Directed and co-written by Dee Rees ( Pariah), the Emmy-winning Bessie is buoyed by vivid performances, including Mo’Nique as Smith’s bisexual blues progenitor Ma Rainey, and zesty, stylish approaches to cinematography, music and sound. Queen Latifah plays bisexual blues legend Bessie Smith in a film that took more than two decades to come to fruition. Most importantly, they leave us with a far better understanding of our LGBTQ culture, as well as the subcultures within, subcultures that provide real muscle to our mass. They inform, they entertain, they enlighten, they stir our collective souls. And that truth is what sticks with you long after the movie has ended.Įach of the 15 films selected for our list are just as true, making every single one of them - no matter who you are, no matter what your cultural assignation, no matter your sexual orientation - essential viewing. And like the the finest LGBTQ films - Beautiful Thing, Boys Don’t Cry, Brokeback Mountain - it remains true to itself, true to its heart. It’s the standard from which all LGBTQ cinema will be compared moving forward. Poetic and resonant, it deploys a magnificently complex, ethereal narrative structure, offering the world a moviegoing experience that eschews Hollywood’s typical cookie cutter aesthetic for one daring, brave, and emotionally, intellectually powerful. The Oscar-nominated, Golden Globe-winning masterpiece sets a new bar for black gay cinema, if not all independent film.
