So why not watch the film and find out why? If you’ve ever thrown ‘shade’, ‘vogued’ on a night out, or commented ‘yassss kweeen’ on a friend’s insta pic then you do too. The iconic film focuses on the Harlem drag ball scene and if it’s not just Drag Race that owes Paris is Burning a debt. If you’re a Ru Paul’s Drag Race fan and have ever wondered what exactly he means when he introduces the series’ 'reading' challenges by saying ‘And in the great tradition of Paris is Burning…’ watch this doc and wonder no longer. With Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett in the starring roles, though its subject matter – a lesbian love affair - was certainly transgressive at the time (it’s set in the 1950s) this understated film is subtle in its subversiveness. Carol, an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel The Price of Salt is not just a stylish period piece but a beautiful story of romance against the odds.
It wasn’t called best LGBT film of all time for nothing (and by a poll of 100 experts no less).
