chronological list of LGBT-themed films, 1916-1989, with notes
Since quite a few people seem to use this list for reference, I'm revamping and upgrading it into two halves. It's got a long way to go so bear with me. I'm only listing films with a recognizable LGBT angle, not exploitative ones or those where it's a matter of interpretation (for instance, Hitchcock's "Rope" can only be interpreted as gay-themed if one knows the real-life case by which it was inspired - and in "Spartacus", you got to catch on to what oysters are supposed to mean). I'm gradually including more titles so feel free to come back every once in a while.
I couldn't add the following titles even though they're on IMDb: "Nights in black Leather" (1973) is narcissist Peter Berlin's most famous blue movie and very telling as to how ancient certain fetishes are. "Köçek" (1975) is a transgender love story in Istanbul (!) with a big Turkish star of the time, Müjde Ar. The order is by year of original release, so if something seems to be missing, it may be at a different spot. And I can't reply to messages here since I'm off Facebook since November 2016.
You will have noticed that more and more content on this site is either artificial or paid for, which makes me increasingly hesitant to contribute or modify content. I may therefore protest-delete my profile in the near future, so if you use this list for reference, you might want to save a back-up.
I couldn't add the following titles even though they're on IMDb: "Nights in black Leather" (1973) is narcissist Peter Berlin's most famous blue movie and very telling as to how ancient certain fetishes are. "Köçek" (1975) is a transgender love story in Istanbul (!) with a big Turkish star of the time, Müjde Ar. The order is by year of original release, so if something seems to be missing, it may be at a different spot. And I can't reply to messages here since I'm off Facebook since November 2016.
You will have noticed that more and more content on this site is either artificial or paid for, which makes me increasingly hesitant to contribute or modify content. I may therefore protest-delete my profile in the near future, so if you use this list for reference, you might want to save a back-up.
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- 212 titoli
- RegistaMauritz StillerStelleEgil EideLili BeckLars HansonAn adaptation of Herman Bang's 1902 novel "Mikaël." A sculptor befriends a young painter who becomes his model. Their friendship is thrown into turmoil when they both fall in love with the same woman.There's a very good review here which sums up the many reasons why this can count as the first gay-themed film ever, but you'll be hard pressed to find the subtext from what remains. Dreyer's "Michael", based on the same source, is much more ambivalent.
- RegistaRichard OswaldStelleConrad VeidtLeo ConnardIlse von Tasso-LindTwo male musicians fall in love, but blackmail and scandal makes the affair take a tragic turn.First ever gay-themed film starring Conrad Veidt (of 'Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' and 'Casablanca' fame). Conceived by sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld to push for legalization, it led to the reintroduction of film censorship in post-WWI Germany.
- RegistiCharles BryantAlla NazimovaStelleAlla NazimovaNigel De BrulierMitchell LewisSalome, the daughter of Herodias, seduces her step-father/uncle Herod, governor of Judea, with a salacious dance. In return, he promises her the head of the prophet John the Baptist.Was infamously filmed with an all-gay cast, even though that is a matter of contention. Quite obviously very camp, with a number of performers in drag.
- RegistaCarl Theodor DreyerStelleWalter SlezakBenjamin ChristensenNora GregorTriangle story: painter, his young male model, unscrupulous princess.Carl Theodor Dreyer's adaptation of gay writer Herman Bang's novel could be regarded as the first gay-themed narrative film. Contributed to harsher censorship laws banning the subject for decades.
- RegistaWilliam DieterleStelleWilliam DieterleGunnar TolnæsMary JohnsonA young man is convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to a term in prison. There he forms a close relationship with his cellmate and upon his release his wife is concerned as to how prison has changed the man she married.first film about gender confusion in jail considers homosexuality an affliction and could thereby pass strengthened censorship laws
- RegistiLeontine SaganCarl FroelichStelleDorothea WieckHertha ThieleEmilia UndaIn un collegio femminile, Manuela si innamora di un'insegnante, con conseguenze terribili.first film to touch female homosexuality in a surprisingly overt way and allowing for genuine emotions; could pass German censorship laws because only male homosexuality was penalized. The remake of 1958 is more famous but also more ambivalent.
