Around the world, June is known for being Pride Month, which is the celebration of LGBTQIA+ lives and people. As streaming services begin to introduce their new offerings for this month, here the best LGBTQIA+ horror movies that are available for streaming right now.
Stories and experiences of LGBTQIA+ people have been captured for the big screen since the beginning of cinematic history. While some have been more overt than others, the queer symbolism and depictions are integral to representing these individuals at a large scale and a fairly accessible platform. The first LGBTQIA+ horror film can be traced all the way back to Jacques Tourneur’s 1942 film, Cat People, about a woman who resists heteronormative relationships and struggles with her repressed identity. While there are undoubtedly older films that feature queer themes, this is the first known horror movie that does.
As time progressed, horror directors continued to utilize their platform to feature social discourses on a range of issues such as George A. Romero’s critique on the treatment of Black people in America in his 1968 film Night Of The Living Dead. Horror films have proven to be a vital source of representation for Black people, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and more. With a range of subgenres including fantasy, dystopian, sci-fi, and more, its ability to include social commentary in overt and covert ways is extraordinary. Pride month is just beginning, here are the best LGBTQIA+ horror movies to enjoy during this year’s celebration of love and life in all forms.
Lizzie (Shudder)
Director Craig William Macneill’s 2018 biographical thriller film Lizzie is based on the true story of Lizzie Borden. Starring Chloë Sevigny as Lizzie Borden who was accused of the brutal murder of her father and stepmother in 1892 at their home in River Falls, Massachusetts. The film follows Lizzie at age 32 in her day-to-day life leading up to the murders and her subsequent acquittal. In this historical horror drama, she falls in love with a housemaid named Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan (Kristen Stewart).
As the film reaches its climactic end, Lizzie and Bridget carry out the murders due to the sexual assault and trauma they experienced at the hands of Lizzie’s father. Lizzie is a daring and astounding revision of a historical incident that shook Americans to the core. The addition of a lesbian relationship not only offers representation in cinema but it also exposes the fact that women same-sex relationships have existed for hundreds of years. Their relationship is also founded in speculation of Borden’s lesbian identity later in her life. With historical documentation and a horrific story to back it up, Lizzie is a one of the best LGBTQIA+ horror films available for streaming on Shudder.
Lyle (Amazon Prime)
Starring Gaby Hoffmann and Ingrid Jungermann as Leah and June, a young lesbian coupling living in Brooklyn, New York and expecting the birth of their second child. Directed by Stewart Thorndike, Lyle (2014) is a reimagining of the iconic horror film Rosemary’s Baby (1968). When Leah and June move to a new home in Brooklyn, their neighbor is quick to notice their first-born son and comment on the tradition of sacrificing one’s first born. Reminiscent of Ari Aster’s Hereditary (2018), unsuspecting but devious neighbors plot against the family resulting in a thrilling horror story.
Not only does Lyle outwardly represent lesbian relationships, it also holds a plethora of symbolism on the perception of same-sex couples who raise children. It is an allegory for the disbelief that some people have in regards to lesbians having the capability to “properly” raise a son. The horror in the film is offered through the threat of child sacrifice as well as covert homophobia presented by their neighbors.
Let The Right One In (Hulu)
The Swedish romantic horror film Let The Right One In (2008) tells the story of a 12-year-old boy befriending a vampire in the 1980s. Starring Kåre Hedebrant as Oskar and Lina Leandersson as Eli, the two begin to develop a close bond when Eli movies in next door. Initially, Oskar believes that Eli is a girl for his feminine appearance and gender-fluid name but at the end, they reveal themselves as actually being a boy. This comes in the moment that Oskar asks Eli to be his girlfriend, in which Eli responds by stating that he is in fact a boy. The two share multiple forms of romantic affection throughout the film’s entirety.
Let The Right One In is based on John Ajvide Lindqvist 2004 novel of the same name. In the text, Eli is actually named Elias, but chooses the alias after being castrated over 200 years ago when they were transformed into a vampire. While this is not mentioned in the film, the fact that Eli presents in a femme way (clothes, hair, etc.) leads the viewer to believe that this child holds an LGBTQIA+ identity. It is an unsettling horror film with a plot that sticks to terrifying the audience while adding in elements and themes familiar to LGBTQIA+ experiences.
Sleepaway Camp (Amazon Prime)
Robert Hiltzik’s 1983 slasher film Sleepaway Camp is the first in its franchise and features multiple murders as they occur around the main characters’ summer camp. There is a total of four installments in the series but the original film remains a cult classic and features LGBTQIA+ elements. Starring Felissa Rose as Angela/Peter Baker, the film follows the young girl as she commits countless murders. In the film’s most famous scene, Angela is shown in the nude with an exposed penis. This reveal alludes to her being a transgender woman. In the 1980s, this was a shocking discovery that added texture and representation to the film. Today, the transgender community is split between loving and hating the film.
This is largely due to the fact that Angela is one of the most iconic slasher characters of the 1980s that is LGBTQIA+ but is represented as a threat. It equated transgender identities with murderous behavior, which has historically plagued queer communities as a whole. Film scholars have discussed that it is not the character that is problematic but the circumstances that surround her. It was the pressure of her parents to become her deceased sister and the torment of her peers that turned her into a killer, not her gender identity. While Sleepaway Camp is a highly divisive film, it is one of the best LGBTQIA+ horror films that stands as a relic for the issues of the 1980s and LGBTQIA+ identities.
Velvet Buzzsaw (Netflix)
Dan Gilroy’s satirical horror film Velvet Buzzsaw (2019) stars Jake Gyllenhaal in his first LGBTQIA+ role since Brokeback Mountain (2005). The film follows Morf Vandewalt (Gyllenhaal) as he navigates the art gallery circuit when various paintings begin to mysteriously kill the people closest to him one by one. This film in particular is not outwardly centered on LGBTQIA+ experiences but Morf does have a plot line that complicates his character. As the film progresses, he is a homosexual man who is trying to assert a perceived heterosexual identity by dating exclusively women. It is an honest look at the experiences of closeted men with a horrifying backdrop.
A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night (Amazon Prime)
Directed by Ana Lily Amirpour, the 2014 horror film A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night is known as the first Iranian vampire Western. Set in the Iranian town named Bad City, The Girl (Sheila Vand) lurks throughout the town and protects women against the abuse of men. She is a vampiric protector of women but she is not the LGBTQIA+ icon that is featured in this film. The minor character, Rockabilly, is a gender-bending individual who watches Bad City from a distance. Rockabilly represents being gay in Iran, which is not accepted in Iranian culture.
A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night is a feminist horror story with the addition of social commentary on the complexities of being gay and living in Iran. It is a subtle hint that an American audience may not understand without a second or third watch but it is there regardless.
In the horror genre, LGBTQIA+ films can range from absolutely problematic to celebratory. Whichever side they fall on, these films stand as relics of the social, political, and cultural times they were produced under and deserve attention for their ability to expose issues. Whether they are historical horror dramas or a classic slasher, these LGBTQIA+ horror movies are some of the best available for streaming during this year’s Pride Month.
