Representation matters. Here are some of the most interesting Asian LGBTQ+ films you should watch, or add to your watch list.
Capturing themes such as gay marriage, sexual orientation and gender identity, juxtaposed against societal restraints, these LGBTQ+ movies have become a powerful medium to spread awareness and depict the struggles of the community to a larger audience. Each Asian nation’s own stance on community also plays an active role in making these movies more nuanced.
Asian LGBTQ+ films that you must add to your watch list
Happy Together (1997)
Wong Kar Wai’s Happy Together was ahead of its time and a massive success. One of the best Asian LGBTQ+ cinematic gems, the story revolves around the journey of protagonists Lai Yiu-Fai (Tony Chiu Wai-Leung) and Ho Po-Wing (the late Leslie Cheung).
As the two men find themselves drifting away from each other and their relationship turning toxic, they embark on a holiday from Hong Kong to Argentina. The gay couple goes on a road trip via Buenos Aires to reach the Iguazu Falls becomes a way to mend their failing relationship.
However, things take a drastic turn and Lai starts to work at a tango bar to make money for his return trip to home. One day when Ho shows up beaten and bruised, Lai takes him in but realises that the intimacy they once had is missing. The two men’s lives become increasingly different as they go separate ways. The film also stars Chan Cheng and Gregory Dayton in prominent roles.
This Wong Kar Wai film was nominated for the Palme d’Or and earned him the Best Director Award at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival.
Happy Together is now streaming on MUBI. The film is rated 7.7 on IMDb, 84% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 1 hour and 36 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 8/10.
Suk Suk (2019)
Eschewing the usual recipe of queer films that show young people, Suk Suk, also known as Twilight’s Kiss, depicts the life and journey of two closeted gay men in Hong Kong, who are in their twilight years.
Pak (Tai-Bo) is a 70-year-old married man with a grown son and daughter. He drives a cab around the city, which gives him an opportunity to visit male pickup spots. On the other hand, Hoi (Ben Yuen) is a 65-year-old single father who lives with his son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter. Hoi is attached to a ‘gay and gray’ club but conceals it from his family.
The two meet in a chance encounter and soon develop a close bond. The story then depicts how they deal with societal restraints and the difficulties they face. One of the most heart-wrenching Asian LGBTQ+ movies, it is helmed by Ray Yeung and is inspired by the non-fiction book Oral History of Older Gay Men in Hong Kong (2014). The film also features Patra Au, Lo Chun Yip, Kong To and Yiu-Sing Lam.
In 2020, Suk Suk won the Best Narrative Feature at the Florence Queer Festival and was nominated for the Grand Prix at Brussels International Film Festival.
Suk Suk is streaming on Apple TV. The film is rated 7/1 on IMDb, with a runtime of 1 hour and 32 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 8.5/10.
Your Name Engraved Herein (2020)
By Kuang- Hui Liu, this is a stunning masterpiece made in Taiwan. Released shortly after the country legalised same-sex marriage, Your Name Engraved Herein became one of the highest-grossing and critically acclaimed films in the country.
The movie is set in the 1980s when Taiwan had just gotten rid of martial law. Two students, Wang Bo Te (Tseng Ching-Hua), aka Birdy, and Chang Jia Han (Edward Chen), aka A-Han, meet through their school band and fall in love. The two boys have to fight society’s scorn against homosexuals and family pressure to make their relationship work. They go through rough patches and Birdy gets close to a girl. However, he soon realises where his true affections lie.
A great example of Asian cinema and a fitting tribute to the LGBTQ+ community, the movie also stars Fabio Grangeon, Barry Qu and Lance Chiu. The movie bagged five Golden Horse Award nominations, of which it won two — best cinematography and best original film song. The other nominations were for best supporting actor, best new performer and best original film score.
Your Name Engraved Herein is available to stream on Netflix. The film is rated 7.3/10 on IMDb, and 90% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 1 hour and 58 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 9/10.
Super Deluxe (2019)
One of the most critically acclaimed films in India, Super Deluxe is a Tamil gem that traces four parallel stories. It depicts the perils of four people, each of whom is fighting their own battles.
