[Recs] We're Here, We're Queer, Get Used to It!: LGBTQIA+ in Media Pt. 1
A/N: Please check what I wrote in the disclaimer at the bottom before proceeding. It's concerning the ratings used and the usage of the word "queer".
Still there are people out there who think it's getting too much or that we shouldn't be seen, especially in works made for children and teens. But those are the most important works. If you ever struggled with your sexuality as a teen it would have been so good to actually see yourself on screen like straight kids did all the time and still mostly do.
With this series of posts I want to talk not only about works like that but about all versions of queer representation. Out of the various LGBTQIA+ focused movies I've so far only seen a couple but I will watch more in the future, obviously, so this series might continue forever. I will also not only talk about movies I actually liked but also about those I didn't like, or maybe haven't even finished. I only rate those I finished but I will tell you what made me stop watching certain movies. Also, some I might have watched a long time ago so I won't rate them either.
What I have to say is that most movies will probably be about white m/m couples. Usually because they are created more often than anything else. If you have recommendations for me feel free to comment them on here or Instagram.
What I also want to talk about is TV series and books I so far consumed. Even in those cases I have only watched a few or haven't even finished some yet. I will also mention those and talk about why I never finished them or haven't been in the mood to watch them so far.
Movies
Love, Simon (2018)
"I’m supposed to be the one that decides when and how and who knows, and how I get to say it, that’s supposed to be my thing!"
Director: Greg Berlanti
Run time: 110 minutes
Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
Age: PG-13 (FSK 0 in Germany)
Obviously I had to start with this one. I'm always happy to see a queer centered movie to reach a bigger audience, especially if it's done by someone from our community as well. Berlanti created a great movie that, though different from the book, just tells this lovely story very well and with the right view on it. Telling the stories of queer teens in the western world have often been full with a lot of hardships and even death, as well as a very white cishet view. While I do appreciate the existence of those as well, it is much more important for us to get happy stories that work in similar ways as white cishet romances.
While Love, Simon is also dealing with the hardships of coming out, it deals with it in rather unusual ways for a major studio movie. This is the story about how someone has been robbed from deciding when and how to actually come out, something that unfortunately is still necessary if you don't want people to think you're straight (though only do it at your own pace, and you do not have to come out if you don't want to!).
As someone who had a shitty coming out to be quite honest this definitely spoke to me and I immediately understood why others liked this movie so much. I also think it's better than the book. Yes, I said that. But the writing in the book isn't the greatest. What I find disappointing about the movie is that they ignored Leah actually being fat. The actress was way too thin.
Rating: Not yet decided
Imagine Me & You (2005)
"The lily means, 'I dare you to love me'."
Run time: 94 Minutes
Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
Age: R (FSK 0 in Germany)
If you loved Lena Headey in anything, you will also love her in this story. Imagine Me & You is the story about Rachel (Piper Perabo) and Luce (Lena Headey) meeting at Rachel's wedding and things unfold from there.
Overall this is a product of its time and very much relies on what basically any mediocre white cishet romantic comedy does anyway but that's precisely why many of us queer ladies love it. We finally got the cheesy, mediocre story the cishets got and it was cute! Not to mention that probably many of us crushed on either or both of these women when we first watched the movie.
And let's not forget that this movie has a happy ending and some really great, quotable lines like "You're a wanker, number nine!".
Rating: Not yet decided as I haven't watched it in a while.
TV Series
The L Word (2004 - 2009)
"My name is Carmen de la Pica Morales. The first time I knew I was gay... I was 16 back then. I fell madly in love with Lucia Torres. She was Pablo Fuentes' girlfriend. In my high school, you just... you didn't fuck with Pablo's girl. But I did."
Showrunner: Ilene Chaiken
No. of Seasons: 6
Genre: Romance, Drama
Age: TV-MA (FSK 16 in Germany)
Where do we start with this show? Do we talk about how lesbians my age love to jokingly call it "the lesbian bible" or how this series - despite the characters not being super relatable for everyone - means so much to many queer women because we finally got to see ourselves on tv?
