The LGBTQ+ community has sought representation in film ever since the industry began over 100 years ago. However, Hollywood's depictions of the LGBTQ+ community have not always been flattering. The introduction of the Hays Code in 1934, for example, prohibited movie studios from producing favorable LGBTQ+ content. According to the code, one was not allowed to portray “perverse” or “immoral” subjects such as queerness. Furthermore, any queer-coded characters could not be portrayed positively. Rather, they had to be shown as deviants, degenerates, and villains to be green-lit in the films. This systemic prejudice led to historic levels of censorship for the community.
After the easing of the Hays Code and The Stonewall Riots of 1969, the gay community was finally seen as a viable target market for filmmakers. More queer movies with new points of view slowly began to make their way into the mainstream soon after. Unfortunately, throughout the 80s, queer representation remained scant, mostly due to the AIDs epidemic and society's misinformed panic surrounding it. In the 90s, however, several independent filmmakers began to properly represent the queer community with engaging and empathetic stories in a crusade that would eventually come to be known as the New Queer Cinema Movement.
Updated June 9, 2023: In celebration of Pride Month, this article has been updated with even more influential films by Amanda Minchin.
From this point onwards, society continued to progress in an upward motion, with Hollywood heavyweights even taking on queer films. This mix of films made the 2000s an important time in LGBTQ+ cinema. And while, even now, there is still plenty of room for improvement, it is important to revisit this monumental time. Here are some of the best LGBTQ+ movies from the 2000s. Each has been chosen with respect to its impact on queer cinema.
11 Brokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain is based on Annie Proulx’s original short story and directed by Ang Lee. It follows Ennis del Mar (the late Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal), a cowboy and a ranch hand who secretly fall in love while working together in the summer of 1963. The two men are both in committed heterosexual relationships, which causes much internal conflict, especially coupled with the social climate of that time.
Brokeback Mountain was nominated for several awards for its heartbreaking and powerful story. Regarded as a major milestone in Gay Cinema, despite its straight male leads, this highly decorated movie is also considered the first major mainstream LGBTQ+ film.
10 The Hours
The Hours centers around three lives interconnected by Virginia Woolf’s 1925 novel Mrs. Dalloway - that of an unsettled 1950s homemaker, a modern Mrs. Dalloway, and, of course, the author herself. Nicole Kidman won the Oscar for Best Actress for her portrayal of Woolf. The stellar cast was rounded out by Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore.
The Hours was actually one of the original names for the Mrs. Dalloway book, which details the recollections and musings of an upper-class woman in post-First World War England as she puts together a party. Many of the people she remembers over the course of the day, such as her former lover(s), make a sudden reappearance in her life as the day progresses. The movie takes a similar approach to the book, with diverging storylines and narratives that tell the story as a whole.
9 Milk
Directed by Gus Van Sant, Milk recounts the true story of Harvey Milk, America’s first openly gay elected official, and his emblazoned battle for gay rights. The movie follows Milk as he helped shape a community for LGBTQ people in San Francisco in the 70s when homophobia was still rampant. The neighborhood where much of the movie takes place is now a prominent gay community in San Francisco called the Castro. The film also covers Harvey’s death by assassination in 1978. Actor Sean Penn won several awards for his brilliant performance in this critically acclaimed film, including the Best Actor Academy Awards.
8 Mulholland Drive
A regular on BFI’s Greatest Films of All Time List (among others), Mulholland Drive is a neo-noir thriller starring Naomi Watts, Justin Theroux, and Laura Harring. David Lynch won the Golden Globe for Best Director for this, and for good reason. Like any Lynch movie worth its salt, this film is nothing short of a tongue-twister. Just when the viewer thinks they know just what’s happening… Bam! In it, the sole survivor of a car crash stumbles across a wide-eyed Hollywood hopeful. They travel across the city, looking for clues as to who the survivor might be. As it turns out, these two already have quite the history… or do they? That is for the audience to decide.