The plot revolves around a transgender woman, Shilpa (Vijay Sethupati) who returns to her family after almost seven years and wishes to meet her son Raasu Kutti (Ashwanth Ashokkumar). Shilpa is treated harshly by her former wife and is severely beaten by a cold, heartless cop. She is further pained by the way society belittles her every day.
Directed by celebrated filmmaker Thiagarajan Kumararaja, Super Deluxe showcases masterful storytelling and an immensely talented cast. Vijay Sethupathi was named the best supporting actor and won the Silver Lotus Award at the National Film Awards in 2020. The other parallel plots are equally intriguing and have Samantha Akkineni, Ramya Krishnan and Mysskin essaying prominent roles.
Super Deluxe is rated 8.2/10 on IMDb, and 83% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 2 hours and 56 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 7.5/10.
Dear Ex (2018)
After Song Chengxi (Joseph Huang)’s father dies, the young teenager finds out a horrifying truth. He is caught in a feud involving his mother and his deceased father’s insurance benefactor, as well as his gay lover Jay (Roy Chiu). Jay is a free-spirited soul and is posed against Song’s mother who is determined to get the money for her son’s education.
The drama-comedy film ensures a whirlwind of emotions as the characters try to traverse their way through grief, motherhood, life-altering revelations and much more.
In 2019, Taiwan became the first and only country to legalise same-sex marriage in Asia. Following which, several other Asian nations became more inclusive and took steps to give equal rights to same-sex couples. One of the best Asian LGBTQ+ movies, Dear Ex mirrors the Taiwanese society and its attitude toward gay men.
In 2018, the film won three Golden Horse Awards. It also stars Spark Chen, Li Yin Yang and Fang Wan.
Dear Ex is available to stream on Netflix. The film is rated 7.3/10 on IMDb, and 90% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 8/10.
Lan Yu (2001)
Covering various themes of commitment issues, attachment, love, Lan Yu depicts issues between a young gay student and a middle-aged businessman.
In this Chinese title, director Stanley Kwan shows Lan Yu (Ye Liu) struggling to earn money to fund his studies. At such a juncture, he meets Chen Handong (Jun Hu) at a gay pool hall and is taken by his charms. They begin to meet more often and Lan soon gets deeply attached to this man. However, Chen refuses to make any commitments and tells him that he is there for all things casual. Later, Lan is left broken when he sees Chen with another boy. What happens next makes this romantic drama an interesting watch.
Made without the permission of the Chinese government, Lan Yu was screened at the Cannes Film Festival under the Un Certain Regard category. The movie also stars He Du, Shuang Li, Minfen Zhao and Fang Lu.
Lan Yu is rated 7.1/10 on IMDb, and 3.6/5 on Letterboxd, with a runtime of 1 hour and 26 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 7.5/10.
The Handmaiden (2016)
Set in 1930s’ Korea, during the Japanese occupation of Korea, a young girl named Sook-Hee (Kim Tae-ri) is hired as a handmaiden to a wealthy Japanese heiress named Lady Hideko (Kim Min-hee). But there’s more than what meets the eyes.
The plot revolves around Sook-Hee being puppeteered by a con man posing as Count Fujiwara (Ha Jung-woo). He intends to seduce the lady to defraud her. However, a deep relationship begins to grow between Lady Hideko and her handmaiden.
The thriller, directed by Park Chan-wook, is based on a 2002 novel titled Fingersmith. It adeptly portrays the turbulent relationship, betrayal, and mystery, and stars Cho Jin-woong, Moon So-ri and Yong-nyeo Lee.
The Handmaiden is available to stream on Prime Video. The film is rated 8.1/10 on IMDb, and 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 2 hours and 25 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 9/10.
Fathers (2016)
Helmed by Palatpol Mingpornpichit, this film explores the situation of same-sex marriage in Thailand and what it takes to be two fathers to an adopted child.
The story follows the life of Phoon (Asda Panichkul) and Yuke (Nat Sakdatorn) who have been a couple for over 13 years. They adopt an infant boy named Butr (Aritach Pipattangkul), who was abandoned by his biological parents at birth.
When Butr grows up and joins elementary school, he is mocked by other kids for his parents’ relationship. Later, school authorities, too, get involved as they don’t want a child whose parents are gay. The lack of laws regarding same-sex marriage, society’s reactions, and what the two men do to give their son the happiness he deserves take centre stage in this movie. The film also stars Sinjai Plengpanich.
