Greenland By Nick Bondarev

My Favorite Underrated WLW Cinema

To keep this as a memory, after a lot of deliberation, I’m creating this list of all my favorite Sapphic movies of all time. Note that it is purely subjective to me, and they aren’t necessarily big-budget, blockbusters, or period dramas. I obviously love films like Carol, the Handmaiden, etc. a lot, but personally, I love indie films. So, these are mostly Indie films and are quite underrated. All of these have beautiful poetic cinematography and heart-touching storylines. In no particular order:

1. The Half of It (2020, USA):

Probably the most famous film on this list, this is Alice Wu’s second directorial venture after a long hiatus post Saving Face. It’s about a seventeen-year-old girl named Ellie Chu who is basically a dark academia Tumblr lesbian. She liked the pastor’s daughter but well the pastor’s daughter is very pretty so many boys like her. One of the boys approach her to write a love letter coz lesbehonest we’ve been there done that (I mean I’m 100% Ellie minus the swag) and a lot of things happen. Just watch the film to know more. It's beautiful, deep, and sweet and has some tidbits about religion and queerness. Oh, and cute platonic friendships.

2. Desert Hearts (1985, USA):

The shots in this film is literally so ahead of its time, it feels like a period film honestly. Plus, the costume, the landscape- if you’re an 80s fashion buff, this is the best thing that could happen to you. Not to mention the leads are extremely beautiful. It was also groundbreaking for being a film of 1980s that didn’t shame lesbians and made them own up their sexualities. Also, if you like older women, I gotchu.

3. Moonlit Winter (2019, South Korea)

This was truly unlike any sapphic film I ever watched. It’s basically about a teenage girl discovering her mom is gay and helping her get back to her lover. Like? Omg? Also gay Asian middle-aged lesbians and repressed emotions? I’m bawling my eyes out. The lingering shots were especially beautiful and the strengthening of the mother-daughter relationship throughout the runtime as the mother gradually got comfortable in acknowledging her sexuality hit home. Like no, my mother isn’t gay but who doesn’t have mommy issues. Right….. Right?

4. Water lilies (2007, France):

Have you had feelings for your senior? Did you have gay panic in your changing rooms? Did you have homoerotic tension with women in tight swimming costumes? Did you have internalized homophobia? This film is all that and Celine Sciamma and Adele Haenel’s first film together so wink wink ultra super gay.

5. Shiva Baby (2020, USA and Canada):

It’s about a miserable bisexual girl who has to deal with her sugar daddy, her ex-girlfriend, her parents and the outcomes of her pathological lying while her sugar daddy’s wife ( Diana Agron I KNOW) poses a threat to her existence. It’s a comedy and it’s very funny. The set ups were hilarious, the plot twists were un anticipated and the horror music score was so unconventional but it fit perfectly.

6. Our love story (2016, South Korea):

It is probably the most realistic portrayal of a queer couple in their twenties on film. The messiness of it, the misunderstandings, having to hide the relationship from disapproving parents. It is very cute and heartwarming at times, with the lingering shots of typical Korean indie films, and at times it gives you a reality check that relationships are very messy.

7. Saving Face (2004, USA):

Alice Wu’s first child, this is the best lesbian rom-com to exist and that’s on period. The situational comedy, the lovely relationship between the two leads, and a happy ending, Happiest Season could never. It also deals with very serious topics like pregnancy at an older age and homophobic parents with so much sensitivity and light humor. A totally feel-good movie.

8. Kajillionaire (2020, USA):

Evan Rachel Wood was my bisexual awakening and the woman is horribly underrated in film. She portrays this odd girl in this film who has been raised by her con man parents to just cheat the system and engage in petty robberies. Her journey of breaking out of her toxic parents and finding someone who cares for her gave me goosebumps. The movie is brilliantly written and directed by Miranda July and its quirky aesthetic and satire of the system makes it one of a kind. Also Gina Rodriguez is so cute.

9. Fire (1996, India and Canada):

This film overcame a lot of hurdles and managed to provide authentic queer representation in the Indian Demographic as early as 1996. It also ends on a positive note which is really commendable. The acting, the scriptwriting, the themes of yearning, confusion, and coming to terms with your sexuality against the dogmatic and patriarchal society of India makes this film a must-watch. Especially if you’re South Asian.

10. I care a lot (2020, USA): This dark comedy portrays the sapphic lead to be a villain but I honestly loved the film for a multitude of reasons. The plot aka Rosamund Pike’s suits and Eiza Gonzalez’s sunglasses were pathbreaking. Jokes aside, the plot was really unique and it treated the sapphic couple like a regular one which was refreshing. On top of that, the age difference in the couple made my heart rate increase a lot so there’s that. The movie in itself is truly brilliant oh yes and Tyrion Lannister did so well I love him.