The L Word starts out with us getting to know a tight-knit group of lesbians in West Hollywood through the eyes of a young woman who moves there for her boyfriend and slowly realizing that she's actually into women. This show covers so many aspects of the queer female experience but also offers a few looks at queer male experiences. While the show is actually not perfect and we love to say that season six didn't happen, it still means a lot and makes many of us feel seen. In a world in which queer women are still put on the sidelines for gay white cis men this series type of series is something I hope future generations of queer women will also finally get. And with the remake being in production already this might be the case. I just hope for a more diverse cast and better storylines. It was very white and while it did talk about Beth being a queer woman of color it needed to do a better job than that. Not to mention all the drama with Beth and Tina's child.
So, yeah, from a modern point of view this show is problematic and overly dramatic but it has a special place in the hearts of many and I personally don't want to miss the experience of having watched this and finally having a huge cast of different queer women I could in some way relate to, unlike most other shows which has maybe two and I can't relate to any of them which is why I do not watch everything that has lesbians in it.
Rating: It's been a while but I would say 3.5/5 is appropriate.
Queer As Folk US (2000 - 2005)
I don’t believe in love, I believe in fucking.
Showrunner: Ron Cowen, Daniel Lipman (based on the UK series by Russell T. Davies)
No. of Seasons: 5
Genre: Romance, Drama
Age: TV-MA (FSK 16 in Germany)
Queer as Folk as the show that came before The L Word and as far as I know was the reason for us getting that show is probably more for queer men and fetishizing straight women. Still, it has its right to exist and was very important for many to see themselves on TV, even if - after watching the first season - I would consider the portrayal of gay men kind of problematic in a way that doesn't hold up. What I mean by that is that unlike the problematic aspects of The L Word I find the ones in Queer as Folk a lot less easy to deal with.
This show about a group of gay men and their lives between work, love, and sex is just not by cup of tea. I don't really find any of the guys relatable and I usually can find something to relate to in various characters. But this show just doesn't work for me. Especially the "adult man sleeps with teen boy" thing just makes me so fucking uncomfortable. Maybe if I had watched it when I was younger my opinion would be different on this show.
Rating: won't rate it as I haven't finished it and I don't know if I ever will.
Books
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (2018)
"Never let anyone make you feel ordinary."
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
No. of Pages: 400 (Washington Square Press, Paperback)
Genre: Romance, Historical Fiction, Contemporary
Age: Adult Fiction
Evelyn Hugo - a retired actress and Hollywood bombshell whose career started in the 50s - wants to write her memoirs with the help of a young journalist called Monique Grant. And by talking about her life and all of her seven husbands she divulges many of the dirty and gritty secrets of Hollywood. But this all leaves Monique to wonder about her own life and why the Evelyn Hugo chose her of all journalists.
This book was hyped for a reason. The way the story unfolds, the characters, the dark secrets of Hollywood's golden era - they all make for an amazing book that's gripping and makes you feel for the characters. Also, we have a bisexual Latina as a main character and the other is a young black woman. While I understand that it might not be for everyone, I do recommend this book. I especially recommend it to others who don't usually read chick-lit. I never liked chick-lit but Taylor Jenkins Reid does write it in ways that is interesting and enjoyable to me.
Rating: 4.5/5 (read my full review here)
Die Wilden Hühner und die Liebe (2003)
"Liebe ist eben genauso ungerecht verteilt auf dieser Welt wie Regen. Die einen kriegen entschieden zu viel davon ab und die anderen zu wenig." ("Love is also just as unfairly spread in the world as rain. Some definitely get too much of it and others not enough.")
English Title: C.H.I.X. (first translated version of the first book, didn't get continued), The Wild Chicks (second translated version released last year. Fifth book isn't out yet I think)
Author: Cornelia Funke
Author: Cornelia Funke
No. of Pages: 188
Genre: Contemporary, romance, slice-of-life (somewhat)
Age: Middle-Grade to Young Adult
This is a book series I grew up with. Most of the people who aren't German probably only really know Funke's "Inkheart" series and for some time I was disappointed that The Wild Chicks didn't have an English translation because I think it's a really cute and good book series for young girls who are slowly turning into teenagers. Like other series these books start out as middle-grade novels and turn into young adult novels. Some things don't hold up obviously, but overall they're really cute.
