The Celluloid Closet
Jan 30, 1996 | IMDB 7.2
102 min Watch NowDocumentary, History
What "That's Entertainment" did for movie musicals, "The Celluloid Closet" does for Hollywood homosexuality, as this exuberant, eye-opening movie serves up a dazzling hundred-year history of the role of gay men and lesbians have had on the silver screen. Lily Tomlin narrates as Oscar-winning moviemaker Rob Epstein ("The Times of Harvey Milk" and "Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt") and Jeffrey Friedman assemble fabulous footage from 120 films showing the changing face of cinema sexuality, from cruel stereotypes to covert love to the activist triumphs of the 1990s. Tom Hanks, Susan Sarandon, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Curtis, Harvey Fierstein and Gore Vidal are just a few of the many actors, writers and commentators who provide funny and insightful anecdotes.
MOVIE COMMENTS
SIMILAR MOVIES
The Legend in Me
Finding Forrester
Primary
The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat
Latter Day Jew
Mank
Gie
Trajados
Disclosure
The Brothers Warner
The Irishman: In Conversation
An Open Secret
No Goodbyes
Belmondo, le magnifique
Ecosexual
Matt Shepard Is a Friend of Mine
Welcome to Chechnya
Be Water
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story
Andrés Caicedo: A Few Good Friends
SIMILAR MOVIES
The Legend in Me
IMDB 0 | Oct , 2024
Living in the shadow of Canadian sports legend Lionel Conacher (1900–1954), whose legacy spans five sports, is a daunting challenge for any relative. For great-grandchild Lionel IV, better known as Chas, that challenge extends beyond athletics into the realm of self-discovery. As a non-binary individual navigating identity in the 21st century, Chas explores both the weight of their family’s star-athlete lineage and the evolving landscape of queer identity in a documentary that bridges nostalgia with forward-looking reflection.Finding Forrester
IMDB 7.1 | Dec , 2000
Gus Van Sant tells the story of a young African American man named Jamal who confronts his talents while living on the streets of the Bronx. He accidentally runs into an old writer named Forrester who discovers his passion for writing. With help from his new mentor Jamal receives a scholarship to a private school.Primary
IMDB 6.4 | Nov , 1960
Primary is a documentary film about the primary elections between John F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey in 1960. Primary is the first documentary to use light equipment in order to follow their subjects in a more intimate filmmaking style. This unconventional way of filming created a new look for documentary films where the camera’s lens was right in the middle of what ever drama was occurring. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with The Film Foundation in 1998.The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat
IMDB 7.1 | Jun , 1896
A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.Latter Day Jew
IMDB 1 | Jul , 2019
Latter Day Jew follows H. Alan Scott, a gay former Mormon/converted Jew/cancer survivor/writer-comedian, as he finds his spiritual path and prepares for his Bar Mitzvah at age 34.Mank
IMDB 6.7 | Nov , 2020
1930s Hollywood is reevaluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane.Gie
IMDB 6 | Jul , 2005
Indonesian activist Soe Hok Gie experiences a political awakening during the tumultuous regimes of Soeharto and Soekarno.Trajados
IMDB 0 | Dec , 2025
A documentary that explores how queer fashion, often born on the streets and in underground niches, has become a viral phenomenon on social media, shaping the aesthetics of global pop culture. Through the interaction between LGBTQIA+ influencers, content creators, and digital platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, trends that were once marginalized now occupy the center of the fashion industry. The film investigates how this evolution impacts not only the visibility of the queer community but also the consumption and creation of contemporary fashionDisclosure
IMDB 7.9 | Jun , 2020
An investigation of how Hollywood's fabled stories have deeply influenced how Americans feel about transgender people, and how transgender people have been taught to feel about themselves.The Brothers Warner
IMDB 6.6 | Oct , 2008
An intimate portrait and saga of four film pioneers--Harry, Albert, Sam and Jack who rose from immigrant poverty through personal tragedies persevering to create a major studio with a social conscience.The Irishman: In Conversation
IMDB 7.5 | Nov , 2019
Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Al Pacino in conversation about The Irishman.An Open Secret
IMDB 6.9 | Nov , 2014
An investigation into accusations of teenagers being sexually abused within the film industry.No Goodbyes
IMDB 1 | Jun , 2021
Love in a concentration camp. A young Jewish gay man, Otto, is protected by a "kapo" (a fellow prisoner) and an SS guard who unexpectedly ends up saving his life.Belmondo, le magnifique
IMDB 7.7 | Sep , 2017
With more than 70 films and 160 million cumulative tickets in France, Jean-Paul Belmondo is one of the essential stars of French cinema.Ecosexual
IMDB 6.5 | Oct , 2015
Ecosexual is a poetic monologue set in the Portuguese Mediterranean coast in Algarve about loving and making love with nature. It presents the male body as erotic object and as thinking, feeling subject. Through the senses of taste, touch, smell and sight, the protagonist loses himself in a communion with the natural world.Matt Shepard Is a Friend of Mine
IMDB 7.3 | Oct , 2014
An intimate portrait of Matthew Shepard, the gay young man murdered in one of the most notorious hate crimes in U.S. history. Framed through a personal lens, it's the story of loss, love, and courage in the face of unspeakable tragedy.Welcome to Chechnya
IMDB 6.9 | Jan , 2020
This searing investigative work shadows a group of activists risking unimaginable peril to confront the ongoing anti-LGBTQ program raging in the repressive and closed Russian republic. Unfettered access and a remarkable approach to protecting anonymity exposes this under-reported atrocity–and an extraordinary group of people confronting evil.Be Water
IMDB 6.8 | Jan , 2020
In 1971, after being rejected by Hollywood, Bruce Lee returned to his parents’ homeland of Hong Kong to complete four iconic films. Charting his struggles between two worlds, this portrait explores questions of identity and representation through the use of rare archival footage, interviews with loved ones and Bruce’s own writings.Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story
IMDB 6.9 | May , 1993
This film is a glimpse into the life, love and the unconquerable spirit of the legendary Bruce Lee. From a childhood of rigorous martial arts training, Lee realizes his dream of opening his own kung-fu school in America. Before long, he is discovered by a Hollywood producer and begins a meteoric rise to fame and an all too short reign as one the most charismatic action heroes in cinema history.Andrés Caicedo: A Few Good Friends
IMDB 7 | Jan , 1986
Using the unfinished film, ANGELITA Y MIGUEL ÁNGEL, by Andrés Caicedo and Carlos Mayolo, as a structuring device, friends of prolific film critic and writer Andrés Caicedo, an unforgettable figure of the group of Cali in the 1970s who left an incredible amount of texts, reflect upon his life, his work, and his suicide at the age of 25, testify to his influence in the cultural life of Colombia, and remember his strong and touching personality.