Queer Qlassics

When sparks begin to fly between two unco neighbors, Corky and Violet, it isn’t long before everything in their once separate lives fuses together and is consumed by the flames. This sapphic, neo-noir drama is a perfect melody of hopeless romance, suspense and violence.

Initially misunderstood and largely dismissed by critics, this satirical rom-com about a high school cheerleader sent to conversion therapy, has stretched beyond its cult classic status over the past 20 years to become part of the canon in New Queer Cinema.

Protested and boycotted on initial release, Paul Verhoeven’s sleaze noir reinvigorated the erotic thriller on a global scale. And what then seemed a case of hero cops versus bisexual stereotypes has now done a 180-degree shift for the “Be Gay Do Crimes” era — presided over by the iconic Sharon Stone in a starmaking performance.

Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, this sensual meditation from Apichatpong Weerasethakul is a bifurcate narrative of the tangled relationship between two men — the former tale a sweet idyllic swoon into earthy romance, the latter a harrowing jungle pursuit where bodies are as mutable as desire itself.