All of Us Strangers

Widest Release: 295 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

This emotional drama follows neighbors Adam and Harry, who form a relationship as Adam is haunted by the ghosts of his parents. Much of the film is Adam going back to his childhood home, where his young parents appear as old as they were when they died, and they catch up on Adam’s life since they passed. This includes a coming out scene where Adam tells his mother he’s gay, and she reacts poorly, because she’s worried for his safety and happiness. Unlike typical coming out scenes portrayed in film, where the parent is either fully accepting or hateful, Adam’s mother is in between. Beyond forging a relationship with his ghostly parents, much of the film centers around Adam growing closer to Harry, showing their emotional and physical intimacy and frank conversations about their own queerness. The lines of reality are blurred in the entire film, but especially as the film progresses and Adam is unsure of what’s real or not. Eventually his parents have to move on from their time on this earth, and Adam cannot find Harry. The film ends with Adam discovering Harry in his bed, having died before they began their relationship. Adam weeps, and holds Harry in a tender embrace.

The film, though ultimately tragic, paints a thoughtful and nuanced queer love story as well as showing the specific loneliness that is often faced by the community. It went deeper and more intimate than many other gay romances, and ultimately told a story of the transformative power of love.

Next Goal Wins

Widest Release: 2,240 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

This film is based on the true story of the American Samoan soccer team’s historic win in 2014, after having been regarded as one of the world’s worst teams for over a decade. Included in the film is Jaiyah, a player on the team who is fa’afafine, a third gender recognized and honored in Polynesian culture. In real life, Jaiyah was a respected member of the team and a national hero in American Samoa. However a significant amount of her portrayal in this film involves her being misgendered and disrespected by the new white coach brought in to improve the team. The coach, Thomas, laughs at the idea of Jaiyah being on the team when he first meets her and then repeatedly misgenders her. One incident involves Thomas misgendering Jaiyah until she physically retaliates. While some might feel her reaction was fully justified, Jaiyah apologizes to him – which results in Thomas asking her invasive questions about her genitalia. Later in the film, when it is time for the championship game, Thomas finds Jaiyah crying in the bathroom, and she explains that she has gone off of her hormone replacement therapy to perform better, while he confesses that she reminds him of his deceased daughter. This scene reinforces untrue and harmful narratives that hormones lead to erratic behavior. Ultimately, Jaiyah is the hero of the championship game, bringing it home for her team. But before those final scenes audiences had to stomach a lot of transphobic behavior from the coach so that he could become a better person. Trans characters should not exist to teach cisgender characters a lesson.

The film ends with clips from real life, one showing the real Jaiyah, as the first transgender player in FIFA. Jaiyah is an inspirational figure in the world of sport and the film could have spent more time centering her story and the acceptance she has in American Samoa, rather than centering the narrow-minded bigotry of her coach.

Poor Things

Widest Release: 2,300 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

This fantastical drama follows Bella Baxter, a Frankenstein’s monster type created by using the body of a pregant woman who died by suicide and the brain of her unborn baby. The resulting Bella has the body of an adult and the mind of a child, which leads to a disturbing number of men who wish to sleep with her. As the film progresses, so does Bella’s brain, and she learns about the seedier parts of society. There is a sequence where she works as a sex worker in Paris, having sex with a variety of men who ask her to do degrading things. One of the only sexual experiences during this time she seems to enjoy is with Toinette, another sex worker who is Bella’s friend at the brothel. While this presents an opportunity to dive into Bella’s sexuality beyond just men taking advantage of her, the film quickly moves on from the sexual act between Bella and Toinette, instead focusing on yet another man exploiting and abusing Bella. Toinette briefly appears at the end of the film, as one of Bella’s companions after she has performed her own experiment on her abusive ex-husband. Toinette is never fully explored as a character, nor is her relationship with Bella ever fleshed out besides their one sexual encounter. This could have been a significant part of Bella’s development and understanding of sex and relationships, but instead was buried beneath a sea of men taking advantage of Bella.

Theater Camp

Widest Release: 555 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

Theater Camp is a mockumentary that follows the employees and students of a theater summer camp on the verge of bankruptcy. One of the main characters is Amos, who is confirmed to be gay upon his introduction, as his co-counselor and best friend Rebecca-Diane used to have a crush on him until he came out. Several of the tweens at camp are confirmed to be queer as well, at one point chanting “we are gay witches and this is our spell” when getting ready. The camp is presented as a safe space for queer people, as being gay is never an issue for anyone. In fact, there is a moment where one of the campers with two dads essentially comes out as straight. It is exciting to see queer joy from young people in an environment where they are so easily accepted.