Summary

• Todd Haynes is a pioneer of the New Queer Cinema movement, known for portraying LGBTQ+ characters and exploring identity dilemmas and social problems.
• Haynes has made a variety of films throughout his career, ranging from experimental works like Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story to critically acclaimed movies like Poison and Carol.
• His films tackle taboo topics and challenge societal norms, sparking conversations about death, sexuality, and the LGBTQ+ experience that continue to resonate today.

Todd Haynes is known as a pioneer of the New Queer Cinema movement, and as such many of his films portray LGBTQ+ characters and focus on identity dilemmas, gender roles, and social problems. Haynes first attracted attention by using Barbie dolls as actors in his experimental 1987 film Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story. Since then, he has made ten feature films.

At the beginning of December 2023, Haynes' eagerly anticipated new movie, May December, landed on Netflix, having been in receipt of critical acclaim following its debut at the Cannes Film Festival earlier in the year. While it is unknown what the director's next project will be, having scrapped his Peggy Lee biopic Fever, let’s take a look at every Todd Haynes film, ranked.

10 Poison (1991)

Todd Haynes’s first feature Poison is based on the novels of Jean Genet. The 1991 film consists of three stories filmed in completely different styles: Hero, a TV documentary about a seven-year-old boy who killed his father; Horror, a black-and-white sci-fi about a scientist who becomes a monster; Homo, a love story of two prisoners. Poison is regarded as one of the most important films of the New Queer Cinema movement. All three parts of the controversial movie cover taboo topics and started conversations about death, sexuality, and the LGBTQ+ experience which continue today, three decades later. Stream on Prime Video.

9 Velvet Goldmine (1998)

The 1998 musical drama Velvet Goldmine is Todd Haynes’s dazzling tribute to the 1970s glam rock era. The film follows Brian Slade, a glam icon partly inspired by David Bowie, whose monumental rise leads him to faking his own death, and as such, falling victim to a media tirade that sees the disgraced star ironically watching the death of his career.

Despite Bowie’s refusing access to his songs, Haynes made a vivid film about the soul of rock & roll. Also, Velvet Goldmine borrows the investigative technique from Orson Welles’ great debut movie Citizen Kane. One of the most captivating scenes from the film is the first time two men kiss, meaning that Velvet Goldmine is not just about music, but also about same-sex love in an era where social acceptance and liberality around homosexuality was taboo. Rent on Prime Video and Apple TV+.

8 Wonderstruck (2017)

Based on the Brian Selznick novel of the same name, the 2017 mystery film Wonderstruck tells the story of the parallel journeys of two children separated by 50 years. In 1927, 12-year-old Rose, deaf since birth, decided to find her mother; in 1977, 12-year-old Ben decided to find his father. Rose’s part of the film is shown in black and white and Ben’s part in full color.

Director Todd Haynes opened up to NPR about making a children's movie, saying, "I think in many ways, it reminded me of movies that I saw when I was a kid... They were films that made me kind of want to learn more about life and turned me on to the excitement of cinema and ultimately made me want to be a director of movies." Aside from basing a movie on his formative inspiration, Wonderstruck is a remarkable feat of storytelling and one that cleverly interweaves two stories that mirror and complement each other beautifully. Stream on Prime Video.

7 The Velvet Underground (2021)

Todd Haynes expressed his musical passion once again in the 2021 documentary The Velvet Underground. This film is a dazzling story about the iconic rock band The Velvet Underground and their work with the venerated pop artist, Andy Warhol.

Haynes told Rolling Stone, "I felt we didn’t need a movie about the Velvet Underground that simply said how great they were... I wanted to honor them but, in the spirit of the group, do something radical." And that he did, with famed critic Matt Zoller Seitz writing, "It makes you think about what a documentary is, and what film can do." Haynes pays brilliant homage to the Sunday Morning creators, with this documentary essentially acting as a love letter to Lou Reed's hugely popular band. Stream on Apple TV+.

6 Safe (1995)

For Todd Haynes’s 1995 psychological drama Safe, Julianne Moore appears as a homemaker, Carol, who claims that she has an allergy to the toxins in today's world. Carol decides to leave her family and try a new-age retreat in New Mexico.

To make Safe, Haynes did research into New Age philosophy and Louise Hay’s book on AIDS. He wants to show that self-help culture can be dangerous. Haynes sees Safe as a horror film, "but a completely latent horror film where everyday life is the most frightening of all." Safe perfectly captures anxiety and what it's like to fear one's surroundings, and remains a prescient psychological and environmental film years before the latter became a popular topic of debate and wider discussion. Stream on YouTube.

