List of LGBT-related films of the 1950s

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This is a list of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender-related films released in the 1950s. It contains theatrically released films that deal with important gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender characters or issues and may have same-sex romance or relationships as a plot device.

1950[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Caged John Cromwell United States Crime, drama Eleanor Parker, Agnes Moorehead, Ellen Corby, Hope Emerson, Betty Garde, Sheila MacRae, Lee Patrick, Jane Darwell Parker plays a woman sent to prison for attempted armed robbery. In prison, she meets several lesbian characters.[1]
In a Lonely Place Nicholas Ray United States Drama, film-noir Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame, Frank Lovejoy, Carl Benton Reid, Art Smith, Martha Stewart, Jeff Donnell, Robert Warwick, Morris Ankrum, William Ching, Steven Geray, Hadda Brooks Based on the novel of the same name by Dorothy B. Hughes
Un chant d'amour Jean Genet France a.k.a. A Song of Love
Young Man with a Horn Michael Curtiz United States Drama Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall, Doris Day, Hoagy Carmichael, Juano Hernandez, Jerome Cowan, Mary Beth Hughes, Nestor Paiva, Walter Reed Based on the novel of the same name by Dorothy Baker, which itself is based on the life of Bix Beiderbecke; an example of film noir with Bacall playing a central female character who is bisexual.
Girl with Hyacinths Hasse Ekman Sweden Film-noir, crime, Drama Eva Henning, Ulf Palme, Anders Ek, Birgit Tengroth, Marianne Lofgren, Gösta Cederlund, Karl-Arne Holmsten, Keve Hjelm, Anne-Marie Brunius

1951[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Olivia Jacqueline Audry France Drama Edwige Feuillère, Simone Simon, Marie-Claire Olivia, Yvonne de Bray, Suzanne Dehelly, Marina de Berg, Lesly Meynard, Danièle Delorme, Rina Rhéty, Tania Soucault, Elly Norden, Nadine Olivier a.k.a. The Pit of Loneliness; based on the semi-autobiographical novel by Dorothy Bussy
Strangers on a Train Alfred Hitchcock United States Film-noir, crime, mystery Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, Robert Walker, Leo G. Carroll Based on the novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith

1953[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Calamity Jane David Butler United States Musical, comedy Doris Day, Howard Keel, Allyn Ann McLerie, Philip Carey, Dick Wesson, Paul Harvey, Chubby Johnson, Gale Robbins, Francis McDonald, Monte Montague, Bess Flowers Explores an alleged romance between American frontierswoman of the same name and Wild Bill Hickok
Glen or Glenda Edward D. Wood Jr. United States Drama Ed Wood, Timothy Farrell, Dolores Fuller, Bela Lugosi
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Howard Hawks United States Musical, comedy Jane Russell, Marilyn Monroe, Charles Coburn, Elliott Reid, Tommy Noonan, Taylor Holmes, Norma Varden, George Winslow, Steven Geray Based on the musical of the same name by Anita Loos and Joseph Fields, which itself is based on Loos' novel of the same name
I Vitelloni Federico Fellini Italy Drama, comedy Alberto Sordi, Franco Fabrizi, Franco Interlenghi, Leopoldo Trieste

1954[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Air of Paris Marcel Carné France
Italy
Drama Jean Gabin, Arletty, Roland Lesaffre Implicit homosexuality in the relation between the characters played by Lesaffre and Gabin
Huis clos Jacqueline Audry France Drama Arletty, Gaby Sylvia, Frank Villard, Yves Deniaud, Nicole Courcel, Danièle Delorme, Jean Debucourt, Jacques Chabassol, Arlette Thomas a.k.a. No Exit; co-written by Jean-Paul Sartre, based on his stage play of the same name
Johnny Guitar Nicholas Ray United States Western Joan Crawford, Sterling Hayden, Mercedes McCambridge, Scott Brady, Ward Bond, Ben Cooper, Ernest Borgnine, John Carradine, Royal Dano, Frank Ferguson, Paul Fix, Rhys Williams, Ian MacDonald, Robert Osterloh Based on the novel of the same name by Roy Chanslor
Miss Hanafi Fatin Abdel Wahab Egypt Comedy Ismail Yassine (credited as Ismail Yasseen) a.k.a. El Anesa Hanafy; based on an actual news article

1955[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Rebel Without a Cause Nicholas Ray United States Drama James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Jim Backus, Ann Doran, Corey Allen, William Hopper Homosexual subtext
The Big Combo Joseph H. Lewis United States Crime Cornel Wilde, Richard Conte, Brian Donlevy, Jean Wallace Implicit homosexual relationship between two hitmen

1956[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Tea and Sympathy Vincente Minnelli United States Drama Deborah Kerr, John Kerr, Leif Erikson, Edward Andrews Screenplay by Robert Anderson, based on his stage play of the same name

1957[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Different from You and Me Veit Harlan West Germany Drama Christian Wolff, Paula Wessely, Paul Dahlke, Hans Nielsen a.k.a. Anders als du und ich (censored version title) / Das dritte Geschlecht (original title) / Bewildered Youth / The Third Sex (American alternative titles)

1958[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Richard Brooks United States Drama Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives, Judith Anderson, Jack Carson, Madeleine Sherwood, Larry Gates, Vaughn Taylor Based on the play on the same name by Tennessee Williams; homosexual subtext
Les Tricheurs Marcel Carné France
Italy
Drama Pascale Petit, Andréa Parisy, Laurent Terzieff, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Dany Saval
Mädchen in Uniform Géza von Radványi West Germany
France
Drama Hertha Thiele, Dorothea Wieck, Emilia Unda Co-written by Christa Winsloe, based on her play of the same name

1959[]

Title Director Country Genre Cast Notes
Ben-Hur William Wyler United States Action, drama Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Haya Harareet, Stephen Boyd, Hugh Griffith, Martha Scott, Cathy O'Donnell, Sam Jaffe Based on the novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace
Come Dance with Me Michel Boisrond France Drama, crime Brigitte Bardot, Henri Vidal, Dawn Addams, Darío Moreno, Serge Gainsbourg Based on the novel The Blonde Died Dancing by Kelley Roos
Compulsion Richard Fleischer United States Crime, drama Orson Welles, Diane Varsi, Dean Stockwell, Bradford Dillman Based on the novel of the same name by Meyer Levin
Pillow Talk Michael Gordon United States Romance, comedy Rock Hudson, Doris Day, Tony Randall, Thelma Ritter
Some Like It Hot Billy Wilder United States Romance, comedy Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon
Suddenly, Last Summer Joseph L. Mankiewicz United States Drama, horror Elizabeth Taylor, Katharine Hepburn, Montgomery Clift Based on the play of the same name by Tennessee Williams

References[]

  1. ^ Darren, p. 38
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