22 Best LGBTQ+ Movies of All Time

By Vlad Zakh · August 14, 2026

Romance thought provoking falling in love

Some of the most quietly devastating love stories of the last few decades come from LGBTQ+ cinema, and this list covers a lot of ground. There’s the decades-long hidden romance of Brokeback Mountain, the grieving professor in A Single Man, Call Me by Your Name and Portrait of a Lady on Fire, plus Moonlight and the documentary Paris Is Burning, a look at New York’s 1980s ballroom scene. A few of these deserved far more attention than they got on release.

Paris Is Burning (1990)

01

Paris Is Burning (1990)

IMDb ★ 8.2 RT 99% Metacritic 82

A documentary look inside New York's 1980s Black and Latino ballroom scene.

Directed by Jennie Livingston · 1h 18m · Rated R

17 wins & 1 nomination

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, HBO Max · Rent or buy: Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

My Own Private Idaho (1991)

02

My Own Private Idaho (1991)

IMDb ★ 7.0 RT 79% Metacritic 77

A narcoleptic hustler searches for his mother alongside a friend from a wealthier world.

Directed by Gus Van Sant · 1h 44m · Rated R

10 wins & 9 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

A Single Man (2009)

03

A Single Man (2009)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 86% Metacritic 77

A grieving professor plans his own last day after losing his partner in a car accident.

Directed by Tom Ford · 1h 40m · Rated R

Nominated for 1 Oscar39 wins & 59 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Britbox Apple TV channel, Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

04

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

IMDb ★ 7.7 RT 88% Metacritic 87

Two ranch hands' summer affair turns into a decades-long, mostly hidden relationship.

Directed by Ang Lee · 2h 14m · Rated R

Won 3 Oscars141 wins & 133 nominations

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Philadelphia (1993)

05

Philadelphia (1993)

IMDb ★ 7.7 RT 81% Metacritic 66

A lawyer fired for having AIDS sues his old firm with the help of a reluctant, homophobic attorney.

Directed by Jonathan Demme · 2h 06m · Rated PG-13

Won 2 Oscars21 wins & 23 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Milk (2008)

06

Milk (2008)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 93% Metacritic 83

Harvey Milk's rise as America's first openly gay elected official, and the assassination that ended it.

Directed by Gus Van Sant · 2h 08m · Rated R

Won 2 Oscars66 wins & 146 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: History Vault · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Boys Don't Cry (1999)

07

Boys Don't Cry (1999)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 90% Metacritic 86

A trans man's new life and relationships in a small Nebraska town end in real, brutal violence.

Directed by Kimberly Peirce · 1h 58m · Rated R

Won 1 Oscar50 wins & 39 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

A Fantastic Woman (2017)

08

A Fantastic Woman (2017)

IMDb ★ 7.1 RT 94% Metacritic 81

A transgender woman fights to grieve her partner while his family tries to erase her.

Directed by Sebastián Lelio · 1h 44m · Rated R

Won 1 Oscar38 wins & 46 nominations

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Call Me by Your Name (2017)

09

Call Me by Your Name (2017)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 95% Metacritic 94

A summer romance between a teenager and his father's research assistant changes how he sees himself.

Directed by Luca Guadagnino · 2h 12m · Rated R

Won 1 Oscar107 wins & 263 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Moonlight (2016)

10

Moonlight (2016)

IMDb ★ 7.4 RT 98% Metacritic 99

A quiet, three-part coming-of-age story told with real restraint.

Directed by Barry Jenkins · 1h 52m · Rated R

Won 3 Oscars237 wins & 315 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Hulu, Netflix Standard with Ads · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Pariah (2011)

11

Pariah (2011)

IMDb ★ 7.2 RT 95% Metacritic 79

A Black teenager quietly navigates her sexuality while hiding it from her strict mother.

Directed by Dee Rees · 1h 26m

14 wins & 30 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

12

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

IMDb ★ 8.0 RT 98% Metacritic 95

A painter commissioned to secretly capture a reluctant bride-to-be falls for her instead.

Directed by Céline Sciamma · 2h 01m · Rated R

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award59 wins & 155 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max · Rent or buy: Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013)

13

Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013)

IMDb ★ 7.6 RT 88% Metacritic 90

A teenager's first serious relationship shapes years of her adult identity.

Directed by Abdellatif Kechiche · 3h 00m · Rated NC-17

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award87 wins & 106 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Sundance Now · Rent or buy: Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Carol (2015)

14

Carol (2015)

IMDb ★ 7.3 RT 94% Metacritic 94

Two women's forbidden romance begins with a chance encounter in a department store at Christmas.

Directed by Todd Haynes · 1h 58m · Rated R

Nominated for 6 Oscars76 wins & 255 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Handmaiden (2016)

15

The Handmaiden (2016)

IMDb ★ 8.1 RT 96% Metacritic 85

An erotic con-artist thriller told in three perspectives, each one recontextualising the last.

Directed by Park Chan-wook · 2h 25m · Rated R

Won 1 BAFTA Award72 wins & 108 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video · Rent: Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Beautiful Thing (1996)

16

Beautiful Thing (1996)

IMDb ★ 7.6 RT 92%

Two teenage neighbours on a London council estate fall for each other despite their circumstances.

Directed by Hettie Macdonald · 1h 32m · Rated R

4 wins & 4 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Weekend (2011)

17

Weekend (2011)

IMDb ★ 7.6 RT 95% Metacritic 81

A one-night stand between two men unexpectedly stretches into an intense, honest weekend.

Directed by Andrew Haigh · 1h 36m · Rated NR

23 wins & 23 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Philo, Sundance Now · Rent: Google Play Movies, YouTube

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Way He Looks (2014)

18

The Way He Looks (2014)

IMDb ★ 7.9 RT 93% Metacritic 71

A blind teenager's growing independence collides with his feelings for a new classmate.

Directed by Daniel Ribeiro · 1h 36m · Rated NR

27 wins & 23 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Strand Releasing Amazon Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Pride (2014)

19

Pride (2014)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 93% Metacritic 79

A group of London gay activists fund striking miners, forging an unlikely alliance.

Directed by Matthew Warchus · 2h 00m · Rated R

Won 1 BAFTA Award10 wins & 25 nominations total

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Love, Simon (2018)

20

Love, Simon (2018)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 92% Metacritic 72

A closeted teenager's anonymous online correspondence puts his secret at risk of exposure.

Directed by Greg Berlanti · 1h 50m · Rated PG-13

9 wins & 30 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Cinemax Amazon Channel, HBO Max, Cinemax Apple TV channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Kids Are All Right (2010)

21

The Kids Are All Right (2010)

IMDb ★ 7.0 RT 93% Metacritic 86

Two teenagers track down the sperm donor behind their two mums' family.

Directed by Lisa Cholodenko · 1h 46m · Rated R

Nominated for 4 Oscars29 wins & 133 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)

22

But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)

IMDb ★ 6.9 RT 43% Metacritic 39

A teenager sent to a gay-conversion camp falls for a fellow camper instead.

Directed by Jamie Babbit · 1h 25m · Rated R

2 wins & 2 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel, MovieSphere+ Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.