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BFI Flare LGBTQIA+
Here are the pioneers, the iconoclasts, the brave - from landmark LGBTQIA+ portraits to the next generation of queer classics from the BFI Flare festival.
This collection offers a chance to look back, to revisit and discover - not just the icons of queer cinema but the lesser-known treasures.

The HandmaidenThe Handmaiden
Period drama2016146 minsDirector: Park Chan-wook
Park Chan-wook (Oldboy, Stoker) channels Sarah Waters’ novel Fingersmith, to create a sumptuous twisty psychological thriller full of erotic intrigue.

Girls Girls GirlsGirls Girls Girls
Romance2021101 minsDirector: Alli Haapasalo
Three young Finnish women explore love and sex in this spirited coming-of-age drama, which won the World Cinema Dramatic Audience Award at Sundance 2022.

RafikiRafiki
Drama201883 minsDirector: Wanuri Kahiu
Romantic sparks fly between the daughters of two opposing politicians in Wanuri Kahiu’s neon-bright story of forbidden love in Kenya.

The Ground Beneath My FeetThe Ground Beneath My Feet
Drama2019108 minsDirector: Marie Kreutzer
Ghosts from the past threaten to engulf Lola’s tightly controlled present in this taut Austrian thriller from the director of Corsage.

JustineJustine
Drama202182 minsDirector: Jamie Patterson
A young woman struggles with her demons, in this arresting sophomore feature from Tucked (Flare 2019) director Jamie Patterson.

Beach RatsBeach Rats
Drama201798 minsDirector: Eliza Hittman
Gripping account of repressed sexual desire in a hyper-masculine environment, with British newcomer Harris Dickinson as a virulently macho Brooklyn teen.

Blue JeanBlue Jean
Drama202297 minsDirector: Georgia Oakley
A closeted PE teacher reckons with her identity during Thatcherite Britain in Georgia Oakley’s delicate yet gripping BAFTA-nominated debut.

DiamantinoDiamantino
Comedy201897 minsDirector: Gabriel Abrantes and Daniel Schmidt
Diamantino, Portugal’s (the world’s!) top football player, becomes embroiled in a genetic experiment and a conspiracy to leave the EU, in this joyful, postmodern political fantasy.

Vita & VirginiaVita & Virginia
Romance2018110 minsDirector: Chanya Button
Gemma Arterton and Elizabeth Debicki relive a literary love affair, fiery and forbidden, with a remarkable legacy.

ConsequencesConsequences
Drama201895 minsDirector: Darko Štante
A teenage tearaway is forced to face up to his actions and confront his burgeoning sexuality, in this provocative Slovenian coming-of-age tale.
Stud LifeStud Life
Drama201287 minsDirector: Campbell X
Campbell X's debut feature is a sexy, young and cool gay romance taking a unique look at a slice of British urban life.

In from the SideIn from the Side
Drama2021135 minsDirector: Matt Carter
The lives of a London gay rugby team, both on and off the pitch, are explored in this assured feature which reveals the many different games that people play.

The Man with the AnswersThe Man with the Answers
Romance202181 minsDirector: Stelios Kammitsis
Picturesque drama about the familial ties that bind us, the boys that catch our eye, and the twists and turns that lead us home.

Stranger by the LakeStranger by the Lake
Drama2013100 minsDirector: Alain Guiraudie
A young man witnesses a violent crime at a gay cruising ground and becomes obsessed with the killer in Alain Guiraudie’s acclaimed mystery-thriller.

QuerelleQuerelle
Drama1982109 minsDirector: Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Jeanne Moreau plays a jaded brothel madam caught up in the violent sexual awakening of Brad Davis' naïve young sailor in Fassbinder's fever dream of subversive eroticism.

The New GirlfriendThe New Girlfriend
Melodrama2014108 minsDirector: François Ozon
Ruth Rendell provides the source novel for this delicious tale of deception and identity, from the master of mischievous melodrama, François Ozon.

I Am SamuelI Am Samuel
Documentary202068 minsDirector: Pete Murimi
Kenyan couple Samuel and Alex remain committed to each other despite the danger and hardship facing them in Peter Murimi’s moving documentary portrait.

Girls LostGirls Lost
Fantasy2015106 minsDirector: Alexandra-Therese Keining
Teenage friends get the chance to be boys for a while in this supernatural, gender fluid fantasy from the director of Kiss Me.

Luminous ProcuressLuminous Procuress
Fantasy197174 minsDirector: Steven Arnold
Steven Arnold's psychedelic odyssey is a hedonistic celebration of gender-fluidity and pan-sexuality in late 60s San Francisco.

FirebirdFirebird
Drama2021107 minsDirector: Peeter Rebane
At the height of the Cold War, a love triangle between a junior officer, his best friend and a handsome fighter pilot enters dangerous territory.

Through a Boy's EyesThrough a Boy's Eyes
Anthology201877 minsDirector: Damiá Serra Cauchetiez, Venci Kostov and 3 more
In this selection of award-winning short films, witness the struggles and celebrations seen through the eyes of boys not only becoming men, but becoming attracted to them..

VivaViva
Sex comedy2008116 minsDirector: Anna Biller
Anna Biller's outrageous sexploitation satire follows bored housewife Barbi as she searches for adventure in predatory 1970s Los Angeles.

Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis BaconLove Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon
Biopic199887 minsDirector: John Maybury
Derek Jacobi and Daniel Craig star as artist Francis Bacon and his muse George Dyer in John Maybury’s darkly exquisite biopic.

