I love silly rom-coms. I mean, who doesn’t? Especially teen rom-coms where they do dumb things and get away with it because of plot armor. However, whenever teen rom-coms are made for queer representation, it’s as if the writers forget to add the comedic aspect of it.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good dramedy, and when I’m in the mood to cry, I will put on “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” Yet, there’s something about feel-good teen rom-coms (that actually make you feel good after watching) that is so refreshing. Movies like “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” or “Clueless” have special nostalgic characteristics that make them enjoyable to rewatch at least 20 times.
These feel-good rom-coms are also really relatable. There aren’t many coming-of-age films where I can sit, watch, and just think, “Wow, this is something I would do,” or “I know someone exactly like that.” Not many writers can write teens accurately, so when they do, it’s refreshing to see. This is why, whenever I’m watching a queer teen rom-com, and they have the most unrealistic characteristics or don’t act like real teens, it’s seriously underwhelming.
So let us take a quick look at some of the queer films that have recently been released.
“Moonlight” was a beautifully crafted film about what it looks like to be queer as a black boy. Great film, honestly. Shout out to A24; I don’t know what I would do without their movies. However, “Moonlight” made me incredibly depressed afterward. I never watched the film again, not because it was terrible, but for my own good. “Love, Simon,” in my opinion, was quite disappointing. It was promoted as if it were the first coming-of-age queer film to ever be made.
Sorry, “But I’m a Cheerleader” did it first. “Love, Simon” was adapted from the novel by Becky Albertalli, and don’t get me wrong, the book was amazing. I read it at least four times. However, watching the movie for the first time felt off. First, the pacing was weird, and don’t even get me started on the fact that they changed half the plot an hour into the movie. The spin-off show “Love, Victor” was arguably better than that movie, but I’ll watch any movie with a carnival fest scene in it.
“Call Me By Your Name” is another amazing queer movie that leaves you emotionally scarred after watching it. I’m not even sure if I would call it a teen rom-com, and you would know why if you’ve seen it.
It’s good to have representation, and for the Hollywood industry, this is a very big deal. However, we do not always need almost every queer film to come up with new, creative ways to end with a gut-wrenching heartbreak. It’s the 2014 “beautifully tragic” Tumblr era all over again.
I love Bottoms! No, not in that way. I mean the movie. “Bottoms” is a film that is perfect in every way. Maybe I am slightly biased, but “Bottoms” is one of the first queer movies I’ve watched that didn’t just throw ‘doomed wlw’ at my face.
This movie stars Ayo Edebiri and Rachel Sennott as two unpopular senior girls, PJ and Josie, who start a fight club to get their crushes, Brittany and Isabel (played by Havana Rose Liu and Kaia Gerber), to notice them.
This movie is like the Renaissance of funny “loser” lesbians who somehow get the girl at the end. It always works because it’s not like they’re outcasts because they’re gay; they just don’t have many friends and are slightly weird. We still love them, though (long live Ayo Edebiri).
Another movie that does this right is “Booksmart.” Sure, it’s not primarily a teen rom-com, but it has one of the best near-perfect queer reps I’ve seen. Additionally, they’re all hilarious, and in my opinion, that’s the most realistic bit.
In this movie, actress Kaitlyn Denver portrays the character Amy, yet another awkward “loser” lesbian whose main goal is to finally talk to the girl she’s been crushing on for a while. Along with her own journey, Amy tries to help her best friend, Molly (played by Beanie Feldstein), fulfill her goal of experiencing one night of acting like a teen by going to an end-of-the-year house party.
Of course, her crush, Ryan (played by Victoria Ruesga), is straight. Unlucky for her, but it’s okay because she does eventually “get the girl” at the end of the movie. Maybe not that girl, but hey, a win is a win.
There’s nothing wrong with showing the reality of being oppressed, but a lot of people, including myself, would love something other than a reminder of that. Why can’t we also have more fun rom-coms like every movie with cishet leads? We should be getting reminders of the fun experience of being an lgbtq+ teen in this day and age. Most writers may think that the harsh parts are all there is to it. They’re wrong.
Life as a queer teen is not all that miserable. Let’s bring that to the big screen.