This list is in no way exhaustive. It doesn’t have enby and trans masc lesbians, and they are still seriously underrepresented in movies. We also need more black and brown women to portray sapphic relationships. I’m Indian and Fire was literally the only queer movie I had watched as a kid. So we mostly grow up with limited to zero representation. I hope it’ll change soon and people will stop making lesbian period dramas where nobody ends up happy.

Tell me how you guys liked these movies

sapphic!romione 💘

WHOS GONNA STEP TF UP AND MAKE A FANTASTIC MR. FOX DISCORD SERVER

I already know euphoria is gonna fuck me up for the next few months

Yamal, Siberia

Can anyone help me identify any of these stones?? It would be greatly appreciated!

Bring me back

An hour from now I’ll be high, eating sushi and listening to a new Harry Styles song. An absolutely immaculate Thursday afternoon.

But did you just spend all night watching tutorials and looking up discord directions to create a Percy Jackson themed server only to realize there’s definitely ones already out there and running?

Didn’t think so 😤😤

the year ahead tarot spread (in depth and specific!)

This tarot reading is my favorite way to prepare for the New Year, so I thought I’d share! 

This is technically a 36 card spread, so definitely don’t do this unless you have a couple of hours to kill, lol. It’s time consuming, but so worth it! This reading will give you a detailed look at your journey through the coming year, the lessons you’ll learn, and the major milestones along the way. The number 36 also has significance – in numerology, 36 is associated with fulfillment, creativity, and balance. 

One thing to keep in mind is that the future is never set in stone. People change, circumstances change, and energy changes. You might experience a dramatic energy shift between now and, say, next November that totally changes the way that month turns out for you. For this reason, I still recommend doing regular “check-in” readings throughout the year. 

To start, divide your deck into two piles – one for the Major Arcana and one for the Minor Arcana.

The Major Arcana represent major themes/lessons. (For example, if you draw the Death card for the month of May, your major theme for May will be endings and rebirth.) The Minor Arcana represent major events and milestones. (For example, let’s say you draw the Two of Cups for the month of September. You may be entering into a new romantic relationship in September.) 

I like separating the cards out this way because it helps me get a more detailed and in-depth understanding. Another way to think of it is this: the Major Arcana represent the phases of your spiritual journey, and the Minor Arcana represent the ways that journey manifests in your daily life.

If you want to do a simpler version of this reading, simply do not split your deck. Shuffle the deck as you would normally – Major and Minor Arcana together – and pull one card for each month. That card represents the main theme for the month. This won’t be as detailed as the more complicated method, but it is a heck of a lot less time consuming and may be better for beginner readers.

For each month, pull one card from your Major Arcana pile and two cards from your Minor Arcana pile.

The Major Arcana card is your theme for the month – it’s the lesson you need to learn (or relearn) to further your spiritual growth/personal development. This is the archetype that best describes the energy surrounding you this month. Because of this, whatever Major Arcana card you draw is probably going to influence the Minor Arcana cards you draw with it – the major events/milestones in your life reflect your spiritual growth, and vise versa. 

Be sure to interpret the cards in relation to each other. Try to look at the three cards as a whole, and try to see the “story” in the cards. For example, the Three of Swords is the “heartbreak card” and may represent a breakup, but if it appears with the Sun card, you can be sure that your breakup will open the door to happiness, spiritual growth, and good fortune. In this case, the Three of Swords is telling you to rip the band-aid off and cut a toxic person out of your life so you finally have space to be happy again. 

Make sure you write your readings and interpretations down so you can look back on them later! I record all of my readings in a Google Doc because it’s easier to keep track of than a paper journal lol. 

One more thing: make sure you return your cards to their respective piles before shuffling and drawing cards for the next month. Yes, this means you might get repeat cards – that’s the point. There may be some lessons that take more than one month to learn, or that come back up for you several times throughout the year. Personal development isn’t linear!

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I hope this is helpful! I got so much clarity from this reading, and it really helped me realize what I need to work on in 2020. Let me know if you decide to try this – I’d love to hear how it went!

For those of you who learn visually, I have a video on my YouTube channel where I do an example reading using this method and talk you through it. Hopefully that clears up anything this post didn’t accurately explain. 

Happy new year, babes! 

A witch of wanderlust inspired money bowl 🍏🥝🪀🧩💵🧪