Young Soul RebelsYoung Soul Rebels
Drama1991105 minsDirector: Isaac Julien
The Queen's Silver Jubilee beats to the sounds of Funkadelic, Sylvester and the O'Jays in Isaac Julien’s feature debut.

Tom of FinlandTom of Finland
Biopic2017116 minsDirector: Dome Karukoski
The story of a gay icon is brought to life in Dome Karukoski’s handsome biopic of Touko Laaksonen, the artist whose homoerotic drawings gave visual expression to a growing gay culture.

The Bitter Tears of Petra von KantThe Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant
Drama1972124 minsDirector: Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Fassbinder's visual and verbal extravaganza about a successful but lonely fashion designer who falls in love with a beautiful younger woman.

Pink NarcissusPink Narcissus
Fantasy197165 minsDirector: James Bidgood
With its highly charged hallucinogenic quality, its atmosphere of lush decadence, and its explicit erotic power, Pink Narcissus is a landmark of gay cinema.

Interior. Leather Bar.Interior. Leather Bar.
201360 minsDirector: James Franco and Travis Mathews
James Franco and Travis Mathews recreate explicit footage cut, rumoured to be lost, from one of the most notorious gay features ever made.

WeekendWeekend
Drama201197 minsDirector: Andrew Haigh
Andrew Haigh's internationally acclaimed tale of a brief encounter between two gay men.

Théo and HugoThéo and Hugo
Romance201697 minsDirector: Olivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau
A brief encounter at a naked sex club in Paris seems to be going well for Theo and Hugo, but a sudden realisation changes everything.

The UntamedThe Untamed
Horror201698 minsDirector: Amat Escalante
Amat Escalante follows Heli with a boundary-pushing, mind-blowing mix of sex, sci-fi and social drama.

ChemsexChemsex
Documentary201580 minsDirector: William Fairman and Max Gogarty
A hard-hitting and often graphic documentary about the 'chemsex' sub-scene in London’s gay community.

XXYXXY
Drama200791 minsDirector: Lucía Puenzo
A sensitive exploration of the sexual awakening and confusion of one intersex teenager.

RosebudRosebud
Drama199114 minsDirector: Cheryl Farthing
A lesbian couple arouse the interest of their new neighbour in this erotic tale of voyeurism, power dressing and fantasy.

Madonna and ChildMadonna and Child
Drama198028 minsDirector: Terence Davies
Autobiography as art: the centrepiece of Terence Davies' devastating Liverpool-set Trilogy focuses on his fictional alter-ego in middle age.

ChildrenChildren
Drama197646 minsDirector: Terence Davies
The first part of Terence Davies' formidable Trilogy explores the effects of violence on a Liverpool schoolboy, told in a series of flashbacks.

Death and TransfigurationDeath and Transfiguration
Drama198326 minsDirector: Terence Davies
The Terence Davies Trilogy reaches its astonishing climax as tortured Liverpool clerk Robert Tucker prepares to meet his maker.

CaravaggioCaravaggio
Biopic198693 minsDirector: Derek Jarman
Derek Jarman’s unique biopic of the 17th century Italian artist Michelangelo da Caravaggio is a powerful meditation on sexuality, criminality and art.

What Can I Do with a Male Nude?What Can I Do with a Male Nude?
Comedy198524 minsDirector: Ron Peck
Ron Peck tests the thin line between pornography and art with his amusing rumination on the difficulties of showing the naked male form.

The Duke of BurgundyThe Duke of Burgundy
Drama2015104 minsDirector: Peter Strickland
Peter Strickland’s visually and aurally intoxicating tale of sadomasochistic power-play is a daringly erotic sensory feast.

Eisenstein in GuanajuatoEisenstein in Guanajuato
Biopic2015106 minsDirector: Peter Greenaway
One of Britain’s most inventive filmmakers, Peter Greenaway, tackles the story of arguably the most influential filmmaker in cinema history, Sergei Eisenstein.

NighthawksNighthawks
Drama1978113 minsDirector: Ron Peck
A schoolteacher juggles everyday life with nights spent cruising for Mr Right in this fascinating landmark in British gay cinema

Nighthawks 2: Strip Jack NakedNighthawks 2: Strip Jack Naked
Documentary199191 minsDirector: Ron Peck
Ron Peck’s experimental follow up to the groundbreaking Nighthawks is both a making-of documentary and a deeply personal film memoir.

You and the NightYou and the Night
Drama201389 minsDirector: Yann Gonzalez
Eric Cantona and Beatrice Dalle star in an outrageous erotic fever dream about a couple who invite four diverse guests to their midnight orgy.

RelaxRelax
Drama199122 minsDirector: Christopher Newby
A gay man awaits the results of an HIV test, drifting into moments of fantasy as he copes with his fears and memories.

Love and Death on Long IslandLove and Death on Long Island
Comedy199889 minsDirector: Richard Kwietniowski
John Hurt stars in Richard Kwietniowski’s comedy of fame and obsession about an older man (Hurt) who becomes infatuated with a young Hollywood actor (Jason Priestley), and proceeds to track him down.

A Moment in the ReedsA Moment in the Reeds
Romance2017107 minsDirector: Mikko Makela
The world’s troubles recede, at least for a moment, in this intimate drama about an affair between a Finnish man and a Syrian immigrant.

End of the CenturyEnd of the Century
Romance201984 minsDirector: Lucio Castro
A chance encounter reconnects two men in this heart-breaking lament on love, lust and missed opportunities.

Colors of TobiColors of Tobi
Documentary202182 minsDirector: Alexa Bakony
A mesmerising portrait of a family grappling with teenage gender dysphoria, this uplifting documentary exudes the defiant message that love is all you need.

More BFI Flare films in our Rentals collection.