Hop Into This Lesbian Time Machine: 13 Period Dramas You Need To Watch
Portrait Nation! Break out the wine and baguettes! Get your petticoats and dust off that old tin of magic mushrooms! Portrait of a Lady on Fire has finally reached its widest audience!
In case you’re not up on the news out of France’s Cannes Festival in 2019, Portrait of a Lady on Fire is a lesbian romance film that is absolutely sweeping the world—and its reputation is flawless. It’s directed by Céline Sciamma, or as she’s also known by me, one of the greatest directors on earth.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire first had a limited release in December of 2019 and then a second release on Valentine’s day, cementing it as Truly Queer because wow, that’s so dramatic. But if you live deep in the south of Texas like we do, it didn’t make its debut into theaters until earlier THIS weekend. So, what’s a girl to do with an eight week Portrait of a Lady on Fire drought? Watch an amazing array of lesbian period dramas, of course.
Lesbian period dramas are a genre on the rise. Whether or not you’ve seen Portrait of a Lady on Fire or are as desperately anticipatory as we are, I’ve compiled this list of television and film so you can step into a time machine of lesbian romance!
1. Gentleman Jack
Suranne Jones and Sophie Rundle in Gentleman Jack (BBC and HBO)
HBO’s Gentleman Jack is the story of Anne Lister, a prolific writer and landowner in the early 1800’s known for being “the first modern lesbian.” You know when your mom found your diary growing up and confronted you about all of your illicit lesbian secrets? Well, Gentleman Jack is essentially like that if your mom was the entire world and your gossip was so remarkably fascinating that the world continued talking about it for 188 years into the future.
Gentleman Jack is the jaunty tale of Anne’s dalliances with women across Halifax and the rest of Europe, but it’s ultimately about the heartwarming love story between Anne Lister and her heiress companion, Ann Walker. (You heard it right, my queers — the tale as old as time of dating a woman with your own name started here. Anne + Ann forever).
It’s an extremely bingeworthy and intimate biopic with stunning performances by Suranne Jones (Anne Lister) and Sophie Rundle (Ann Walker). Their chemistry is so beautifully intense, that Suranne Jones even adorably declared about Sophie after their chemistry read, “That’s my girl.”
The show’s second season is already underway, so catch up while you can!
2. Carol
Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett in Carol
Listen — I don’t know what it is about the world that makes Cate Blanchett our canonically lesbian queen, but whatever it is, it was the big queer energy behind the making of Carol. Without yet seeing Portrait of a Lady on Fire, it’s my favorite lesbian romance film, and yes, my wife and I ritually watch it on Christmas every year. I will personally never heal over the deep heartache that was the Carol Oscar’s snub of 2015. Don’t @ me. I’m grieving.
Based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel “The Price of Salt,” Carol tells the suspenseful story of two isolated women who are magnetized to one another despite society’s confines, a messy divorce, and the confusion of their family and friends. It’s a cerebral romance based on author Patricia Highsmith’s real life obsession with a woman named Kathleen Senn. Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett are at their best in Carol, with chemistry spiking so high off the charts that they’re still adorable opposite one another off-screen.
You’ll never look at a Santa hat the same way again.
3. Professor Marston and the Wonder Women
Rebecca Hall and Bella Heathcote in Professor Marston and the Wonder Women
Wonder Woman! Burlesque! Bondage! Women’s liberation in the 1940’s! What other reasons do you need to watch this film?
Professor Marston and the Wonder Woman is actually my favorite movie of all time. It masterfully tells the true origin story of Wonder Woman and details the extraordinary life of her creator, William Moulton Marston, and his two love interests, his wife Elizabeth Holloway and their girlfriend Olive Byrne. The three form an intense bond and embark on the journey of a polyamorous relationship of the ages.
Professor Marston and the Wonder Women
William Moulton Marston created Wonder Woman as a composite of both Elizabeth and Olive, and the film does an incredible job showing how these women influence the greatest female superhero of all time. From her lasso of truth to her bulletproof bracelets, her beauty to her strength to her charm, Wonder Woman was Marston’s love letter to Olive and Elizabeth—and the iconic feminist role model couldn’t have existed without them.
Although many speculate that the triad of William Moulton Marston, Olive Byrne, and Elizabeth Holloway was a relationship born out of exclusively Marston’s love for Olive, Olive and Elizabeth had a romantic relationship of their own. Not only did the two share an intimate relationship of living and raising children together, but Elizabeth named her daughter “Olive Ann” after Byrne and legally adopted Olive’s children with Marston. After Marston’s death, Olive and Elizabeth continued living together for the rest of their lives.
