10 best LGBTQ comedies and rom coms to watch at home

Among the many new releases hitting streaming and VOD platforms this weekend, one specifically caught our eye: Fireplace Island, the fashionable homosexual Satisfaction and Prejudice adaptation directed by Andrew Ahn and written by and starring Joel Kim Booster. The film is now accessible to stream on Hulu, and many people at Polygon can be watching it this weekend.

If, like us, you’re enthusiastic about this film, or you’ve got watched it and are within the temper for extra LGBTQ comedies and romantic comedies: excellent news! We’ve compiled the next checklist only for you.

Listed here are 10 hilarious and heartfelt LGBTQ comedies and romantic comedies that you could watch proper now at dwelling on streaming providers like Netflix, Hulu, and others. Remember to share any favorites within the feedback!

Acceptable Conduct

Picture: Peccadillo Footage/Gravitas Ventures

“Um, I’m in search of the grown-up underwear of a girl in control of her sexuality and never afraid of change?”

Desiree Akhavan’s (The Miseducation of Cameron Submit) function movie debut tells a narrative that’s near dwelling — it follows Shirin (performed by Akhavan), who (just like the writer-director-star) is a bisexual New York Metropolis native born to Iranian immigrants. After a nasty break up, Shirin’s life is thrown into disarray, forcing her into some uncomfortable conversations she had been avoiding — each together with her household and with herself. This offbeat comedy is all the time stunning and by no means loses its humorousness or its coronary heart. Simply watch the hilarious underwear-shopping scene; it’ll provide you with an thought of how a lot this film is for you. —Pete Volk

Acceptable Conduct is offered to stream on The Criterion Channel, or totally free with adverts on The Roku Channel, Vudu, Tubi, Pluto TV, Plex, and FreeVee.

The Birdcage

Picture: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists

It’s laborious to even think about Nathan Lane as unconfident about something in his life, particularly in terms of his melodramatic, hilarious portrayal of drag queen Starina (and her alter-ego, the not-so-mild-mannered Albert) in The Birdcage — however Lane was nonetheless within the closet on the time. It’s all of the extra spectacular that the central joke of the 1996 film is that Albert can’t handle to move as straight, not even for the good thing about his son’s fiancée’s extraordinarily conservative household. The Birdcage exhibits all of the ways in which gender is a efficiency by way of its rapid-fire wit and absurd conditions, shying away from the preachiness you would possibly count on of a comedy about conservatives compelled to face their fears of all issues queer. The very best a part of The Birdcage isn’t the drag performances, though these stay a delight — as an alternative it’s the film’s portrayal of the middle-aged mundanities of two homosexual dads current within the ’90s. They’re regular, and on the time, that felt radical. —Maddy Myers

The Birdcage is offered to stream on HBO Max.

However I’m A Cheerleader

Picture: Lionsgate Movies

It’s laborious to think about dialog remedy because the centerpiece for a comedy, but someway that’s the premise of However I’m A Cheerleader. A younger Natasha Lyonne stars as a preppy blonde who has no thought why she needs to hurl each time her boyfriend goes in for a kiss, and Clea DuVall performs one in all queer cinema’s most iconic lesbian love pursuits. Their meet-cute occurs on the conversion camp the place they’ve each been despatched by their households; it’s a setting that stays lighthearted partially as a result of garish pink-and-blue set design and the over-the-top gender position coaching that the queer youngsters get compelled by way of. The terrifying actuality of their predicament simmers below the floor, permitting the comedy to chew again all of the tougher — and permitting the romantic climax to style even sweeter. —MM

However I’m A Cheerleader is offered to stream on Peacock, totally free with a library card on Kanopy or Hoopla, or totally free with adverts on The Roku Channel, Pluto TV, and Plex.

Plan B

Photograph: Brett Roedel/Hulu

The Hulu-produced comedy set in South Dakota stars two teenage ladies, one in all whom is a recognized nerd who by no means steps out of line — aside from one underwhelming hookup at a celebration, after which she will’t handle to trace down a morning-after capsule as a consequence of conservative legal guidelines within the space. So, mentioned nerd and her lifelong greatest buddy embark on a street journey to trace down the capsule. The queer romance comes out of left discipline on this film so I received’t spoil the circumstances, besides to say that my girlfriend and I had adequate gaydar to foretell precisely what was occurring earlier than it performed out. There’s additionally plenty of gross-out humor on this film (there’s an on-screen penis piercing, for instance), however provided that the premise is about human our bodies and all of their surprising and inconvenient capabilities, it really works. —MM

Plan B is offered to stream on Hulu.

Crush

Photograph: Brett Roedel/Hulu

A love triangle involving two siblings and one hapless protagonist? Basic setup for a romantic comedy. All people is aware of should you date someone, you’ve locked your self out of courting their sibling, as a result of that’s completely disrespectful. However what should you’re additionally a queer teen woman, and also you don’t even know that many different queer teen ladies? That’s the premise of Crush, a lighthearted romp by way of a well-worn premise that feels manner more energizing as a consequence of being 100% sapphic. —MM

Crush is offered to stream on Hulu.

