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Lesbian movies you haven't seen but shouldFilm Movement; Good Deed Entertainment; Samuel Goldwyn FilmsEvery fan of queer cinema used to be pulling from the same limited number of options. Fortunately, that's shifted quite a bit in recent years, as queer protagonists have spread out into a wider variety of genres, tropes, and ever-afters. But having more films to watch means that it's more likely there are films we're missing.
With that in mind, here are 20 underrated sapphic gems from the past 15 years that you probably haven't seen and may not even know about — until now.
The Four-Faced Liar (2010)
Wolfe Media
It's a familiar premise: A group of twenty-somethings in New York navigate love, friendship, and betrayal after a chance meeting at a bar. But this take on relationships in the city centers queerness and questioning sexuality, as Molly (Emily Peck) begins to question her long-term relationship while growing closer to Bridget (Marja Lewis Ryan).
Where to watch:Apple TV (rental)
Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same (2011)
Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same (2011)
This low-budget sci-fi comedy with a genuinely unforgettable title follows three aliens sent to Earth because their emotions are too intense for their home planet. After they reach New York, one of them, Zoinx (Susan Ziegler), falls for a greeting card store employee, Jane (Lisa Haas). Of course, Jane has no idea Zoinx is an alien — or that the trio is being pursued by government agents. It’s a bizarre, endearing little film that fans of scrappy indie cinema will absolutely appreciate.
Where to watch:Fandango
Life Partners (2014)
Magnolia Pictures
Gillian Jacobs and Leighton Meester star as inseparable best friends — until one of them starts dating a guy, and everything shifts. Sasha, who’s queer and feeling stuck, watches as her straight bestie moves on with her life, leaving her to question what’s next and where she fits. It's the type of queer story that doesn't get a lot of on-screen exploration, despite how real it is.
Where to watch:Max
Girltrash: All Night Long (2014)
Girltrash: All Night Long
POWER UPThis musical prequel to the cult web series Girltrash! follows a group of queer women navigating hookups, heartbreak, and a Battle of the Bands, all over the course of one chaotic night in Los Angeles. Yeah, it's not going to be hitting Broadway and collecting Tony Awards anytime soon, but fans of South of Nowhere will be delighted to see Gabrielle Christian and Mandy Musgrave back together again.
Where to watch:Tubi
Addicted to Fresno (2015)
Gravitas Ventures
In this dark comedy from Jamie Babbit and Karey Dornetto, Natasha Lyonne, for once, plays the character who's more or less got her life together — at least in comparison to her sister (Judy Greer), who's fresh out of rehab for her sex addiction. Soon, they find themselves embarking on a quirky quest to get rid of a dead body, all while Lyonne's Martha is romantically pursued by Kelly (Aubrey Plaza).
Where to watch:Peacock, Prime Video, Tubi
The Intervention (2016)
Paramount Pictures
Before Happiest Season, Clea DuVall dived into directing with The Intervention, a star-studded indie dramedy about a group of friends ambushing two of their own with an intervention about their marriage. It's definitely an ensemble piece, but it's particularly notable for sapphic fans in that it reunites DuVall and her But I'm a Cheerleader co-star Natasha Lyonne as a couple.
Where to watch:Prime Video (rental)
The Archer (2017)
MarVista Entertainment
The Archer is a surprisingly fun little flick that follows Lauren (Bailey Noble) as she gets sent to a shady reform camp. She and another young delinquent (Jeanine Mason) end up escaping and are pursued through the wilderness, with Lauren pulling out her badass archery skills to defend them. The dark tone isn't for everyone, but if you want a queer thriller that doesn't end in burying your gays, check this one out.
Where to watch: Tubi
Girls Like Magic (2017)
High Fliers Films
Magic (Julia Eringer) moves to LA and quickly forms a close bond with her new neighbor Jamie (Shantell Yasmine Abeydeera). But as you might have guessed from its inclusion on this list, what starts as friendship begins to feel like more — even if they aren't quite willing to admit as much. We love a messy queer protagonist, and Girls Like Magic definitely has that on offer.
Where to watch:Tubi
Hollow in the Land (2017)
Vertical Entertainment
Hollow in the Land is a solid little crime thriller starring Dianna Agron, an outcast searching for her brother after he goes missing in their small town. Her character didn't necessarily have to be queer for this story to work, which makes it all the more meaningful that she was.
Where to watch:Tubi
Princess Cyd (2017)
Wolfe Releasing
Princess Cyd is a coming-of-age film in which its titular character (Jessie Pinnick) explores her sexuality while spending the summer in Chicago with her aunt (Rebecca Spence). It's particularly notable for its inclusion of a non-binary character/love interest in Katie (Ro White). This quiet film is well-loved among sapphics who have seen it, but has still mostly flown under the radar.
