What better way to celebrate the highest of stoner holidays than with the time-honored pairing of movies and weed? This 4/20, immerse yourself in some funny, funky, and fabulous queer cinema. While queer stoner films might be a bit of a niche genre, there are plenty of excellent LGBTQ+ movies that get even better when you’re high and hazy. From quirky hidden gems like Smiley Face to mainstream blockbusters like Booksmart that are worth revisiting under the guidance of Miss Mary Jane, here are 11 queer films to queue up if you light up.
Gregg Araki’s cult classic stars Anna Faris as the hapless Jane, a perpetually stoned and mostly unemployed actress. Jane accidentally eats her roommate’s pot cupcakes, and hijinks ensue when she tries to remake them, taking her on a hilarious odyssey through Los Angeles. Pretty much everything that can go wrong does in a series of gut-bustingly funny scenarios, like one misadventure in which Jane stumbles upon a first edition of The Communist Manifesto.
This one is especially fun for stoners, as it plays into a lot of weed stereotypes, and you’ll no doubt relate to Jane’s mishaps if you’ve ever indulged in edibles that are just a bit stronger than you anticipated. Araki, an openly gay director, also packs the film with tons of fun cameos, from John Cho to Jane Lynch, and even one bizarre glimpse of Carrot Top.
A hilarious hidden gem on Netflix, Someone Great not only explores the complexities of both modern straight and queer relationships, but does so with a lighthearted and deeply human touch.
Gina Rodriguez (playing Jenny) leads an all-star cast including Lakeith Stanfield (Sorry to Bother You), Jaboukie Young-White, and Rosario Dawson. Seeing so many faces of color is a welcome change from the mainstream rom-com selection, and the inclusion of queer main characters is a breath of fresh air.
There’s even a hilarious cameo from RuPaul, playing Hype, a gay Hugh Hefner-esque drug dealer in a silk robe who produces “the holy grail of joints” for the gang to toke up on before their night out. With a lot of laughter and even an impromptu karaoke session in the middle of a bodega, the whole movie feels like a fun night out with your friends that you can enjoy from the comfort of your couch.
Sit back, relax, and roll up a joint that would make RuPaul jealous before indulging in this light-hearted comedy, because, as Ru says, “that’s when the party begins.”
This feel-good indie flick features the hilarious Nick Offerman as Frank, a record store owner and father of the talented young Sam, played by refreshingly earnest newcomer Kiersey Clemons. Frank tries to convince his daughter of her talent when he hears an original song she wrote by quickly recording it and uploading it to the internet under the pseudonym “We’re Not a Band.” The song takes off, and Sam slowly warms to the idea of making music with her father. When she pens a love song, her dad takes note. “Do you have a girlfriend?” Sam does indeed have one, and it’s a slightly complicated situation. His advice? “When life hands you conundrums, you turn it into art.”
Aside from an amazingly original soundtrack, Hearts Beat Loud also has an outstanding cast, including a very stoned Ted Danson behind the bar serving up beers, Toni Collette singing karaoke at a nightclub, and Blythe Danner as a kleptomaniac grandma. It’s far from a raucous stoner comedy, but it’s warm, insightful and full of heart. While we all wish we could toke up with the likes of Ted Danson and Nick Offerman, this sweet little indie film is about as close as you could get. Smoke up and enjoy the music.
Grandma stars the inimitable Lily Tomlin as Elle Reid, a pot-smoking, washed-up lesbian poet whose acerbic wit cuts like a knife. The film opens with Elle (Tomlin) breaking up with her girlfriend of four months, Olivia (Judy Greer), in a particularly cruel display, followed quickly by a shot of Elle sobbing in the shower. But the bulk of the film’s action is about Elle’s dogged journey to help her granddaughter, Sage (Julia Garner), raise the money she needs to get an abortion.
Along the way, Elle encounters a tattoo artist who owes Elle money (Laverne Cox) before revisiting an old flame (Sam Elliott). The two smoke a joint together and long-held emotions arise when we learn of Elle’s complicated sexual history with both men and women.
Equal parts sweet, bitingly funny, and poignant, Grandma is a joy to watch, sober or stoned — although it is especially delightful while stoned, particularly for Grace and Frankie fans.
The 2004 action comedy D.E.B.S. has an impossibly silly premise about a squad of young, hot, elite schoolgirl assassins. The D.E.B.S. (Discipline, Energy, Beauty, Strength) are earning their stripes in spy school, led by the seemingly straight-laced Amy Bradshaw (Sara Foster). When villainess Lucy Diamond (Jordana Brewster) has a chance encounter with the top D.E.B., sparks fly thanks to the pair’s undeniable Sapphic chemistry. But everything goes awry when the budding couple realizes — gasp! — that they are actually sworn enemies.
This plot won’t be winning any awards, but the movie’s saving grace is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. Take a toke or two before hitting play on this light and silly action comedy. Complete with a heaping pile of action sequences and lots of fighting in short skirts, D.E.B.S. is fluffy, funny eye candy with a thick slice of cheese — a perfect choice when you get the munchies.