5 Dark Waters (2019)

The 2019 thriller Dark Waters follows an attorney Robert Bilott (played by Mark Ruffalo) who brings to light a dark secret behind DuPont. The script is based on real events in West Virginia where DuPont polluted a town with dangerous chemicals. Tackling environmental issues is a first for Haynes, but there are parallels here between Dark Waters and Safe in the way they broadcast the dangers of certain behaviors.

Dark Waters is an important, powerful, and well-crafted film that attempts to make the world a better place. Todd Haynes said that the film is "linking up with what’s happening in the world right now," and we need to think more about our environmental situation, something that will certainly resonate with billions around the world who are taking action against the critical effects of climate change and human-induced pollution. This speaks to the issues at hand and the mass pollution created by billion-dollar conglomerates that continuously manage to circumvent and flout environmental regulations. Rent on Prime Video and Apple TV+.

4 Far from Heaven (2002)

The 2002 Independent Spirit Awards-winning drama Far from Heaven stars the always-talented Julianne Moore as a perfect 1950s wife whose ideal life was ruined after she found out that her husband is gay.

Related: Best LGBTQ+ Movies of the 2010's

Todd Haynes was inspired by Douglas Sirk, a film director who made brilliant Hollywood melodramas of the 1950s. As such, Haynes’ film has all the texture of a classic melodrama but uses it to talk about queer identity, social taboos, racism, and escapism through the conflicted lens of a housewife betrayed by the man she loves. Far From Heaven is a real cinematic delight, but what Haynes does so elegantly is allow his characters to steer this film away from just being a tokenistic subject and into the realms of a heartfelt tale of love and deceit. Rent on Prime Video and Apple TV+.

3 I'm Not There (2007)

I'm Not There is a 2007 musical drama inspired by Bob Dylan’s life. In the film, six brilliant actors (with one of the best Cate Blanchett movie performances, along with Christian Bale, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger, and Ben Whishaw) portray parts of Dylan’s persona.

Todd Haynes made a lovingly crafted tribute to one of the greatest songwriters of all time. The filmmaker said, "I think about how Dylan broke all the assumptions about what popular music could be, so it could never be reducible again. I tried to do something similar in narrative film, include [experimental elements,] poetry, politics and human relationships." This is a project by an auteur at the very top of his craft, and his decision to employ different actors for different stages of his life was a touch of inspired genius. Stream on Prime Video and Tubi.

2 May December (2023)

2023's May December was a landmark title for Haynes, with the Netflix Original movie his 10th feature film as a director. Starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore in the titular roles, both turning in exceptional performances to boot, Todd Haynes, once again, doesn't shy away from addressing a taboo topic. Traversing the tale of a Hollywood actress, Elizabeth Berry (Portman), sent to a couple's idyllic family home to undertake research for an upcoming role, she meets Joe (Charles Melton) and Gracie (Moore), a husband and wife who began their love affair in the most controversial of ways, while Joe was underage and Gracie was a married woman.

Despite the sensitive subject at play, May December flits between satire, an all-absorbing storyline, and a fascinating character study, as we gradually learn more and more about the intricacies, politics, and ethics of this relationship built on scandal, controversy, and sexual abuse. Portman and Moore both project these beautifully complex characters onto our screens, with their respective displays taking May December from a good film to a great one, elevating it to a level that pleads with its audience to be objective, even in the face of such contentiousness. Stream on Netflix.

1 Carol (2015)

Based on The Price of Salt, by Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mr. Ripley), the 2015 romantic drama Carol once again broaches the idea of forbidden love. Two women, the young photographer Therese (played by Rooney Mara) and the older, wealthy Carol (played by Cate Blanchett), fall in love with each other in 1950s New York.

Related: Best LGBTQ+ Movies About Women, Ranked

This visually stunning, atmospheric, and captivating film is regarded as the best LGBT film of all time by the BFI and many others. Also, Carol received over 100 awards at international festivals and ceremonies, including the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress (Rooney Mara) and the Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography. It's a sumptuous, romantic masterpiece that is sensual and captivating in equal measure. The performances of Cate Blanchett as this domineering seductress and Rooney Mara as a feeble, slightly timid, yet curious young woman complement one another effortlessly. Every component of this production work together to create the most romantic atmosphere possible, and it all succeeds. Stream on Netflix.