Historically, most films about LGBTQ2S+ people are marred by a cornucopia of tragedy and misery: of gay men destined for loneliness, lesbians with unrequited loves and trans people doomed to tragic fates. But there are plenty of great queer films with happy endings, swooning romances and passionate sex. We’re here to help with this list of films that are perfect for celebrating your queer Valentine’s Day.
The goal of this list is to lead you to some classic films you may not have heard of before, which is why movies like Todd Haynes’s masterpiece Carol or Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain are not here. (But hey, if you’ve never seen Carol, Valentine’s Day is the perfect time. Or any other day, for that matter.) Without further ado, here are seven essential queer and trans Valentine’s Day movies that highlight the glory, messiness and challenges of queer relationships.
Desert Hearts (1985)
Vivian (Helen Shaver), a professor at Columbia University, travels from New York City to Reno to finalize her divorce with her husband. In Reno, she meets Cay (Patricia Charbonneau), a strikingly independent woman—particularly for the film’s ’60s setting. Cay is immediately entranced by Viv, but Viv’s not so sure, and she’s never even been with a woman before. Is it possible that, deep down, it’s what she’s always wanted? Based on Canadian author Jane Rule’s 1964 novel, Desert of the Heart, Donna Deitch’s Desert Hearts is sumptuously shot and beautifully performed.
Believed to be the first American film to give lesbians a happy ending, Desert Hearts has earned its place in cinema history as being a queer classic ahead of its time. Charbonneau and Shaver’s chemistry is glorious; when they finally kiss, you can feel Viv’s entire world shifting as everything snaps into place. Desert Hearts is an essential film about self-discovery, and how wonderful it feels to find your person, even if the rest of the world can’t understand it.
Happy Together (1997)
Ho Po-Wing (Leslie Cheung) and Lai Yiu-Fai (Tony Leung) are completely and hopelessly in love with one another. Their relationship is a tumultuous one—they fight often, and they break up and get back together so frequently that it’s hard for either of them to know when they’re in a relationship. In an attempt to fix their partnership, they travel to Argentina together—but getting over their mutual suspicions and jealousies will be a lot harder than going on vacation.
Working with his frequent collaborator, cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Wong Kar Wai’s Happy Together is a visual feast. Recently restored in spectacular 4K, it’s a mesmerizing slow-burn ode to the power of love and desire, and one of the finest movies in the New Queer Cinema movement. Being gay has never looked so good.
The Watermelon Woman (1996)
A groundbreaking work of autofiction, Cheryl Dunye’s The Watermelon Woman is a searing exploration of film history and a personal study of the relationship between American cinema and blackness. Inspired by Dunye’s own discoveries in researching film history, Dunye stars as Cheryl, a 25-year-old woman working at a video store. Fascinated by a woman credited in an old film as just “the Watermelon Woman,” Cheryl is inspired to make a documentary about the mysterious actress. Cheryl also strikes up a relationship with shop customer Diana (Guinevere Turner), who helps Cheryl complete her documentary.
Perhaps the least romantic film on this list, The Watermelon Woman makes up for it by being original in its approach and execution, and is the perfect movie to watch to celebrate queer cinema history. Very funny, wickedly incisive, hugely insightful and refreshingly sensual, The Watermelon Woman is must-see cinema.
Weekend (2011)
British director Andrew Haigh earned plenty of acclaim for gay romance All of Us Strangers, but his best film came over a decade earlier. Weekend finds Glen (Chris New) meeting Russell (Tom Cullen) at a gay bar, where the pair decide to have a quick hookup back at Russell’s place. Unexpectedly, their relationship deepens, and the two spend the entire weekend together, having sex and getting to know one another in ways they never imagined. Only one problem: Glen is about to move from the U.K. to America.
Weekend is a swooning, scintillating romance about a blossoming relationship that cannot come to fruition. It’s sad, but avoids typical clichés faced by queer people on film. New and Cullen have chemistry so electric that it’ll be hard for any queer person not to get swept up in their newfound love. A stunning, unforgettable portrait of queer intimacy, Weekend can steam up any Valentine’s evening, even if it’ll leave you a crying mess at the end.
Boy Meets Girl (2014)
At first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking Eric Schaeffer’s Boy Meets Girl is another depressing trans story. It follows Ricky (Michelle Hendley), a trans woman in small-town Kentucky who longs for a life in the big city. But Boy Meets Girl is so much more joyous and uplifting than its premise would make it seem. Ricky has been best friends since childhood with Robby (Michael Welch), and the pair spend their days trying to find love in a town where they already know everybody. At her work at a coffee shop, Ricky has a chance encounter with Francesca (Alexandra Turshen), and the two strike up an unlikely friendship that changes their lives forever.
This is a sweet, warm film that’s elevated by Hendley’s performance. She’s got a magnetic screen presence, and she delivers a lived-in, natural performance. It’s refreshing to see Boy Meets Girl handle Ricky’s character with respect and honesty, in a world where it’s still so rare to see a trans woman live happily and achieve her dreams on the silver screen. The movie is not without flaws, and it redeems unworthy characters, but Boy Meets Girl takes great pleasure in showing the joy in living openly as a trans woman, right down to its wonderful and well-deserved happy ending.
Rafiki (2018)
Wanuri Kahiu both directed and co-wrote Rafiki, the first film from Kenya to screen at the Cannes Film Festival. In Nairobi, Kena (Samantha Mugatsia) meets Ziki (Sheila Munyiva), and is struck by her bold, colourful braids and alluring personality. The women fall for one another, but their fathers are political rivals—and to make things significantly more complicated, homosexuality is outlawed in Kenya, and their kinship puts their lives at risk. Despite these difficult circumstances, Kahiu’s film is a positive one, even as Kena and Ziki have to choose between their love and their security.
It’s easy to get swept up in the charming leads of Rafiki, and its lush, vibrant colour palette creates an intoxicating atmosphere. Though the film is banned in its home country Kenya for “promoting lesbianism,” Kahiu fearlessly sued the government, which resulted in the ban being lifted for seven days in 2018, and the film showed to sold-out crowds across Nairobi. Rafiki is proof that there’s simply no stopping two people in love.
Anything’s Possible (2022)
Directed by Pose star and all-around icon Billy Porter, Anything’s Possible is a coming-of-age film that follows Kelsa (Eva Reign), a confident and out trans high-schooler. Fellow student Khal (Abubakr Ali) is completely smitten by her, and the two begin a whirlwind romance. Naturally, their relationship becomes the talk of the school, and while the pair have plenty of ardent supporters, others take issue with their new love.
Anything’s Possible is a lovely step forward for movies about trans youth, and is more akin to the kind of breezy teen rom-com that so many of us never dreamed we could have seen ourselves in while growing up. That’s not to say that Anything’s Possible ignores the realities faced by trans youth in America, but it’s a lovely showcase of what life is like when you lead with love.
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