- RegistaJohn Francis DillonStelleClara BowGilbert RolandThelma ToddSexy Texas gal storms her way through life, brawling and boozing until her luck runs out, forcing her to learn the errors of her ways.There is a brief scene of what would be the first gay bar in film in this pre-code melodrama. You can find it on Youtube and don't have to watch the whole thing, as there's no connection to the plot.
- RegistiJames Sibley WatsonMelville WebberStelleFriedrich HaakHildegarde WatsonDorthea HouseLot in Sodom is a sensual depiction of the Sodom and Gomorrah story filled with sinewy and semi-clad bodies, delirious bacchanales devoted to physical pleasure, and a searing, cataclysmic finale depicting the fall of a city devoted to sins of the flesh. Digitally mastered from excellent 35mm elements. Lot In Sodom has its original experimental soundtrack by Alec Wilder.released on DVD with 'Salomé' (1923), 'Lot in Sodom' has clear gay subtext, although it is essentially an experimental retelling quite faithful to the Biblical story.
- RegistiOtto PremingerRouben MamoulianStelleGene TierneyDana AndrewsClifton WebbUn detective della polizia si innamora della donna di cui sta investigando l'omicidio.with the production code, gay subtext vanished, but many '40s crime films feature presumably homosexual villains, few as obvious as Clifton Webb's Waldo Lydecker, who unlike others isn't portrayed in a defamatory way.
- RegistaKenneth AngerStelleKenneth AngerGordon GrayBill SeltzerA dissatisfied dreamer awakes, goes out in the night seeking a 'light' and is drawn through the needle's eye. A dream of a dream, he returns to bed less empty than before.homoerotic experimental no-budget film led to Kenneth Anger's arrest on obscenity charges and, eventually, a Supreme Court ruling declaring the film to be art.
- RegistaIngmar BergmanStelleEva HenningBirger MalmstenBirgit TengrothUna coppia bisognosa in un cattivo matrimonio torna a Stoccolma dopo un viaggio in Italia. Nel frattempo, una vedova resiste alle seduzioni di due persone diverse: il suo psichiatra e un'amica lesbica.Bergman often touched female homosexuality, but rarely as overtly as in this early piece.
- RegistaJohn CromwellStelleEleanor ParkerAgnes MooreheadEllen CorbyUna vedova di 19 anni gentile, ingenua e incinta viene lentamente e inesorabilmente schiacciata da criminali incalliti, guardie sadiche e matrona nella prigione di una donna. Sarà la stessa persona quando la sua condanna sarà scaduta?It's a difficult choice to include the first and campiest "women in prison" flick as it's chock full of Lesbian stereotypes and equals homosexuality with depravity. Still, it is part of history, and after re-watching it after a number of years, I think anyone with an interest in queer film should watch it for an individual opinion.
- RegistaJean GenetStelleBravoJean GenetJavaTwo prisoners in complete isolation, separated by the thick brick walls, and desperately in need of human contact, devise a most unusual kind of communication.Jean Genet's only film is the first explicitly homoerotic and was consequently banned from exhibition, most notably in the US in 1966, where it was dismissed as obscene.
- RegistaJacqueline AudryStelleEdwige FeuillèreSimone SimonMarie-Claire OliviaAlla fine del diciannovesimo secolo, in una scuola di perfezionamento per ragazze vicino alla Francia, la preside, l'affascinante Miss Julie, semina confusione nel cuore della nuova arrivata, Olivia.similar to 'Girls in Uniform', but involving more mystery
- RegistaFederico FelliniStelleAlberto SordiFranco FabriziFranco InterlenghiUno studio sul personaggio di cinque giovani che si trovano ad un punto di svolta cruciale per le loro vite in un piccolo paesino italiano.While this film is famous for a lot of reasons, it also features the first obvious homosexual hook-up attempt.
- RegistaNicholas RayStelleJames DeanNatalie WoodSal MineoUn giovane ribelle dal passato travagliato arriva in una nuova città, trovando amici e nemici.Many '50s films are said to contain homosexual cyphers as the subject wasn't raised. Sal Mineo as Plato is perhaps most obvious given his real-life homosexuality, but at the time the role made him an idol for (female) teens.