Where to watch:Prime Video, Tubi
Lez Bomb (2018)
Gravitas Ventures
Lauren (Jenna Laurenzo) heads home for Thanksgiving planning to finally come out to her conservative family — and introduce them to her girlfriend. But thanks to bad timing and a surprise visit from a male friend, her big announcement spirals into a weekend of misunderstandings and chaos. This is definitely a low-budget film, but one that's decidedly rewatchable thanks to the humor and heart it brings to the table.
Where to watch:Tubi
Wild Nights with Emily (2018)
Greenwich Entertainment
Fans of sapphic media may be more familiar with Dickinson at this point, but that's no reason to sleep on Wild Nights with Emily. It's yet another enjoyable look into the life of one of our most well-known poets — this time played by Molly Shannon.
Where to watch:Strand Releasing via Prime Video
Rafiki (2018)
Film Movement
Set in Kenya, Rafiki follows the blossoming relationship between Kena (Samantha Mugatsia) and Ziki (Sheila Munyiva), two young women whose fathers are political rivals in a place where queerness is still criminalized. The film made waves for being banned in Kenya upon release, but it deserves to be more widely seen, controversial or not.
Where to watch:Tubi
Two of Us (2019)
Magnolia Pictures
Most modern sapphic films revolve around teenagers or twentysomethings, but Two of Us offers something different. Nina (Barbara Sukowa) and Madeleine (Martine Chevallier) have been secretly in love for decades, living in separate apartments across the hall. Things get complicated when one has a stroke and they have to decide how to navigate their relationship with their clueless families.
Where to watch:Prime Video, Tubi
Paradise Hills (2019)
Samuel Goldwyn Films
Paradise Hills is weird — let's get that out of the way up front. It's sort of Jupiter Ascending, but for lesbians. Is it disastrously bad? A quiet masterpiece? All I can say is that anyone who can confidently answer that question, no matter how they answer it, is somehow wrong. But any movie that reaches the mid-point and makes you go "lol wouldn't it be funny if this were suddenly gay?" — and then it is — deserves a spot on this list.
Where to watch:Starz
Ellie and Abbie (& Ellie’s Dead Aunt) (2020)
Arcadia
When Ellie (Sophie Hawkshaw) decides to ask her classmate Abbie (Zoe Terakes) to the formal, she gets some unexpected help in the form of her dead aunt, Tara (Julia Billington). Once a queer rights activist in the '80s, Tara is now a ghost determined to help her niece navigate the water of adolescence in this goofy but heartwarming Australian romcom.
Where to watch:Tubi
Summerland (2020)
Lionsgate UK
Sapphic period pieces are a dime a dozen, but Summerland stands out for centering a love story that doesn’t end in tragedy. Alice (Gemma Arterton), a reclusive writer in coastal England during WWII, is unexpectedly tasked with caring for a young evacuee. As they grow closer, flashbacks reveal her past relationship with Vera (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a woman she once loved.
Where to watch:AMC+
After Blue (Dirty Paradise) (2021)
Altered Innocence
If French surrealist cinema is your thing, definitely check out After Blue (Dirty Paradise). Teen Roxy (Paula Luna) is banished alongside her mother (Elina Löwensohn) after accidentally freeing a dangerous criminal named Kate Bush. It's very gay, very bizarre, and the type of movie that's particularly enjoyable if you live somewhere with legalized weed.
Where to watch:Tubi
Alone With You (2022)
Dark Star Pictures
We got a lot of claustrophobic films with a tiny cast and minimal locations in the years immediately following the pandemic, but Alone With You is one where those constraints truly work. The story follows Charlie (Emily Bennett, who also co-wrote and co-directed), a young woman waiting for her girlfriend to come home — but as time passes, reality starts to blur. Is something haunting their apartment, or is Charlie unraveling? As an added bonus for horror fans, Barbara Crampton makes a brief virtual appearance as Charlie's mother, giving this little flick some serious street cred in the genre.
Where to watch:Shudder
You Can Live Forever (2022)
Good Deed Entertainment
Set in the 1990s, this Canadian drama follows Jaime (Anwen O’Driscoll), a teen sent to live with relatives in a conservative Jehovah’s Witness community after her father's death. There, she meets Marike (June Laporte), the daughter of a prominent elder, and the two begin a secret relationship. It's like Disobedience, but for teens — and with less spitting.
Where to watch: Prime Video (rental)
