LGBT-friendly watches to stream on Netflix

After a raucous Pride weekend, CONSTANTINOS PSILLIDES on shows that get into the spirit of it

Join me in diving into a world full of colour, love, a ton of Lady Gaga songs and MP Andreas Themistokleous’ personal hell! LGBT-friendly series and movies on Netflix! As this is Pride weekend and parliament just passed a law banning conversion therapies, a look at shows that are – let’s face it – fabulous!

Pray Away

With all the buzz around it these days, ever wondered exactly how conversion therapy affects LGBT people? Want to know what happens to a religious person when told repeatedly that their actions are “a wound on Jesus’ body”? Pray Away has you, unfortunately, covered. Thought-provoking and psyche-maiming, Pray Away takes you for a behind-the-scenes look at the controversial practice of ‘curing’ LGBT people, delving into the profound impact this has on their lives. Through their personal testimonies, the documentary exposes the emotional and psychological toll inflicted upon individuals who underwent these programmes. Be warned: this is not an easy watch.

Joe Bell

Mark Wahlberg isn’t who first comes to mind when one thinks of LGBT-friendly movies. It would be like hiring Michael Bay to direct a rom-com that doesn’t grotesquely objectify women and has zero explosions.

Defeating expectations, Wahlberg delivers a powerful performance as Joe Bell, a working-class mill worker whose son Jadin kills himself after he was mercilessly bullied for being gay. Joe decides to raise awareness on the issue by taking a cross-country walk to speak to schools about tackling the bullying of LGBT youth. The movie might feel contrived at points but still packs a punch, graphically showing the torment Jadin went through and how Joe failed to be there for him when he was alive. Almost unbelievably, based on a true story!

Call Me By Your Name

Before taking on the role of Paul Atreides and riding sandworms in Dune, Timothée Chalamet starred in this multi-award winner, a coming-of-age film about a young boy’s awakened sexuality. Elio follows his parents to their summer home for yet another lazy summer holiday but has his world turned upside down when they are joined by a 24-year-old student of his father. The two quickly discover they have feelings for each other, and young Elio is forced to deal with emotions he didn’t know he had.

In the book the movie is based on, the protagonist’s age is 17, which is OK for Italy (where the book takes place) but lower than the US age of consent. Thus the film drew sharp criticism, not only from conservative groups but also from LGBT organisations and celebrities, that accused the film of “glorifying predatory behaviour”. It is still a very heartfelt film, gentle at times and masterfully acted by Chalamet.

Sense8

Sense8 depicts the tale of eight people from different parts of the world who discover they can connect telepathically, exchange information and experiences, and even take over each other’s bodies. As the ‘cluster’, as this groups is called, strives to comprehend what is happening to them, they discover that they are being pursued by a mysterious international organisation whose sole objective is to hunt down and eliminate people who are born into these clusters.

The Wachowski sisters, who also created the Matrix series, wrote and directed Sense8. Given that it was made at a time when they were both transitioning to women, this was a very intimate project for them. The series addresses a host of LGBT topics, including disguising your sexuality for fear of retaliation at work, finding love, being accepted by family, and loving oneself for who you are.

Grace and Frankie

The longest-running original Netflix series, Grace and Frankie is an absolute delight and a funny way to spend your evening!

For seven seasons, we learn the story of Grace and Frankie, two women who are happily married to a pair of wealthy divorce lawyers. Or so they thought, as they find out that their husbands are not only partners at work but also partners in life. The two elderly gay men, who have been dating for over 20 years, decide to get married and are thus forced to divorce their wives. As the two women must now start their lives over, hilarity erupts as they discover in each other an “emotional support witch.”

The show is one of the very few that focuses on the lives and problems of elderly members of the LGBT community. These two are gay, fabulous and want you to get the hell off their lawn.