

The Celluloid Closet
Exuberant, eye-opening movie that serves up a dazzling hundred-year history of the role of gay men and lesbians have had on the silver screen. Film contains fabulous footage from 120 films showing the changing face of cinema sexuality, from cruel stereotypes to covert love to the activist triumphs of the 1990s.
TMDB
7.3/10
123 votes
IMDb
Not rated yet
View on IMDb
- Status
- Released
- Budget
- —
- Box office
- $1.4M
- Language
- English
- media
- hollywood
- lgbt
- media criticism
- media analysis
- film criticism
Top billed cast

















Behind the camera
Director
Writers
Music
Produced in
France, Germany, United Kingdom, United States of America
Where to watch
All optionsAvailability for United States. Provided by JustWatch through the TMDB API.
Gallery


Videos
Release dates
United StatesUS
- PremiereSundance Film Festival30 Jan 1996
- TVHBO30 Jan 1996
- Theatrical (limited)R15 Mar 1996
CanadaCA
- PremiereToronto International Film Festival13 Sept 1995
FranceFR
- TheatricalU28 Aug 1996
RomaniaRO
- Theatrical15 Mar 1996
Frequently asked questions
The Celluloid Closet was released on 15 March 1996.
Audience reviews
1- C7/10
CinemaSerf
11/17/2025
Ok, so perhaps some of the claims made in the narration about some of the stars featured here are a bit optimistically speculative, but it still manages to use some very well researched archive and the benefit of hindsight to portray a sort of “Hollywood Babylon” approach to a century of gay Hollywood film-making. Starting way back, pre-code, with films from the likes of Cecil B. DeMille, it presents and engaging ana…
Member reviews
Sign in to rate and review. Browsing stays free and open.
Sign inMember comments
0Sign in to post a comment. Browsing stays free and open.
Sign in











