disrespect to history, but not every sapphic movie has to be a historical drama. We've compiled some of the best, just for you.
FYI that inclusivity in film is technically on the rise. The 2021 edition of the GLAAD Studio Responsibility Index, which "maps the quantity, quality, and diversity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) characters in films released by eight major motion picture studios" and "four subsidiaries of these major studios" in order to increase quality LGBTQ+ representation in film found that while the sample size was low (there were fewer films released in general in 2020) and only 44 films were released by the major studios and subsidiaries studied, representation increased 4.1 percent.
With that in mind, check out some of the best movies featuring lesbian characters, below.
- 2/18
1) Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
Let's get the candlelight lesbians out of the way with the best example of that random trope. This gorgeous film has a sad ending — but not a tragic one. It's like... a wistful Taylor Swift's folklore kind of melancholy.
- 3/18
2) Carol (2015)
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- 4/18
3) Certain Women (2016)
The lesbian storyline in Kelly Reichhardt's thoughtful film only takes up 1/3 of the movie, but it's about a woman (Lily Gladstone) having a crush on Kristen Stewart. Need I say more?
- 5/18
4) Kissing Jessica Stein (2001)
This '00s romantic comedy is a tad dated but incredibly charming. It's about a straight woman who answers a woman-seeking-woman ad and the relationship that follows. IMHO, star and screenwriter Jennifer Westfeldt is one of our most underrated filmmakers.
- 6/18
5) But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)
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- 7/18
6) Imagine Me & You (2005)
- 8/18
7) The Hours (2002)
There's a lot of period lesbian angst in this film, and then there's Meryl Streep and Allison Janney living their best lives in domestic bliss.
- 9/18
8) Booksmart (2019)
We stan Kaitlyn Dever and her cutie romantic subplot!
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- 10/18
9) The Kids Are Alright (2010)
- 11/18
10) The Watermelon Woman (1996)
Written, directed, edited, and starring Cheryl Dunye, this film is about a woman working in a video store and trying to make a documentary about an unidentified actress who played a racial stereotype in a film from the '30s and discovers that she was a prominent lesbian back in the day.
- 12/18
11) The Handmaiden (2016)
This one's a (1) psychological (2) erotic (3) thriller, so get your mind right.
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- 13/18
12) Happiest Season (2020)
Last year's lesbian Christmas romantic comedy caused some controversy. Are Harper and her family too mean? Are coming-out stories kind of basic in 2020? Should Abby have ended up with Riley instead? (The answer is yes.) But whatever you think (come on, Audrey Plaza is RIGHT THERE), no one film has to be everything and it's still a great movie to watch and fight over.
- 14/18
13) The Half of It (2020)
- 15/18
14) Life Partners (2014)
Leighton Meester plays a lesbian in a codependent friendship with Gillian Jacob's character, who's straight, and she starts to spiral when her BFF starts spending more and more time with her boyfriend. It's awkward and heartbreaking and a really good all-around watch.
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- 16/18
15) Blue Is the Warmest Color (2013)
Before Léa Seydoux became a Bond girl, natch.
- 17/18
16) Saving Face (2004)
Director Alice Wu, who also made The Half Of It, started out with this coming-out dramedy.
- 18/18
17) Pariah (2011)
Dee Rees's coming-of-age and coming-out drama won an Image award and put the director on the map.