- RegistaVincente MinnelliStelleDeborah KerrJohn KerrLeif EricksonA new senior at a boy's prep school, finds himself harassed by the machismo culture of his classmates and the unfeelingly behavior by his father, only being treated with decency by his roommate and with affection by the coach's wife.interesting for making it clear that in the '50s, being gay was viewed maybe not as the ultimate sin, but an affliction worse than death
- RegistaVeit HarlanStellePaula WesselyPaul DahlkeHans NielsenKlaus is a young man in post-war Berlin. He is drawn to his friend Manfred and, under the encouragement of their acquaintance, Dr. Winkler, explore the underground world of gay clubs and electronic music. His family begins to learn of his other life and do everything they can to set him straight.every possible stereotype on homosexuality is exploited here by a disgraced Nazi director desperately craving attention. Still, the aged homosexual luring culturally talented young men into his web of sin is oddly fascinating... John Waters would probably call this the ultimate gay bash 'n trash movie.
- RegistaGéza von RadványiStelleLilli PalmerRomy SchneiderTherese GiehseIn un severo collegio femminile prussiano, la sensibile studentessa Manuela von Meinhardis si invaghisce di una delle sue insegnanti, la compassionevole Elisabeth von Bernburg.remake of the 1931 film tones the Lesbian aspect down but is perhaps more cult for Lilli Palmer's performance.
- RegistaJoseph L. MankiewiczStelleElizabeth TaylorKatharine HepburnMontgomery CliftA un chirurgo viene assegnato il caso di una giovane donna la cui zia vuole che venga lobotomizzata per nascondere un segreto di famiglia.while the most overt of Tennessee Williams's stage adaptations in its content owing to Gore Vidal's screenplay, it's the pinnacle of depicting homosexuality as a perverted affliction, and was in fact passed by the MPAA for that very reason.
- RegistaMichel BoisrondStelleBrigitte BardotHenri VidalDawn AddamsHandsome dentist Herve Dandieu, temporarily separated from his new, delectable wife Virginie by a lovers' tiff, is picked up by sexy dance teacher Anita Flores...object blackmail. Sensing trouble, Virginie follows him to the dance school, only to find him circumstantially incriminated in murder. Soon, the school has a gorgeous new instructress, whose slightly scatterbrained attempts to clear her husband confuse both police and suspects...and bring potential danger.One of French veteran comedy writer Gérard Oury's weaker outings, it does have Brigitte Bardot waltz into a late 50s gay cabaret and could be refreshingly open-minded for the time, but the ending ruins it.
- RegistaKen HughesStellePeter FinchYvonne MitchellJames MasonA chronicle of Oscar Wilde's libel suit against the Marquis of Queensberry and the tragic turn his life takes because of it.first of many films to focus on Wilde's sodomy conviction, it is surprisingly faithful to the trial's records given the time.
- RegistaWilliam WylerStelleAudrey HepburnShirley MacLaineJames GarnerUna studentessa ribelle in una scuola femminile accusa due insegnanti di lesbismo.William Wyler's remake of his earlier adaptation of Lillian Hellman's play (which erased the homosexual element) marks the first 'A' picture in which gay bashing is portrayed as a social evil - while still holding it to be an affliction.
- RegistaTony RichardsonStelleRita TushinghamDora BryanRobert StephensUn'adolescente incinta deve badare a se stessa quando sua madre si sposa di nuovo, lasciandola da sola.'kitchen sink' adaptation of Shelagh Delaney's play features the first clearly positive (i.e. non-tragical) depiction of a gay character in his relationship with Rita Tushingham's main protagonist.
- RegistaBasil DeardenStelleDirk BogardeSylvia SymsDennis PriceUn avvocato che nasconde la sua omosessualità rischia la carriera per assicurare un ricattatore alla giustizia.first narrative film with homosexuality (with the first use of the actual word) and gay bashing (i. e. blackmail) as the central plot element, with a strong political message towards legalization.
