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Pride

A warm, crowd-pleasing blend of political history, ensemble comedy, and genuine emotional uplift. It turns an unlikely alliance into something funny, moving, and rousing without losing sight of the real-world stakes.

Pride

Where to watch: Buy

Movie · Drama · Comedy

Fri · 2h 0m

Director: Matthew Warchus

Starring: George MacKay, Ben Schnetzer, Freddie Fox

Overview

In 1984, a group of LGBT activists decide to raise money to support the National Union of Mineworkers during their lengthy strike. There is only one problem: the Union seems embarrassed to receive their support.

Director

Matthew Warchus

Cast

George MacKay, Ben Schnetzer, Freddie Fox

Curator Review

Verdict

A warm, crowd-pleasing blend of political history, ensemble comedy, and genuine emotional uplift. It turns an unlikely alliance into something funny, moving, and rousing without losing sight of the real-world stakes.

Best for

  • viewers who like feel-good true-story dramas
  • fans of ensemble comedies with social conscience
  • audiences interested in LGBTQ+ history and labor politics
  • people who enjoy British working-class stories with heart

Skip if

  • you want a hard-edged or bleak political drama
  • you dislike sentimentality or crowd-pleasing uplift
  • you prefer very intimate character studies over ensemble storytelling

Overview

Pride is one of those rare historical dramas that understands how to be both politically pointed and unabashedly crowd-pleasing. It takes a real act of solidarity from the 1984 miners’ strike and plays it with wit, warmth, and a strong sense of community, letting the humor come from personality clashes rather than cheapening the cause.

Worth noting

What makes it work is the balance: the film never treats either group as a symbol first and a people second. The activists and the miners are messy, funny, defensive, proud, and gradually open to one another. That human scale gives the story its emotional force, and the ensemble cast keeps the film lively even when it moves into more serious territory.

Bottom line

It’s also a very accessible political film, which is part of its appeal. The period detail, the music, and the underdog momentum make it easy to love, but the real payoff is the idea that solidarity can be awkward before it becomes transformative. If you want a film that leaves you both smiling and a little wrecked, this is an excellent pick.

Top Letterboxd reviews

arianna 🔪 (4.5★) · 6708 likes

"Where are my lesbians? Where are my lesbians?"

ciara (5★) · 3873 likes

god i fucking love being gay

mary🦋 (5★) · 3196 likes

So I’m sitting here, emotions all over my tiddies

andrea🌹 (4.5★) · 2087 likes

“gethin, come on, you’re supposed to be a bookshop!” “we don’t have maps here, it’s a gay bookshop; people ask for the poems of walt whitman!”

Robin (4★) · 1884 likes

fellas is it gay to think that gay people have rights

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Themes

solidarity, LGBTQ+ activism, labor struggle, class politics, community, 1980s Britain, chosen family, historical drama with comedy

Topics

LGBTQ+, labor movement, British drama, ensemble cast, 1980s, political comedy, true story, working-class, feel-good, period piece

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