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We love ’90s movies. Whether it’s the outfits (the denim jackets, mom jeans, and oversized plaid shirts), the general nostalgia for our smart phone-free youth, or the actual films themselves, ’90s movies exist in that cinematic sweet spot between the problematic John Hughes dramedies of the ’80s and the in-your-face films of the Aughts—a perfect blend of over-the-top and grounded drama.
Queer female storylines began pervading cinema —and I use the term “cinema” loosely— in the decade of Tamagotchis and Discmans, and though filmmakers began delving into LGBTQ characters, exploring a breadth of queer narratives, and normalizing our stories, the movies weren’t objectively…good.
Back then, these films were provocative and progressive, but lesbian and bisexual women were often used as plot devices, like in Being John Malkovich, or exploited for “shocking” twists, like in Wild Things. From murderous psycho-schemes to sci-fi mind-warps and violent robberies, it seems like queer women couldn’t catch a break in the nineties. But it’s hard to be offended so much as awestruck by the audacity of these stories. Some of the best ’90s movies that feature queer female storylines are completely bananas, and I’m choosing to be baffled and entertained rather than aggrieved. Here are the 6 most bonkers lesbian and bi+ storylines of ’90s cinema (again, using this term very loosely).
'Wild Things' (1998)
If you’re seeking nostalgia, look no further than Wild Things—it’s ’90s aesthetic porn. This John McNaughton-directed thriller is about as heavy-handed as mysteries go. A shockingly young Denise Richards, a pugnacious Neve Campbell, and the supposed heartthrob Matt Dillon are caught in a murderous love triangle. Of course, Richards and Campbell’s bisexual love affair is exploited for shock factor, and you can literally feel the male gaze radiating off the screen. But if you can get past it, strap in for a lesbian pool makeout, a pseudo-steamy threesome, and a soundtrack rife with Third Eye Blind and Smash Mouth. But be forewarned, the plot just keeps going. And going. And going. Even when you’re begging it to stop.
'Basic Instinct' (1992)
Basic Instinct should be required viewing for movie buffs. The Paul Verhoeven classic stars Sharon Stone as a bisexual, leggy psychopath. It’s inspiring to see how goddess-like she can look in every decade of her career. In this erotic thriller, Stone plays one-half of a queer dream team, alongside Leilani Sarelle. Roxy (Sarelle) is Catherine’s (Stone) side-chick lover. She becomes entangled in Catherine’s psychotic schemes and falls deeper and deeper into the trope of a jealous, crazy lesbian, just as Stone simultaneously encapsulates bisexual stereotypes, like the villainous, depraved, polyamorous woman who’s never satisfied with one partner. Basic Instinct will make you yearn for the lost art of erotic thrillers.
'Set It Off' (1996)
Set It Off isn’t bananas—it’s perfect. The fact that we aren’t talking about Jada Pinkett Smith’s Set It Off outfits every day of our lives is a crime. This Pinkett Smith and Queen Latifah starring power-bitch movie, also known as the Girls Trip prequel, follows four Los Angeles women who yearn to get out of the projects and decide to rob banks for cash. Queen Latifah plays a butch, gun-slinging lesbian, the aggressor of the foursome. Her romantic life isn’t at the forefront of this movie, but there is one pretty hot girl-on-girl scene. Plus, there’s a hilarious slow jam sex scene between Smith and Blair Underwood that will leave you gobsmacked.
'Bound' (1996)
Bound marks an iconic moment in queer cinema, and remains one of the most significant lesbian movies of all time. Directed by The Wachowski sisters, Lana and Lilly (before they both came out as transgender) hired a lesbian sex expert to choreograph the passionate love scene between Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon. The cinematic drama is mired in crime, bloodshed, and backstabbing—which is so shocking for a 90s lesbian movie! Nonetheless, it’s a sexy neo-noir that’s worth the watch, if not for the sex scene alone.
Foxfire (1996) – Rent on Prime
Why was it so outlandish for filmmakers to believe queer women could have a simple happy ending in the 90s? Or survive at all? Angelina Jolie stars as Legs in Foxfire, the drifter who forms girl gang at a local high school. Foxfire is one of two prominent queer movies Jolie led in the 90s (the other being Gia, where she takes the titular role as the real life model Gia Carangi). Legs and her gang devolve into acts of rebellion, breaking into their school and getting flame tattoos, all the while grappling with darker narratives of rape and abuse. Queer women have really been put through the wringer in cinematic history, and unfortunately, that trope didn’t die with the 90s.
'Being John Malkovich' (1999)
There are some pretty imaginative queer storylines in this decade, but male writers will never cease to stun me with the lengths they’ll go to in order to justify two women being together. John Cusack, Cameron Diaz and Catherine Keener are lodged in the most bizarre, sci-fi love triangle of all time: Craig Schwartz (Cusack) unearths a portal that transports a person into the mind of actor John Malkovich. Once Lotte (Diaz) enters Malkovich, she unmasks a fraught and buried relationship with both her gender and sexuality. She falls for Maxine (Keener), but Maxine only loves her when she’s in John Malkovich’s body. It’s one of the most complex and confusing happy endings queer women in cinema have ever seen.
Honorable Mentions: Heavenly Creatures (1994), with Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey in yet another tortured, star-crossed affair; All Over Me (1997) starring future The L-Word fave Leisha Hailey; the Natasha Lyonne fronted conversion therapy comedy …But I’m A Cheerleader (1999), which is more iconic than bananas.
Jill Gutowitz is a haunted pair of overalls / writer living in Los Angeles. Follow her on Twitter: @jillboard.