Fathers is available to stream on Netflix. The film is rated 6.7/10 on IMDb, and 7.8/10 on MyDramaList, with a runtime of 1 hour and 36 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 7.5/10.
The Wedding Banquet (1993)
Starring Taiwanese actor Winston Chao as Wai-Tung Gao, Mey-Chin as Wei Wei and Mitchell Lichtenstein as Simon, this Ang Lee movie is a romantic comedy that is sure to set a laughter riot.
The film charts the life of Wai-Tung who is a Taiwanese immigrant in Manhattan, US, and his gay partner Simon. However, the former’s conservative family insists on him getting married. Thus, the two join their Chinese female friend Wei Wei, who is in dire need of a green card and hatch a plan.
But the plan fails when Wai-Tung’s parents pay him a surprise visit to America and want an elaborate wedding banquet. The film also features Ah-Lei Gua, Sihung Lung and Dio Birney.
Although the Oscar-nominated movie did not win at the Academy Awards, Lee bagged the Golden Berlin Bear at the 1993 Berlin International Film Festival, which was tied with Woman Sesame Oil Maker. In 2005, Lee went on to make another LGBTQ+ film, Brokeback Mountain, which won him the Academy Award for best director.
The Wedding Banquet is available to stream on Prime Video. The film is rated 7.6/10 on IMDb, and 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 1 hour and 46 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 8.5/10.
Saving Face (2004)
This Alice Wu romantic comedy revolves around Wilhelmina Pang or Wil (Michelle Krusiec), who is a successful young doctor in New York, US. Wil is a closeted lesbian before her mother, Hwei-Lan (Joan Chen), who eagerly wanted her daughter to get married. To find her eligible Chinese bachelors, Hwei-Lan takes her to social gatherings.
At one such congregation, Wil comes across the beautiful Vivian Shing (Lynn Chen). Vivian is a dancer who wants to pursue a modern form of art, much against her father’s desire for her to join the New York City Ballet. Interestingly, Mr Shing also happens to be Wil’s boss.
The two women get close but Wil is afraid of expressing her feelings for Vivian in public. A sequence of dramatic events ensues, and they drift apart.
The Asian LGBTQ+ movie bagged the viewer’s choice award at the 2005 Golden Horse Film Festival.
Saving Face is available to stream on Prime Video. The film is rated 7.4/10 on IMDb, and 88% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 1 hour and 31 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 8/10.
Love of Siam (2007)
A large part of Thai cinema portrays queerness as stereotypical, feminine, and hypersexualised, so when it comes to better LGBTQ+ representation in Asian and Thai films, Love of Siam is arguably one of the pioneers. The film tells the story of two childhood friends who meet again by chance, then feelings develop.
The film delves into family relations, bigotry, and many more hard-hitting topics. If you identify within the community, the topic of coming out also plays a large part, which unfortunately, hits home quite hard.
Love of Siam is available to stream on Netflix. The film is rated 7.7/10 on IMDb, and 87% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a runtime of 2 hours and 58 minutes. Lifestyle Asia rates this movie 8.5/10.
The Paradise of Thorns (2024)
The Paradise of Thorns is a Thai movie with a message that maybe Thailand isn’t the LGBTQ+ heaven it’s usually perceived to be, starring Jeff Satur as Thongkam and Pongsakorn ‘Toey’ Mettarikanon as Sek. The film tells the story of a gay couple that owns a durian farm together. After Sek’s death, Thongkam has to fight his deceased lover’s family for the shared assets they painstakingly spent their lives building together, as they were not officially married.
The Paradise of Thorns contains messages of the hardships of the LGBTQ+ community especially in rural areas where education may not be as accessible and traditional values are still the norm.
The Paradise of Thorns is in theatres in Thailand now, and received its international premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on 6 September 2024. At the time of writing, the film is rated 7.9/10 on IMDb, and 8.6/10 on MyDramaList.
At the time of writing, The Paradise of Thorns showing in theatres nationwide.
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Trinetra is an ardent foodie and bibliophile who writes about films, travel, food and lifestyle. As a writer and literature student, slam poetry and storytelling are her go to jam. When not working, Trinetra is busy looking for her next place to visit or binge-watching Instagram videos for travel inspiration.