The film is playful and provocative, intimate and exploratory. The performances by gay actor Luke Evans (William Moulton Marston), Bella Heathcote (Olive) and Rebecca Hall (Elizabeth) are absolutely brilliant. But the real win is that the film is directed by Angela Robinson—yes, Angela Robinson! As in queer director/writer/producer of the L word Angela Robinson. All roads lead back to lesbians.
4. Colette
Keira Knightley and Denise Gough in Colette
Did you think I could mention “period piece” without Keira Knightley emerging into the conversation? Guess again, because the queen of the historical drama genre graced us all with a noteworthy queer performance. Colette, directed by gay filmmaker Wash Westmoreland, is the true story of bisexual French author/actress Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette at the end of the 19th century.
After moving to Paris, Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette agrees to ghostwrite a book to be published under her husband’s name. His name is Henry Gauthier-Villars, but he’s not nearly cool enough for a name of that stature, so he goes by Willy. Willy fancies himself a “literary entrepreneur,” which essentially means he’s a talentless hack that preys on other people’s artistic abilities so he can turn a profit and brand himself a genius. (Are we sure this happened in France, because he sure sounds American!) Later, when the book becomes a literary sensation and develops into the famous Claudine series, Colette struggles for creative ownership and seeks freedom from the societal constraints placed upon her for being a woman in the early 20th century.
Colette
Colette was a woman with a lust for life, and that lust included a string of passionate affairs with women—notably with Natalie Clifford Barney, “queen of the Paris lesbians” and Mathilde “Missy” de Morny, a French noblewoman also called Monsieur le Marquis. Colette’s relationship with Missy is most famous for the riot their on-stage kissed cause at the Moulin Rouge in 1907, causing a full-on hysterical, homophobic outrage that had to be controlled by Parisian police. Both Colette and her husband Willy (ugh) had women lovers throughout their non-monogamous marriage.
Another fascinating snippet of Colette’s history is her connection to William Moulton Marston, who as mentioned above, also embraced a polyamorous lifestyle with his wife and their girlfriend. Colette’s mother studied under a man named Charles Fournier, a philosopher and radical thinker who is thought to have introduced the word “feminism” to the world. Fournier’s claim regarding gender and sexuality was that sexuality should be expressed with multiple partners outside of the confines of marriage, and that such sexual exploration should include queer relationships between same-sex individuals. How does this relate to William Moulton Marston, you ask? Marston was also a student of Fournier’s, and adopted much of his doctrine into his life and relationships. It’s likely that Colette was influenced by the same ideas about gender and sexuality as Marston. Imagine THAT dinner party guest list.
Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette is truly one of the most fascinating women in history, so expect a follow-up piece later where I deep dive into the kaleidoscope of her colorful life.
5. Bessie
Queen Latifah and Tika Sumpter in Bessie
Grab a bottle of gin for this boozy biographical drama. It’s an emotional ride but a swingin’ good time.
Queen Latifah stars as the woman—the legend—the “Empress of Blues”, Bessie Smith. Set in the 1920’s, the film explores the rise of Bessie’s singing career as she goes from opening act, to a protege under the wing of blues sensation Ma Rainey, to a rise to stardom as she breaks out on her own. Both Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey were known for their relationships with women, and Bessie was bisexual in real life. Her love interest in the film, Lucille, appears to be based on several real women that Bessie was romantically involved with. It’s been speculated that she was based on Smith’s close friend and niece by marriage, Ruby Walker, and a woman named Lillian Simpson, with whom Smith had an intense affair. Does anyone else need to see this family tree, or is it just me?
Queen Latifah worked tirelessly for twenty years to bring Bessie to film, and the end result is an emotional, soulful, and passionate portrayal of the blues legend. It’s especially remarkable that when the movie came to creation, it was with Queen Latifah, an LGBTQ lead actress, and an LGBTQ director, Dee Rees at the helm. Three cheers for our fellow queers!
This film is just a gem. Come to watch Queen Latifah shine in the role of a lifetime, stay for Queen Latifah SHINING IN THE ROLE OF A LIFETIME. There is a reason her first name is Queen, after all.
