The movies we watch as children can stay with us even as we grow up. However, for many kids our age, they weren’t necessarily able to see themselves in the media they consumed due to a complete lack of representation for different races, genders, and sexualities. The only vague representation came through queer coding in movies and shows for kids in the past, as I discussed in this blog. Nowadays, however, even though there is rarely any explicit LGBTQ+ representation, the thematic developments of many movies and stories can be explored through the lens of representation, allowing queer people of all ages to relate to the stories. One excellent examples of this phenomenon is one of Disney’s recent hits, Luca, which both holds themes of what it means to accept and celebrate yourself, even when those around you don’t.
“Luca” movie poster
Luca tells the story of two young sea-monsters who live in a town in Italy that sees sea-monsters as a villain. Because of their ability to appear as human when on dry land (this is the key part), they adventure to the town and live with a little girl Giulia to team up to win a Vespa in the annual Portorosso Cup. They all become best friends. But Luca and Alberto must hide their true selves to be accepted, a common queer theme. For sake of brevity, I won’t go too much more in depth, but by the end of the movie, they “come out” and reveal themselves as sea-monsters to the whole town. They are ultimately accepted, and by revealing themselves, they give permission to those around them to also be their true selves as more sea-monsters reveal themselves.
When the movie came out, it blew up on various social media platforms, especially TikTok, for the not so elusive queer coding. The themes so easily relate to the experiences of LGBTQ+ people, and even the creator of the film encourages people to view it through a queer lens. I watched the movie upon hearing about its queerness, and it made an impact on me just as it did so many LGBTQ+ people. For example, my friend McKenna, who is a gay Italian, has watched the movie 14 times and is one of their favorite movies ever. For me, the most life changing part was the theme about how being your most genuine self allows those around you to show that same authenticity. It was a needed reminder in my life then and even now.
If you have not watched the movie yet, I highly recommend you doing so. And if you wanted another wonderful movie with similar themes that may or may not be covered in a future post, definitely check out Disney’s Encanto. It will thoroughly change your life as well. Ciao!
Alberto (left) and Luca (right) in their sea-monster forms.
I haven’t seen Luca yet, but I love the way that Disney is going with their new movies. I loveee Encanto (we don’t talk about Bruno), and I think that it’s a great message that “you’re more than just your gift.” This is a great message for young kids who are gifted athletically, educationally, or in other respects like music that they are incredible even without their “gifts.”
With Luca, I think that it is great that they have given LGBTQ youth an opportunity to see themselves represented in the media. There are fun and loveable characters, and main characters too, that are portraying this experience, and everything turns out well for them. Definitely hoping for more movies like this soon!