‘Fire Island’ Is the Laugh-Out-Loud, Actually Romantic Gay Rom-Com We Deserve This Pride Month

Four words: gayPride and Prejudice. That was how one of 2022's most highly-anticipated films,Fire Island, wasteased prior to its release, so it's no wonder that we've been counting down the days to see this romantic comedy starringSaturday Night Live's Bowen Yang and喜剧中心站-Up'sJoel Kim Booster.

It was after taking a trip to the historically gay vacation destination,Fire Island Pines, and reading a copy of Austen'sfamous novel of mannersthat Booster decided to draft the story for this film, one of a string of new releases that mark ashift in the world of rom-coms. While the rom-com genre has typically been dominated by straight storytelling, and while LGBTQ+ films in general have often fallen prey to tragic endings, clichéd coming-out stories or white-dominated casts, Booster and the rest of the queer creators behind the film, including director Andrew Ahn (Driveways), seemingly decided to smash these tired tropes. And boy do they succeed.

Fire Islandfollows a group of friends who make their annual trip to the titular coastal town, where they plan to spend their time drinking, partying and hooking up with fellow vacationers. However, things get complicated when the group finds themselves mixed up with a pack of wealthy, pretentious visitors, and Yang and Booster's characters discover that two of the strangers might be much sweeter than they first thought.

In the end, theHuluand Searchlight Pictures film turns out to be a riotous, romantic ride that feels fully authentic to queer experiences, while highlighting narratives that have often been ignored in Hollywood. Keep scrolling to find out whyFire Islandis one of the bestLGBTQ+films to come out in recent memory.

WhileFire Islandwas billed as a gay reimagining ofPride and Prejudice, some viewers may feel that this movie is far removed from Austen's original work...but it seems as if that's the point. Booster's screenplay certainly pays homage to the universal themes of Austen's classic, but in truth, it feels like he wants to show how queer storytelling can overlap, while also carving out its own space. In the first five minutes, there's a slight fear thatFire Islandis going to cater to straight viewers by being a “palatable” guide to gay life. But once the characters and their lives are introduced, the movie quickly reveals itself to be a movie made by queer peopleforqueer people.

我们赢得合奏是除了助推器and Yang includes Torian Miller, Matt Rogers, Tomás Matos and Margaret Cho—talk about everything from jokingly wanting a hot tub to prevent STDs to the prevalence of fatphobia, femmephobia and racism in the queer community. One of the best aspects ofFire Islandis the way that it imbues social commentary into its humor, and the laughs are consistent throughout, even with spaces of more emotional moments.

Not to mention, some of the funniest scenes feel natural and totally realistic. In one moment, the group watches the sunset and counts down the seconds until the sun drops below the horizon. However, when they get the timing wrong, they have to keep adding time until the sun eventually drops. In another scene, the group is playing a game ofHeads Up!and two characters get mad when the person guessing can't figure out that they're imitating Marisa Tomei from我的堂兄文尼. Both of these instances are quick, but they resonate because they feel like moments you could have actually lived with your friends or chosen family.