6. Wild Nights With Emily
Wild Nights With Emily (Greenwich Entertainment)
Molly Shannon and Susan Ziegler in Wild Nights With Emily (Greenwich Entertainment)
I confess—when I first heard Molly Shannon was playing Emily Dickinson in a biographical picture, my first reaction was pure skepticism. I couldn't imagine how Mary Katherine Gallagher of Superstar could portray an American poet known for her reclusive personality and writings of heavy subject matter like death and grief. But I was pleasantly surprised with this playful, biographical dramedy! It was entertaining to see the story of Emily Dickinson’s life told through a fresh perspective—even if I wasn’t entirely sure where the plot was taking me, I had a lot of unexpected laughs along the way.
Wild Nights With Emily tells the story of Emily Dickinson’s life with a special focus on the true romantic relationship with her childhood friend, Susan Gilbert. And if you thought you had family drama—Emily Dickinson’s great love Susan also grew up to marry her brother, Austin Dickinson. I’m starting to sense a pattern here…
7. Tell It To The Bees
Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger in Tell It To The Bees
It’s 1952 in rural Scotland, and these Scottish little bees know ALL of the hot-honey gossip.
Bisexual actress Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger star in the film based on Fiona Shaw’s novel Tell It To The Bees. Not to be confused with The Secret Life of Bees or DreamWorks’ Bee Movie, both which I have mistaken this film for countless times. (Seriously, I accidentally bought The Secret Life of Bees book and read a full twenty pages before I realized there were, in fact, zero lesbians to be found.)
The movie follows the complicated love story between a single mother, Lydia, (Holliday Grainger) in a failing marriage and the town’s doctor who treats Lydia’s son. Sparks fly and so do the bees. But ultimately, the pair falls victim to the town’s ignorance, prejudice, and homophobia.
The chemistry between Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger is definitely the high point of the film, because at times the plot can feel like it’s struggling to stay together. But it does offer some cute queer romance scenes and lesbians sporting the exact same haircut.
Spoiler alert! The movie did come under some heat after its release when author Fiona Shaw dropped some justified criticism — that the creators needlessly rewrote the ending to pander to a straight audience. Is this Lez Girls all over again? I thought we learned about the dangers of straight endings, Monsieur William! Shaw stated about the ending, “I wanted my couple to have their cake and eat it together, for once: a fully romantic, fully happy, and therefore – in the context of lesbian fiction – a more radical ending.” In the great words of potentially secret lesbian icon Marie Antoinette, let them eat cake!
8. The Favourite
Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz in The Favourite (Yorgos Lanthimos/Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Bury me in that Rachel Weisz outfit.
The Favourite is a little gritty, a little gross, but adorably kitchy and very well done. There’s a reason it was nominated for literally every Oscar under the sun in 2019! It’s a darkly comic film based on a true story that portrays the love triangle of the century, as two women fight for the power that comes from being Queen Anne’s bed companion. Lady Cigarette — I mean Lady Marlborough—and Abigail Hill duke it out for Queen Anne’s affections as tensions rise higher and higher in the court in this 18th century period drama.
Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz, and Olivia Colman are the weird English babes we didn’t know we needed. This is definitely a must watch for any English history lover.
9. Vita & Virginia
Gemma Arterton and Elizabeth Debicki in Vita & Virginia
Few things in this life thrill me more than the legendary love story between Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West. (Seriously, ask my wife.) I really wish I could say the same about Vita & Virginia, but unfortunately some of its directorial choices are a little hard to swallow. Needless Vaseline camera tricks and a synth pop sound scored literally by Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s sister are not what I would associate with the self-proclaimed snob Virginia Woolf! Although let’s be real — the whole heartbeat recording thing is actually pretty cool.
Despite its confusing missteps, there are some real highlights of this film. First things first, it’s gorgeous. From Sissinghurst Castle Garden to the old Bloomsbury house, Vita’s avant garde outfits (the original Pantsuit Nation) to the streets of the bustling city, the film really paints a portrait of 1920’s London. Second, it’s based on the actual, beautifully intimate love letters exchanged between Vita and Virginia (I compared it to my own book of their letters and a good amount of it read word for word!). Third, Gemma Arterton and Elizabeth Debicki are absolute delights and their chemistry is excellent on-screen. It’s a shame their chemistry couldn’t carry the whole movie, but that’s a lot to put on the actors alone. The film also has some really important biographical tidbits, like the history of polyamory and homosexuality in the old Bloomsbury group.
The Bloomsbury Group was a collection of mostly Cambridge-educated artists and philosophers, writers and critics that came together under Virginia Woolf’s roof to converse intellectually about high-brow subject matter like economics, aesthetics, and literature. But really, it was also a club that provided a gateway to do drugs and have lots of gay sex. American poet Dorothy Parker said it best when describing The Bloomsbury Group— “they lived in squares, painted in circles and loved in triangles.” The Bloomsbury Group was arguably the greatest influence on Virginia’s life next to Vita Sackville-West, and the film Vita & Virginia works to incorporate its history within the context of the women’s love story.