Saving Face

Picture: Sony Footage Leisure

Alice Wu’s early-2000s romantic comedy has grow to be a basic within the queer and Chinese language American movie canon. Within the movie, mom Hwei-Lan and daughter Wil study to dwell collectively below distinctive circumstances. Hwei-Lan is kicked out of her dad and mom’ home after changing into pregnant out of wedlock and strikes into Wil’s dwelling — Wil is lesbian, however closeted to her mom. Saving Face follows every of their romantic pursuits, however the trick the movie is that its arc is definitely between mom and daughter. Their relationship turns into the nexus of the story — they study to help one another regardless of intergenerational and cultural variations, as every of them fights for acceptance from their elders and learns to place religion in their very own wishes. I’m grateful to Wu for resisting studio makes an attempt at whitewashing, and for preventing for the film to have a contented ending. Saving Face has grow to be a consolation watch to me, and a reminder that love is feasible throughout diasporas, even when it isn’t simple. —Nicole Clark

Saving Face is offered to stream on Prime Video, Hulu, and the Criterion Channel, or totally free with adverts on Tubi and Crackle.

My Lovely Laundrette

Picture: Mainline Footage

Stephen Frears’ (Excessive Constancy) 1985 dramedy is usually cited as the most effective British motion pictures of the twentieth century, and it earned an Academy Award nomination for screenwriter Hanif Kureishi. It was additionally a breakout position for one in all its younger stars, Daniel Day-Lewis. Day-Lewis stars reverse Gordon Warnecke, who performs Omar, a younger man taking good care of his father who will get the chance to handle a laundromat that’s in poor form. When he and a few buddies are attacked by a bunch of skinheads, Omar is stunned to see their chief is a childhood buddy/outdated romantic flame, Johnny (Day-Lewis).

What occurs subsequent is a transgressive, endearing, and full of life story of affection, tradition clashes, and the struggles of Thatcher-era England. —PV

My Lovely Laundrette is offered to observe totally free with a library card on Kanopy, or to hire or buy on digital platforms.

The Half of It

Photograph: KC Bailey/Netflix

The Half of It is one other glorious movie from Alice Wu, this time a coming-of-age story made for Netflix. It explores acquainted themes like belonging and miscommunication, contrasting queer Chinese language American id towards the very white backdrop of a small city, Squahamish.

On this Cyrano de Bergerac retelling, Ellie varieties an in depth friendship with a candy himbo jock, Paul, agreeing to assist him textual content his crush Aster. However Ellie, too, has emotions for Aster, and maintaining the charade turns into more and more tough. However the mistaken id rom-com additionally has a really candy coronary heart. Ellie and Paul’s friendship blossoms over the course of the film. He has his beliefs challenged and comes out higher for it. And Ellie learns that she has buddies she will depend on, and a father or mother who actually cares about her, regardless of his stoic exterior. —NC

The Half of It is offered to stream on Netflix.

Fried Inexperienced Tomatoes

Picture: Common Footage

The primary time I watched Fried Inexperienced Tomatoes was as a youngster, with my dad and mom. They have been accustomed to the film and by the tip I believed to myself, Oh, so that is homosexual, proper? My dad and mom, in the meantime, have been like, These two ladies are such good buddies 🙂. I ended up Googling the plot abstract and came upon that the ebook it’s based mostly on is definitely very, very homosexual. I used to be proper!

Even with all of the overt romantic implications eliminated, Fried Inexperienced Tomatoes is a young love story between two ladies within the Deep South. Idgie and Ruthie’s relationship is recounted in present-day by one other girl (implied within the movie to be Idgie, however a very separate character within the novel), and their story conjures up Kathy Bates’ character to regain management of her life. Even simply by way of subtext, Idgie and Ruthie’s devotion to at least one one other is obvious. Heck, they dwell collectively, open a restaurant collectively, increase a baby collectively, and fend off Ruthie’s abusive ex collectively — fairly rattling romantic should you ask me. It’s about marginalized folks coming collectively and forming a neighborhood and that’s simply fairly cool, I believe. Additionally, the food-fight scene is mainly alleged to be a intercourse scene and it’s the most effective “not intercourse, however completely intercourse” scenes on the market IMO. —Petrana Radulovic

Fried Inexperienced Tomatoes is offered for rental or buy on digital VOD platforms.

Booksmart

Photograph: Francois Duhamel/Annapurna Footage

Booksmart isn’t an LGBTQ rom-com, however it is a comedy with a lesbian character as one of many two protagonists. Molly (Beanie Feldstein) and Amy (Kaitlyn Dever), two overachieving excessive schoolers, realized that they’ve missed out on some quintessential highschool experiences, so the night time earlier than commencement they attempt to hit up a celebration — and find yourself traversing throughout city, trying to find the suitable handle. It’s a raunchy teen comedy about partying earlier than graduating, however this time with two gals, and Amy occurs to be a hopeless lesbian with an enormous crush on a scorching woman that she struggles to make dialog with. To not spoil too a lot, however the ensuing romantic scene is each very electrical and extremely awkward within the amplified manner that prime college experiences typically find yourself being. —PR

Booksmart is offered to stream on Hulu.