Top 10 queer-centric cinematic offerings from 2024

The year 2024 was a mixed bag for queer cinema and a highly experimental one in many ways. Queer performers were portraying straight characters and straight actors playing gay.

The LGBTQ+ community was represented in diverse and multifaceted ways throughout the year. Overall, many films tried to balance not calling attention to a character's identity and moving away from stereotypes.

The days of putting someone into a neat little box for a checkmark are slowly deteriorating and a new generation of artists is rising. Trans and non-binary folk are gaining a voice with opportunities never offered before.

Gay directors stood out from the pack, such as Academy Award winners Pedro Almodovar, for his first English feature debut A Room with a View, and Adam Elliot, for his adult animation movie Memoir of a Snail. Oscar-nominated Italian director Luca Guadagnino is good at coaxing out gay content from straight actors and Daniel Craig gave it his all in Queer. Challengers made two cinematic offerings from the queer director with a sexy and visually exciting tennis triangle.

Documentaries are separate from feature films, but there were several released in 2024 that will open a viewer's minds and hearts. Netflix's Will & Harper took outsiders on a road trip for an inside look at a personal journey then Chasing Chasing Amy continued that theme of searching for acceptance from ignorant straight people. Peacock's Queer Planet reinforced that same-sex attraction has always been around, even before the dawn of man.

For my top 10 queer-centric picks, let's kick things off with Netflix's Rez Ball where the Chuska Warriors battle it out on the basketball court and beyond. Unstoppable and The Fire Inside took on adversity in the world of sports, but Backspot and Rez Ball both had lesbian coaches as a commonality. Backspot was everything that Love Lies Bleeding wanted to be with a realistic storyline set in a competitive queer storyline.

Openly gay actor Coleman Domingo continues to deserve trophies for his body of work and Sing Sing has garnered him recognition despite the unusual release date in August. It was a misstep that A24 hopes to rectify when it's re-released in January. When visiting Chicago earlier this year Domingo and I together couldn't find a gay angel to Sing Sing so instead he makes my top 10 with Drive Away Dolls. He was not the only queer one in this comedy caper and Beanie Feldstein ran away with the role of Sukie.

Los Frikis displayed some harsh truths about life in Cuba during the '90s while navigating the world of HIV for a group of punk rockers.

The People's Joker was unique by being a parody and paired well with A24's Problemista to show that even with a limited budget, a passion project can still be made artistically. Vera Drew and Julio Torres deserved more attention, so here they are in a Nunnery.

The award idea that comedy can't be taken seriously seems to no longer apply and humor is needed more than ever these days. Megan Park's My Old Ass hits it out of the Prime park in a tale about facing the future.

Netflix's Emilia Perez stirred up controversy and musicals are not everyone's cup of tea, but the performances from four women stood out. French director Jacques Audiard created an opera in which struggles are humanized in various ways.

It was a close race between Universal Studio's Wicked and Feature Films' Conclave, but every moment of the former was pure magic the screen and the house had to fall on one of them! Cynthia Erivo came out as queer publicly and personally, plus there are several gay gasping moments throughout the Wicked little tale. Bring on part two as many viewers who haven't seen the “Popular” musical are left hanging in the wind on a broomstick.

Here's my complete list:

10 Rez Ball

9 Backspot

8 Drive Away Dolls

7 Los Frikis

6 The People's Joker

5 Problemista

4 My Old Ass

3 Emilia Perez

2 Conclave

1 Wicked

Cheers and bottoms up to a brand new year of reel rainbows in 2025!