Vita and Virginia’s relationship is a fascinating deep-dive, and I’ll also be covering it in a later article—so stay tuned!
10. Elisa and Marcela
Natalia de Molina and Greta Fernandez in Elisa and Marcela (Berlin Film Festival)
Based on the true story of Spain’s first same-sex wedding in 1901, Elisa and Marcela is a story about friendship between two women that evolves quickly into an enthralling romance. This film definitely has some substantial moments of intimacy and beauty, and it’s visually stunning — so it’s worth a watch if you want to see two beautiful women frolic around in petticoats by the ocean. That's really going to get you in the Portrait mood! But admittedly, the passion and storytelling leaves much to be desired and it’s one of the weaker films on this list.
11. Tipping The Velvet
Rachael Stirling and Keeley Hawes in Tipping The Velvet (BBC)
Based on a novel of the same name by lesbian author Sarah Waters, Tipping The Velvet is a three-part television series that is quintessential BBC content with a whole lot of queer on top. Its release was met with intense controversy as homophobic viewers lost their minds over its explicit lesbian content. BBC, ever the hero, said the hell with the homophones and aired the mini-series without a hitch. And just when you thought that was the highest middle finger to the homophones, screenwriter Andrew Davies promised Tipping The Velvet to be “the most sexually explicit period drama ever shown on British TV.”
Set in Victorian England in the 1800’s, the film takes place in the glamorous world of 19th century music halls where the impressionable Nan Astley meets a charismatic male impersonator, Kitty Butler. What follows is a racy romance that leads to love, stardom, and betrayal in the Edwardian underworld.
If you haven't yet heard of Sarah Waters or read one of her books, stop your life and marvel at this incredible woman who forever raised the bar on lesbian fiction forever.
12. Fingersmith
Sally Hawkins and Elaine Cassidy in Fingersmith (BBC)
Another adaptation of a Sarah Waters novel and a BBC movie, Fingersmith tells the unlikely fictional love story between a conning pickpocket, Sue Trinder, and a delicate young heiress, Maud Lilly. What could possibly go wrong? Like Tipping The Velvet, Fingersmith explores Sarah Waters’ masterfully delivered themes of love, deceit, and betrayal as two women of very different classes collide in a Dickensian melodrama in the 19th century.
It’s basically Gone Girl meets lesbians meets Victorian England. With lots of twists and treachery, double-crossing and hidden motivations, asylums and thieves, Fingersmith is just a damn good story. It provides a rich backdrop for exploring feminism in Victorian England, and delivers in its portrayal of characters from two totally different classes, lifestyles, and upbringings ultimately bonding over womanhood.
13. The Handmaiden
Min-her Kim and Tae-ri Kim in The Handmaiden
If you haven’t caught on to the memo yet, Sarah Waters is a lesbian genius. That’s why her book, Fingersmith, was also made into a South Korean film directed by Park Chan-Wook. Originally set in late-nineteenth-century England, The Handmaiden adaptation is changed to take place in 1930’s Japanese-occupied Korea. Although admittedly I don’t know much about Park-Chan Wook’s other work, he won me over with the Handmaiden — a film that is designed to be pro-women and the freedom they find in their relationship with one another. Wook also publicly speaks about how his own personal growth and self-evaluation brought him to embrace feminism, which is good enough for me.
What makes The Handmaiden different from the original Fingersmith story is its darkly twisted, psychological thriller spin—definitely something you won’t find in the BBC drama version. A fresh retelling of the same deceit, double-crosses, and lesbian awakening in its original story, The Handmaiden is an adaptation worth the watch.
If you have any other lesbian period pieces to recommend, drop us a line!
We’ll update you with our review of Portrait of a Lady on Fire as soon as we hit the cinema.
Keep an eye out for some other lesbian period dramas coming your way:
Ammonite (2020) - Starring Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan; based on a book by the same name. Ammonite is set in 1800’s England and features the love story between Mary Anning, a fossil hunter, and Charlotte a wealthy visitor on the coast.
Bennedetta (2020) - Starring Virginie Efira; based on the 1986 non-fiction book Immodest Acts - The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy; a French/Dutch biographical drama set in the 17th century. It tells the story of a novice nun who joins an Italian convent and falls in love with another woman.