7 Rent
Rent is a rock musical adaptation of life in the East Village of New York City during the AIDS epidemic. Well ahead of its time, this is a film version of the play that was adapted from the 1896 opera La Bohème (which itself was based on a novel). The original play, which was written by composer, lyricist, and playwright Jonathan Larson of Tick, Tick... Boom! is one of the most iconic musical theater shows of all time.
Years later, six original cast members reprised their roles in this production, which was produced by Chris Columbus. While its performances come highly praised, some of its creative writing and directing decisions have been mixed. Fans of the musical may be able to forgive these flaws.
6 A Single Man
Fashion designer Tom Ford’s directorial debut is an incredibly stylish and emotional film based on Christopher Isherwood’s novel of the same name. A Single Man tells the story of George Falconer (Colin Firth), a British University Professor living in L.A. who becomes severely depressed after his long-time partner is killed in a car accident.
The movie is set nearly a year after the accident and is shot in flashback scenes as George contemplates suicide as a way to end his grief and pain. Firth, despite not having many scenes, puts his screen time to good use and uplifts this otherwise sad tale. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his efforts.
5 Hedwig and The Angry Inch
Hedwig and The Angry Inch is John Cameron Mitchell’s adaptation of his off-Broadway musical. It follows the story of the titular character Hedwig (Mitchell), an aspiring rock star who flees from East Germany to America after a botched gender affirmation surgery. Hedwig tells her life story through song as she follows ex-boyfriend and rock star Tommy Gnosis (Michael Pitt), who stole both her songs and her heart. The amazing original music steals the show in this fun, campy, cult classic, which is also director, writer, and star Mitchell’s directorial debut.
4 C.R.A.Z.Y
Directed by the late Jean-Marc Vallée, C.R.A.Z.Y powerful coming-of-age story is about a French-Canadian boy named Zachary (Marc-Andree Grondin) as he struggles with his budding homosexuality and homophobia in the ’60s and 70s. His father, Gervais (Michael Cote), is a conservative Catholic who begins to reject and demoralize Zachary as he witnesses his journey of self-discovery. Upon seeing Zachary and a schoolmate in a car together, Gervais sends Zachary to therapy to try to “cure” his homosexuality. The film was critically acclaimed and boasts a stellar soundtrack alongside a perfect rating on the Tomatometer to boot.
3 Monster
Monster is the heartwrenching retelling of the life of Aileen Wuornos, who was convicted of killing several male clients while posing as a prostitute in the late 80s. Written and directed by future Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins, Charlize Theron won Best Actress almost across the board that year for her realistic portrayal of Wuornos.
Alongside her, Christina Ricci played her long-time partner, whose relationship with Wuornos becomes increasingly fraught throughout the film. While perhaps not the best of messages to send about the LBGTQ+ community, it is nonetheless an insight into the mind of an infamous serial killer, one that just so happens to feature a same-sex couple.
2 Saving Face
Directed by Alice Wu, Saving Face tells the story of Wilhelmina, a Chinese-American surgeon and closeted lesbian who falls in love with a woman. Unfortunately, she has to keep her newfound joy a secret from her conservative mother (Joan Chen). The script is loosely based on Wu’s personal experience of coming out to her traditional Chinese mother.
Not only does it tell an LGBTQ+ love story, but it also features an all-Asian-American cast. Saving Face is a funny, heartfelt, and entertaining romantic comedy for the LGBTQ+ community and the straight community alike. Alice Wu also directed Netflix's teen queer rom-com The Half of It nearly two decades later.
1 Transamerica
Transamerica is an unconventionally touching road trip movie starring Felicity Huffman and written and directed by Duncan Tucker. Inspired by conversations with his old roommate, the film follows Trans woman Bree, who, one week before her scheduled vaginoplasty, finds out that she has a son. Wanting to simply renounce him and move on, her doctor won’t sign off on the surgery until she faces up to her past.
What follows is a road trip across the U.S. as Bree attempts to drive the runaway teen son she never knew she had back home. While this role should have arguably been filled by a transgender actor, not a cisgender one, Huffman’s performance in the film is still spectacular to watch. With Tomatometer scores averaging around the 80% mark, this film is definitely worth the watch.