i-D's 50 Queer Films That Defined the 2010s

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Created by Fergenaprido.

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From 20th century-set lesbian love stories to transgender sex workers seeking revenge in modern day Hollywood, these are the 50 LGBTQ+ movies that shaped a decade of cinema.

Ten years feels like a long time, doesn't it? Presidencies have changed hands, whole industries have adapted to new methods of consumption, and the news that the planet is dying has gone from being a political footnote to galvanising the most vital, pressing movement of our times. Some communities, however, have barely changed at all. Instead, they've continued the fights they've been fighting for decades, awaiting their honest moment in the cultural spotlight.

For queer representation in cinema, the 2010s felt like a benchmark moment. What had existed before -- scatterings of queer love stories with heteronormative leads; inaccurate portrayals of trans bodies; queer characters fetishised or used for cheap laughs -- was finally starting to come undone. The tapestry of characters that graced our screens finally became representative of what life was like in the real world. Queer filmmakers got their time in the spotlight. Queer actors, finally, got the roles that had been stolen from them for decades.

To celebrate that, we've compiled a list of 50 queer films that defined the decade. While the top 10 is a standard countdown of what we consider to be the finest queer films to have hit cinema screens this decade, the remaining 40 are presented in random order: excellent films that deserve your recognition regardless of their position.

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  1. 1 new

    Moonlight

    2016, in 13 top lists Check
  2. 2 new

    120 battements par minute

    2017 — a.k.a. BPM (Beats Per Minute), in 4 top lists
    Check
  3. 3 new

    Carol

    2015, in 8 top lists Check
  4. 4 new

    Call Me by Your Name

    2017, in 11 top lists
    Check
  5. 5 new

    Ah-ga-ssi

    2016 — a.k.a. The Handmaiden, in 13 top lists Check
  6. 6 new

    Portrait de la jeune fille en feu

    2019 — a.k.a. Portrait of a Lady on Fire, in 12 top lists
    Check
  7. 7 new

    Tangerine

    2015, in 5 top lists Check
  8. 8 new

    L'inconnu du lac

    2013 — a.k.a. Stranger by the Lake, in 6 top lists Check
  9. 9 new

    Tomboy

    2011, in 4 top lists Check
  10. 10 new

    I Am Not Your Negro

    2016, in 6 top lists Check
  11. 11 new

    Appropriate Behavior

    2014 — a.k.a. Appropriate Behaviour, in 3 top lists Check
  12. 12 new

    McQueen

    2018, in 0 top lists
    Check
  13. 13 new

    Weekend

    2011, in 6 top lists Check
  14. 14 new

    O Ornitólogo

    2016 — a.k.a. The Ornithologist, in 0 top lists Check
  15. 15 new

    Sauvage

    2018 — a.k.a. Sauvage / Wild, in 0 top lists
    Check
  16. 16 new

    La vie d'Adèle

    2013 — a.k.a. Blue Is the Warmest Colour, in 13 top lists Check
  17. 17 new

    Vito

    2011, in 0 top lists Check
  18. 18 new

    Love, Simon

    2018, in 1 top list
    Check
  19. 19 new

    Viva

    2015, in 0 top lists Check
  20. 20 new

    How to Survive a Plague

    2012, in 0 top lists Check
  21. 21 new

    Disobedience

    2017, in 0 top lists
    Check
  22. 22 new

    Théo et Hugo dans le même bateau

    2016 — a.k.a. Paris 05:59: Théo & Hugo, in 0 top lists Check
  23. 23 new

    Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures

    2016, in 0 top lists Check
  24. 24 new

    Call Me Kuchu

    2012, in 0 top lists Check
  25. 25 new

    Eastern Boys

    2013, in 0 top lists Check
  26. 26 new

    Juste la fin du monde

    2016 — a.k.a. It's Only the End of the World, in 1 top list Check
  27. 27 new

    Kate Bornstein is a Queer & Pleasant Danger

    2014, in 0 top lists
    Check
  28. 28 new

    52 Tuesdays

    2013, in 0 top lists Check
  29. 29 new

    Princess Cyd

    2017, in 0 top lists
    Check
  30. 30 new

    Bambi

    2013, in 0 top lists Check
  31. 31 new

    Pariah

    2011, in 7 top lists Check
  32. 32 new

    Fin de siglo

    2019 — a.k.a. End of the Century, in 0 top lists
    Check
  33. 33 new

    The Favourite

    2018, in 7 top lists Check
  34. 34 new

    Lilting

    2014, in 1 top list Check
  35. 35 new

    Beach Rats

    2017, in 0 top lists
    Check
  36. 36 new

    Hoje Eu Quero Voltar Sozinho

    2014 — a.k.a. The Way He Looks, in 0 top lists Check
  37. 37 new

    And Then We Danced

    2019, in 2 top lists
    Check
  38. 38 new

    Inxeba

    2017 — a.k.a. The Wound, in 0 top lists
    Check
  39. 39 new

    Quand on a 17 ans

    2016 — a.k.a. Being 17, in 0 top lists Check
  40. 40 new

    Laurence Anyways

    2012, in 3 top lists Check
  41. 41 new

    Una mujer fantástica

    2017 — a.k.a. A Fantastic Woman, in 3 top lists
    Check
  42. 42 new

    Plaire, aimer et courir vite

    2018 — a.k.a. Sorry Angel, in 0 top lists
    Check
  43. 43 new

    Clouds of Sils Maria

    2014, in 3 top lists Check
  44. 44 new

    Girl

    2018, in 1 top list
    Check
  45. 45 new

    The Miseducation of Cameron Post

    2018, in 1 top list
    Check
  46. 46 new

    First Girl I Loved

    2016, in 0 top lists Check
  47. 47 new

    Rafiki

    2018, in 0 top lists
    Check
  48. 48 new

    Kiki

    2016, in 0 top lists Check
  49. 49 new

    They

    2017, in 0 top lists
    Check
  50. 50 new

    God's Own Country

    2017, in 2 top lists
    Check
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Last updated on Dec 20, 2019; source