MOVIES & TV
PLEA SE, NOT ANOTHER LESB IAN PERIOD DRAMA The lesbian period drama is currently Hollywood’s favourite way to tell sapphic love stories on screen. What’s with that? By Bianca Guzzo
MARCH / APRIL 2021
We need to talk about Hollywood’s current obsession with lesbian period dramas. While it is incredible (and long overdue) that sapphic stories are being told in mainstream media, it’s become increasingly noticeable that these films are all starting to fall into the same pattern. Of the handful of popular lesbian romance films that have been released in the past five years, most of them are period dramas, and they all seem to end in tragedy. There are so many stories to tell about queer women, so why does it feel like Hollywood’s only choosing to tell the same stories set in the past? It’s no surprise that queer storylines are highly under-represented in mainstream Hollywood. Movies revolving around lesbian storylines make up an even smaller portion of the already small selection of queer entertainment currently available. So, when the trailer for Ammonite dropped in 2020, queer movie fans rejoiced. While there was no doubt that people were excited about the upcoming period drama starring Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan playing lovers, movie fans couldn’t help but notice that Ammonite looked eerily similar to another critically acclaimed fan favourite, Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Both films feature a woman hired to do a job for the other. Both films take place near the sea, both couples feature a blonde and brunette, and all of the women involved are white. 26
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The first half of the film is a slow burn; secret glances turn into close-up shots of hands touching…then, by the middle of the movie, the glances and innocent touches turn into electric passion. Even though the sexual tension builds the audience up to a fiery climax, the movie usually ends with the couple separated, their love just a fleeting memory of a time spent by the sea once long ago. The plots of these films usually follow the same pattern. The slow burn, enemies to lovers to strangers story. If they’re going for historical accuracy, it usually means the love is secret and forbidden. It exists far away from society, hidden behind closed doors. This creates a certain tension to keep the audience invested in the characters, and the story. These films also tend to have the dark and moody aesthetic we’ve come to expect from lesbian period dramas. Dark, dull and dim lighting adds to the mystique of the hidden and forbidden relationship unfolding before our eyes. Scenes that drag with little to no dialogue, and tender close-ups of hands gently touching, which have long been a staple in queer storytelling, are also prevalent in these popular period dramas. There is nothing inherently wrong with these films: most of them are fantastic, gaining critical acclaim and scooping up numerous
