But I’m a Cheerleader (15)

More than 20 years after its initial release in 1999 romantic teen comedy, But I’m a Cheerleader remains one of the most beloved films in the LGBTQ+ canon. Directed by Jamie Babbit, But I’m a Cheerleader stars Natasha Lyonne as Megan Bloomfield, a pretty high-schooler who prefers gazing at her cheerleader cohorts than kissing her football-star boyfriend Jared. Suspicious about her sexual preferences and her vegetarianism, Megan’s parents send her to True Directions, a conversion-therapy camp where she meets and falls in love with another girl at the camp, Graham (Clea DuVall). The script, written by Babbit and Brian Wayne Peterson is sharp and hilarious, and will have you fall deeply in love with these characters. This screening of But I’m Cheerleader begins our season Young Hearts Run Free, a collection of films celebrating queer youth and love which runs throughout November. Supported by Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, and funded by Screen Scotland and National Lottery funding from the BFI.