If you’ve never seen this queer cult classic, Natasha Lyonne plays the eponymous cheerleader, who is completely oblivious to her Sapphic desires until her parents send her off to gay conversion camp, where her lesbianism only intensifies. She falls hard for the rebellious Graham (Clea Duvall in the queer performance of a lifetime). This obviously could have been a much darker tale given the subject matter, but the film is told in a sunny, funny, and vibrantly colored fashion, complete with a great soundtrack, and RuPaul’s sly portrayal of an “ex-gay” counselor at the True Directions conversion camp.
With the main characters stuck in “straight” camp, they only briefly get to let loose when they sneak off to a nightclub for a taste of freedom and forbidden desires, but this movie is a joy to watch regardless. The bright colors, killer soundtrack, and great cast are exceedingly amusing after a few tokes of Miss Mary Jane.
To Wong Foo sometimes feels a bit outdated, with three straight men playing drag queens who find themselves stranded in a small town, but it makes up for it with a whole lot of heart – and some incredible costuming. Patrick Swayze plays Veda, Wesley Snipes plays Noxeema, and John Leguizamo plays a startlingly convincing Chi-Chi Rodriguez. The trio of queens leave the New York drag scene headed for Hollywood, but their plans are disrupted when their car breaks down in a Podunk town in the middle of nowhere.
The trio quickly befriend a few locals, but unsurprisingly, the rural town is not devoid of homophobia. Undaunted, our heroines not only give the local townsfolk one helluva makeover, but also a much-needed lesson on how to treat a lady with the respect she deserves.
This fabulously funny film is fantastic in its own right, but you’ll find that the laughter and joy hits just a little harder when you watch it with a vape pen in your hand.
Based on the off-Broadway rock musical, this cult classic stars John Cameron Mitchell as Hedwig, a transgender singer who was so desperate to escape communist East Berlin that she underwent a botched surgery – hence, the euphemistic “angry inch.” This film has lots of lighthearted moments, interspersed with poignant songs about finding your other half, angry songs befitting of the film’s musical reputation, and funny songs that are just a hoot to dance and sing to.
Hedwig is the star of this show, but her gender-bending backup band provide plenty of tunes and camaraderie. Whether you eat an edible and groove to “Sugar Daddy,” or rip a bong and rock out to “Wig in a Box,” this glitzy glam rock musical is visual eye candy that couldn’t possibly be sweeter — until you add the sweetness of weed.
Just prepare in advance to hum “The Origin of Love” for the rest of the week.
In this beloved classic, Robin Williams plays Armand, a prominent gay nightclub owner in Miami, and father to Val, who is about to marry the daughter of an extremely conservative politician. The cast is absolutely killer here, with hilarious performances across the board. Nathan Lane is spectacular as Albert, a South Beach Miami drag queen with a penchant for drama who steps up to the plate in Val’s time of need to play the drag role of a lifetime as Val’s mother and Armand’s housewife. But the chef’s kiss of hilarity in The Birdcage is Gene Hackman playing a Republican Senator dressed in drag, sashaying through a nightclub while trying to avoid the paparazzi.
Even if you've already seen The Birdcage already (probably multiple times), this movie is well worth revisiting under the warm haze of a dooby or two.
This flamboyant film from Down Under is an absolute trip to watch, and not just because a baby-faced Guy Pearce looks devastatingly gorgeous in full make-up and drag. Starring Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith from the Matrix franchise) in full regalia, Pearce, and Terrence Stamp (Last Night in Soho) as a trio of drag performers who take their show on the road in the titular bus known as Priscilla, this film basically demands you spark up a joint and come along for the ride. (Fun fact: Sam Neill of Jurassic Park fame once said that turning down a role in Priscilla was “his only regret.”)
The exquisitely garish makeup and over-the top costumes are all visual treats, but truly, nothing beats watching a virtually unrecognizable Guy Pearce lip-syncing to opera atop Priscilla, dressed top to bottom in silver, complete with a long silver train billowing against the breathtaking backdrop of the Australian Outback. The colors, the lights, the glitter and glam, and the dance sequences are even more magnificent when shared with a puff, puff, and pass to the smoke circle.
Booksmart is one of the best new teen comedies, often dubbed “the female Superbad.” Both raunchy and sweet, the film follows two besties, Amy (Kaitlyn Devers) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein), who have always walked the straight and narrow, so to speak. But with high school ending, they decide to go on a quest to to make up for their lack of partying by having the best night of their lives.
Their ensuing misadventures get extra surreal when they end up at a murder mystery party having inadvertently snacked on strawberries dipped in “some very potent drugs.” After a bizarre and trippy claymation sequence, we are treated to all the classic teen party tropes — a coordinated dream and dance sequence, karaoke, jumping into the pool, first crushes, and first heartbreaks. Edibles are highly recommended here, as it enhances the absurdity of these hijinks, and makes the surreal scenes all the more trippy and intriguingly bizarre.
Booksmart also features a slew of hilarious bit players, including Jason Sudeikis as a guidance counselor turned Lyft driver, Lisa Kudrow and Will Forte as Amy’s overly supportive parents, and Billie Lourd as Gigi, an ethereal presence throughout the movie.
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