Queer Historical Drama

The Boys in the Band

(1970)

Set in 1968 New York, one year before the Stonewall Riots.

"The Boys in the Band" is an American drama, directed by William Friedkin, with screenplay by Mart Crowley based on his Off-Broadway play of the same name. It is one of the first major American motion pictures to feature gay characters and is often cited as a milestone in the history of Queer Cinema,

Running Time: 118 minutes (1 hour, 58 minutes)

Before Stonewall

(2004) 

"Before Stonewall" is a documentary about the evolution of gay culture in the U.S. from the early 1920s to the Stonewall Riot of 1969.

Embellished with archival footage and photography from five decades, the film most prominently features the gay underground of the '20s and '30s, the rise of gay service in the military and workforce during WWII, the persecution of gays as "subversives" and "sexual perverts" in the state department by Senator McCarthy, the growth of the first grassroots political organizations for gay men and lesbians in the '50s, and of course, the civil rights movement.

Commentary is provided by the gay men and lesbians who came of age in the years leading up to Stonewall.

Running Time: 87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)

Stonewall - Where Pride Began

(2016)

Kicked out by his parents, a gay teenager (Jeremy Irvine) leaves small-town Indiana for New York’s Greenwich Village, where growing discrimination against the LGBT community leads to the riots at the Stonewall Inn beginning on June 28th, 1969.

Starring: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Ron Perlman, Caleb Landry Jones, and Jeremy Irvine

Director: Rolan Emmerich

Running Time: 129 minutes (2 hours, 9 minutes)

After Stonewall

(2005)

The companion film to "Before Stonewall", "After Stonewall", is narrated by Melissa Etheridge.  It explores gay history in the U.S. from the 1970s through the 1990s..

The film covers the highs and lows of the last 30 years of the 20th century. On the side of highs, it explores the declassification of homosexuality as a disease; the growth of gay presses and writers; gay victories in political office (notably Harvey Milk and Elaine Noble); and the formation of a national gay lobbying presence in the Human Rights Fund.

On the side of lows, it covers the antigay hysteria evoked by Anita Bryant; the rise of AIDS, the instransigence of the US federal government; and the growth of the Christian Coalition.

Starring:Anita Bryant, Melissa Etheridge,Barney Frank, Jewelle Gomez, Harry Hay

Directors: John Scagliotti

Running Time: 87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)