Movies Like Bent (1997)

Chasing the feel of watching Bent ? Here are the movies we recommend you watch right after.

In this day and age, it thankfully has become less risky to come out as gay, due to the struggle of many LGBTQ+ people from the past. However, this struggle was hard won– while gay people were persecuted in the Nazi regime, it was only until decades later people started to discuss it, and one reason why research and education about it increased was due to the play Bent, depicted in film in 1997. The screen version admittedly falters compared to the West End original, with static staging and focus on the dialogue over action, but the performances are fairly decent, with an unexpected collection of cast members that maximize each moment they’re in. It’s quite depressing, and sometimes heavy handed, but Bent is a needed perspective.

1. My Life as a Zucchini, 2016

My Life as a Zucchini (or Courgette in Europe) is unlike any kids' movie you'll see in America. It isn't afraid to be honest about children's feelings, no matter how dark or sad, nor is it afraid to be frank about things like intimacy and abuse. It understands that kids need these kinds of narratives too, and sometimes they need to hear them without being pandered to.

There is an openness to it that makes it comforting to adults as well. Lines like “Sometimes, we cry because we’re happy," are so deceptively simple and tender that they'll catch you off guard. Couple this seemingly endless reserve of empathy with adorable, almost melancholic stop-motion animation and you get a film that will have you floored for days, regardless of your age.

Genre: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Family, Romance

Actor: Adrien Barazzone, Brigitte Rosset, Iannis Jaccoud, Michel Vuillermoz, Monica Budde, Natacha Koutchoumov, Paulin Jaccoud, Sixtine Murat, Véronique Montel

Director: Claude Barras

Rating: PG-13