It’s the beginning of a new year, with all the ups and downs that have come along with it, but we thought we’d take a look back at the last one, while it’s still fresh: so that means it’s time for a list. Join us as we track the highlights and a few lowlights of the gay in the movies 2015.

1. The Beauty of Carol

Todd Hayne’s beautifully filmed slice of 1950s glamor did what seemed all too rare: it brought lesbian romance to the screen and made us care about it! Cate Blanchett’s classic beauty was used to perfection in this tale of a love affair between a sophisticated older woman and a shopgirl (Rooney Mara). The most surprising thing about Carol is the happy ending! I remember in the 1990s when every gay movie set in the 1950s had to end in tragedy (looking at you Heavenly Creatures and Gods & Monsters). Way to go, Carol!

2. Magic Mike XXL’s Sex Worker Positivity

While not explicitly a gay movie, the screening I went to had plenty of queens in attendance. (There were also a lot of bachelorette parties, but the less said about them, the better.) The great thing about Magic Mike XXL is that not once does one of the male strippers consider getting out of “the game”. They love their work and no one is tortured or judged by someone else for gyrating their hips to “Pony”. Since sex work legalization is going to be a hot issue in the next decade (according to my Twitter feed anyways), it was surely a sign of progress that someone can get paid to thrust their groin into a middle-aged woman’s face and still hold their head up high.

3. Xavier Dolan’s Breakthrough

Want to feel like you haven’t accomplished enough in your life? Take a look at the filmography of Canadian filmmaker Xavier Dolan. The little shit’s only 26 and he’s already directed five feature films, including the acclaimed Tom at the Farm and Mommy. But even more impressive than that, the gay wunderkind also directed the video for Adele’s “Hello” which has been viewed almost 800 million times and been parodied on Saturday Night Live. His first English-language film The Death and Life of John F. Donovan comes out in 2016 and stars Kit Harington of Game of Thrones, so you know it’ll be pretty to look at.

4. Freeheld’s Failure

Real social progress can be tracked in the arts. While not an amazing movie, Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia was notable for being the first studio film that tackled the topic of AIDS, and it was a huge hit, both critically and commercially. But that was 1993. Twenty-two years later and another self-serving movie is released with a thud: Freeheld. Telling the true story of a lesbian dying of cancer fighting the system so she can leave her benefits to her life partner, this movie was rejected by audiences both mainstream and queer. Which is weird, because normally “lesbian with cancer” movies are a huge hit! But I say, the fact that this movie tanked is a sign of progress. It’s not enough to be a well intentioned film and say, “Gays are people too,” because now, most people agree with that, so if feels like you’re preaching to the choir, Freeheld! Carol, a movie set in the 1950s, feels so much more progressive than this heart-on-its-sleeve weepie. Skip it – no one cares.

5. Tangerine’s Success

On the opposite end of the spectrum from Freeheld is Tangerine, Sean S. Baker’s stunning debut film that is full of life, pain, laughter and tragedy. The story of two transgender prostitutes searching for their pimp on Christmas Eve, Tangerine doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to showing the ugly realities of their lives, but it also doesn’t judge anyone. A huge critical success, Tangerine dared to be different and just assumed you’d be able to keep up. On a non-gay note, it was also all filmed on an iPhone 5! Not sure if that would have helped Freeheld at all, though!

6. Star Wars: The Force Awakens as Gay Conversion Therapy Propaganda

(SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO CARE ABOUT SUCH THINGS) The big spoiler in the year’s biggest movie will be very relatable for parents who want to send their kids to gay conversion therapy. You see, the villain, Kylo Ren is the son of Han Solo and Leia (told you there would be spoilers). They “lose” him to the dark side after he’s seduced by older men. See? Gay! Han and Leia want to “save” him from the path he’s chosen, which is the Star Wars equivalent of choosing to go out to drag bars and getting a lip piercing. They fail of course, because Sith is not a choice, mother!

7. Stonewall, Jesus Christ, Stonewall

Who knew that Roland Emmerich, the maker of Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, and Godzilla (the really bad one), would save his biggest disaster for the story of the birth of the gay rights movement? Its crimes are many:

• Casting a pretty white boy as the hero when it was trans* women of color who were the majority of the Stonewall rioters. And certainly threw that first brick.

• 30% of the movie takes place on an Indiana farm.

• The movie has the gall to depict all sex with older gay men as disgusting. Apparently Roland Emmerich (aged 60) feels that sex is only for the young? How self-loathing.

• And the biggest crime of all: unfunny drag queens.

There were talks of protesting the movie, but hating this movie is a waste of energy. No one should take this movie seriously. It’s not even camp. It’d be like complaining that a 7-11 burrito doesn’t have any nutritional value. The worst movie of the year.

And that’s the end of the list! Here’s to 2016, where there will be more superheroes, never-ending Star Wars chatter and hopefully a few indie gems and unintentional camp classics (Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day: Resurgence comes out in June, so fingers crossed).

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