"The triumphs for LGBT-themed movies in 2012 echoed those of previous years and continued, by their very existence, to blur the distinctions between queer audiences and straight ones," I wrote in December of 2012 in looking back over that year's crop of movies. That blurring between gay and straight has continued with Our People celebrating grand triumphs on the legal, political and social fronts in the past year which in turn helped us to continue making strides in the movies and on television—not too shabby.
The year started with a bang, with a batch of excellent films that had made the rounds of 2013 LGBT film festivals getting theatrical or VOD dates, finding their way to larger audiences in the process. There were the candy-colored teen comedy G.B.F.; the sexy, provocative thriller Stranger by the Lake; the sensual yet doomed lesbian romance Reaching for the Moon; the offbeat, disturbing Black Box; the marvelously creative Last Summer, which artfully presented the end of first love; and the potency of love rediscovered in middle age in Pit Stop.
Late spring brought two of the years most buzzed-about queer movies ( both from out filmmakers ): the hard-hitting documentary God Loves Uganda, from Roger Ross Williams, debuted on PBS; and Ryan Murphy's long-awaited adaptation of Larry Kramer's play The Normal Heart debuted on HBO. In theaters, as the summer blockbuster season started, the pickings were, as usual, mighty slim for those looking to see either queer characters or queer-themed movies at their local Cineplex. There was yet another X-Men prequel ( X-Men: Days of Future Past ) that certainly had plenty of gay subtext; Kathy Bates practically stole the running on fumes comedy Tammy with her two scenes as a plain-spoken ( and rather stylish ) lesbian; and hunky Luke Evans headlined Dracula Untold—and sorta came out.
The Case Against 8, a documentary chronicle of the fight to overturn Prop 8 ( once again, premiering on HBO ) was a nice exception to the rule amidst the summer's usual testosterone-heavy fare. There was also a plethora of television and Internet shows that held the banner for Our People aloft. Once again, HBO paved the way with Andrew Haigh's new gay-themed series Looking ( which returns Jan. 11 ) while Netflix brought back Orange Is the New Black and Amazon completely changed the game with Transparent, Jill Soloway's sensational trans-themed Web series ( also coming back for a second season ).
As fall approached and awards season began to beckon, LGBT folk and themes started showing up again in movies. Several of these—Love Is Strange, The Skeleton Twins, Dear White People and The Imitation Game, among them—were embraced by mainstream audiences, once again helping break down barriers and illuminating queer lives for our straight counterparts. And now, as we finish out 2014 and look forward to 2015 I'm thrilled to see the year starting off once again with a bang.
The Music Box has booked one of 2014's most critically acclaimed LGBT-themed movies to begin its year ( on Jan. 2 ). This is Daniel Ribeiro's Brazilian gay teen romance The Way He Looks. In the age of aggressive comedies and romances, this gentle and very sweet story of the blind-since-birth Leonardo, who is struggling to break free of the tight control of his parents and, in the process, discovers his erotic feelings—and more—for new classmate Gabriel is truly a breath of fresh air.
Here's hoping 2015 is filled with many more equally memorable LGBT-themed movies. Until then, here's my Top Ten LGBT Movies for 2014 ( in preferential order ). For space reasons, I'm only doing notes on the first five entries ( but don't let that keep you from seeing all of them ). I'd like to point out—as always—that these "Best of" lists are completely subjective. My list tends to shift around with repeat viewings and reconsiderations—as I'm sure yours does.
1. Love Is Strange: Out writer-director Ira Sachs returns with another gay couple drama ( this one very different from his last, Keep the Lights On ). Sachs collaborated with Mauricio Zacharias on the bittersweet story of retired artist Ben ( John Lithgow ) and Catholic school music teacher George ( Alfred Molina ), who are entering their twilight years. Together for 39 years, the couple decides to legalize the union with a marriage. ( The ceremony and reception in the couple's Manhattan apartment is the charming and resonant opening sequence of the film. )
Trouble arises almost immediately when word of the marriage reaches church officials, who fire George. Without George's income, the couple have to sell the condo. In the interim, the financially strapped duo has no choice but to live apart—Ben with his nephew, wife and sullen teenage son; and Ben with close friends—gay cops who love to party. As Sachs' film brilliantly illuminates, it's one thing to preach tolerance and compassion but quite another to make it a day-to-day reality. Driven by the strong performances of Lithgow and Molina, Sachs delivers his best film to date, a bittersweet gem that explores a host of issues facing elders in the gay community.
2. The Normal Heart: Ryan Murphy—television's most audacious queer writing-directing-producing juggernaut thanks to Nip/Tuck, Glee and American Horror Story—made creative strides of his own in 2014 with his sterling direction of The Normal Heart for HBO. Author and longtime queer activist Larry Kramer adapted his searing, award-winning play that follows a group of tightly knit gay men in New York at the beginning of the AIDS plague in the early '80s. Mark Ruffalo, Julia Roberts and out actor Matt Bomer ( whose performance garnered an Emmy nomination ) head the cast. ( Kramer is now at work on a sequel to the critically acclaimed film. )
3. The Skeleton Twins: Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader co-star in out writer-director Craig Johnson's tongue-in-cheek dramedy about a gay brother and his once wild but now conservative twin sister whose relationship has been frayed until a crisis helps put them back on track. The sibling relationship between Wiig and Hader—longtime cast members on SNL and close friends in real life—is a joy to behold ( highlighted by a comedic sequence in which brother and sister bond over a Jefferson Starship song ). Modern Family's Ty Burrell co-stars as Hader's former lover.
4. The Imitation Game: Director Morten Tyldum and Chicago native Graham Moore ( screenwriter and executive producer ) collaborated on the story of British mathematical genius Alan Turing and his team's efforts to crack the infamous Nazi enigma code that turned the tide for the Allied forces, bringing about the end of WWII. Turing's story has been told repeatedly but this version at last reinstates his gay sexuality—a long-overdue omission rectified in this well-crafted audience pleaser that Benedict Cumberbatch's tremendous performance ( as Turing ) drives. Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode and a host of other top English actors co-star.
5. Dear White People: Out writer/director Justin Simien's whip -mart race comedy focuses on four Black students at a predominantly white ( fictional ) Ivy League school—Samantha, a brilliant, budding filmmaker and radio talk-show host whose refusal to accept the status quo shakes up the entire school; Coco ( nee Colandrea ), who is busy emulating the popular white girls; ( Marque Richardson ), the handsome jock and natural-born leader who is also the son of the school's no-nonsense Dean ( Dennis Haysbert ); and Lionel ( Tyler James Williams ), a geekish loner who finds himself enlisted to cover the controversy by the all-white school newspaper because of his color. It's eventually revealed that Lionel is gay—a subplot that will obviously resonate with Our People. Tessa Thompson and a host of other up-and-coming actors are featured.
6. Violette
7. Hunted: The War Against Gays in Russia
8. Pride
9. The Case Against 8
10. The Dog
Also noteworthy: Foxcatcher, Regarding Susan Sontag, Drunktown's Finest, Lilting, Tom at the Farm, Boy Meets Girl
