Journalism of Courage
June is Pride Month, the month to celebrate and commemorate the LGBTQIA+ community. Over the years there have been many films that have shared stories on queer themes. With the commencement of Pride month, here are some international LGBTQIA+ movies to add to your watchlist:
Portrait of a Lady on Fire is a 2019 French romance drama starring Noémie Merlant and Adèle Haenel, directed by Céline Sciamma. Set in 18th-century France, the film follows two young women, an aristocrat and a painter commissioned to paint her portrait, as they fall in love. (Photo: IMDb)
Bottoms is a 2023 American comedy directed by Emma Seligman, it stars Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Ruby Cruz, and Nicholas Galitzine. Two high school lesbian senior girls begin a self-defence club as a ruse to get close to cheerleaders. (Photo: IMDb)
Red, White & Royal Blue is a 2023 American romantic comedy based on a novel by Casey McQuiston of the same name. This film shows a love story between the son of the President of the United States and a British Prince. Directed by Matthew López, the film stars Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine in lead roles. (Photo: IMDb)
Love, Simon is a 2018 American romantic comedy based on the 2015 book, Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. Starring Nick Robinson, Jennifer Garner, and Katherine Langford, this film is directed by Greg Berlanti. The story revolves around Simon, a closeted gay teenager whose sexuality is being threatened to be exposed by a blackmailer. (Photo: IMDb)
Moonlight is a 2016 American drama directed by Barry Jenkins, starring Trevante Rhodes, Mahershala Ali, and Naomie Harris. This film follows Chiron through three phases of his life, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, while he deals with questions about his sexuality and identity. This film won Best Picture at the Oscars in 2017. (Photo: IMDb)
Boys Don’t Cry is a 1999 American Biopic directed by Kimberly Peirce. It is a dramatised version of Brandon Teena’s life, a transman who was brutally gang-raped and murdered in 1993. (Photo: IMDb)
Call Me By Your Name is a 2017 romantic drama directed by Luca Guadagnino, based on the 2007 novel of the same name by André Aciman. It follows the relationship between a 17-year-old Elio Perlman and a 24-year-old graduate student, Oliver who is also the assistant to Elio’s father. Armie Hammer and Timothée Chalamet play the leading roles. (Photo: IMDb)
The Handmaiden is a 2016 South Korean psychological thriller directed by Park Chan-Wook, starring Kim Min-Hee, Kim Tae-Ri, Ha Jung-Woo and Cho Jin-Woong. It is inspired by the 2002 novel Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. The book is set in Victorian-era Britain, while the movie is set in Korea under Japanese colonial rule. (Photo: IMDb)
Alex Strangelove is a 2018 romantic comedy directed by Craig Johnson and starring Daniel Doheny, Antonio Marziale and Madeline Weinstein. The film follows Alex Truelove, a high school student who goes on a journey of heartbreak, love, and friendship to discover his identity. (Photo: IMDb)
Funny Boy is an adaptation of a 1994 novel of the same name by Shyam Selvadurai. Directed by Deepa Mehta, this movie was released in 2020. Set before the Sri Lankan Civil War, Arjie Chelvaratnam, a Tamil boy in Sri Lanka, explores various aspects of his identity including his homosexuality. (Photo: Instagram/@snippetpi)