The Wild Chicks tells the stories of a group of four (later five) girls from some made-up small town in Germany. Sprotte (actually Charlotte) who loves leopard/cheetah print pants and her grumpy grandma's chickens, Frida who constantly has to babysit her baby brother and is basically what people nowadays would most likely call a SJW, Trude who is a bit of a bigger girl and has insecurities due to that and also later on because of her parents' divorce, and Melanie who pays too much attention to her looks and boys but will always in the end have her friends' backs - they make up this group of young girls who in honor of Sprotte's favorite animal the chicken named themselves after them. In book three a fifth girl becomes part of the group, Wilma, who deals with very controlling and perfectionist parents but can handle a water pistol like no other, which is especially useful when they encounter their "archenemies", a group of boys from their school who call themselves "Pygmies".
All the stories are about growing up and becoming teenagers, how to deal with the lot you have been given in some cases, general human problems, general female issues, the "war of the sexes" if you will, acceptance, tolerance, and that even though you are different from each other you can still be friends. This, mixed with a story about creating your own little "gang", a story about a school trip, a story about saving the chickens from being slaughtered, a story about being on a horse riding holiday, and a story about experiencing love as a teenager, is a great series full with adventure and cool role models.
And, since this post is about queer characters and media, I want to specify more why I'm mentioning the fifth book specifically. This is the book in which the girls are around 15 or so and as with many teenagers this is when one tends to first experience love and heartbreaks. And unlike a lot of other media about teenagers this book doesn't shy away from having a character turn out to be queer. Wilma, who always has been the character who didn't really get boys the most, is a lesbian and while her coming out wasn't well portrayed it was quite realistic for that time.
I will forever think about that one scene you can also find in the movie version of this book (even though I can't remember if it was exactly like this and I can't find my copy):
"My heart just doesn't throb when I see Leonardo DiCaprio."
"But there are so many different boys."
"But they're all boys."
Little me who still didn't get that she was gay always had this stuck in her head. To be honest, I was pretty dense because this should have told me that I might be like Wilma but it never crossed my mind until I was 17. But this also had some other reasons. Anyway, a little fun fact at the side: the child actors in the movie version were about 14 or so when they made the movie and they did have Wilma and her girlfriend kiss in it. So, if anyone ever tells you that showing gay love in a kids movie is inappropriate and a bad influence, tell them about this very popular German book series that got a movie in which it was shown and it didn't do anything except showing teenagers figuring out who they are!
Rating: it's been too long since I read it so I'm not rating it yet. I want to reread them as soon as possible.
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Disclaimer: Everything talked about is my own opinion and I wasn't asked to talk about any movie, tv series or book mentioned. If you find any spelling or grammar mistakes you can keep them. I do not have the time or energy to properly check for them. Sorry.
- I will use the word queer. I use it for myself and, as I'm not a native speaker, I don't have the same connection to its meaning as a slur. On top of that I do want to point out that "queer" as a word is an important part of our community's history so I don't want to get rid of it. If you're uncomfortable with this word being used this post might not be for you. I'm sorry!
- I decided to show you the differences in ratings between the US and Germany (where I am from). Most of you reading this will most likely know the US rating system. The German one always starts with "FSK" which you can ignore or read up on here. The numbers are the age at which you can watch something. But "FSK 12" doesn't just mean that one can watch something at the age of twelve and older. If you are accompanied by a legal guardian, parent or some other adult you can already watch it at the age of six. They changed that rule for Harry Potter 3 if I remember it right. The scale goes 0, 6, 12, 16, 18. The US ratings I get from their imdb pages, the German ones usually from Wikipedia. They tend to be sourced and accurate most of the time.
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