Why Becks (2018) is Still the Best Lesbian Indie Film of the Late 2010s

Becks (2018): The Lesbian Indie Film That Still Makes Me Cry And Horny At The Same Time

Hey queens, it’s your favorite chaotic lesbian blogger back with another movie that lives rent-free in my head. Today we’re talking about Becks (2018) – yes, that little indie darling with Lena Hall looking like the hottest heartbroken dyke to ever strap on a guitar. If you haven’t seen it yet… girl, fix that immediately. This is one of those lesbian films that doesn’t just give us crumbs, it gives us the whole damn cake (and then smashes it in your face in the best way possible).

Let me just say it upfront: Becks is the most painfully relatable lesbian movie I’ve seen in years. It’s messy, it’s sexy, it’s sad, it’s funny, and it doesn’t give you that fake Hollywood happy ending that feels like a lie. It feels like real lesbian life – the kind where you move across the country for a girlfriend only to find her banging some Instagram model, so you drag your broken heart back to your Catholic mom’s house in the Midwest and accidentally fall for a married “straight” woman. Yeah. We’ve all been there in one way or another.

Lena Hall plays Becks like she was born for this role. She’s Brooklyn-cool with her short hair, tattoos, and that deep, smoky voice that makes you want to light a cigarette even if you quit years ago. The movie opens with Becks catching her girlfriend Lucy (Hayley Kiyoko, aka Lesbian Jesus herself, in a criminally small role) cheating on her in L.A. Becks packs up, drives back to St. Louis, and moves in with her mom Ann (Christine Lahti being absolutely perfect as the repressed Catholic mother who’s “trying” to accept her daughter’s “lifestyle” – you know the type).

The chemistry between Lena Hall and Mena Suvari (who plays Elyse, the bored, beautiful married woman) is actually insane. Like, I had to pause the movie multiple times because I was sweating. Elyse is that classic “I’ve never thought about women before but oh my god this tattooed musician is teaching me guitar and looking at me like she wants to ruin my life” fantasy that every lesbian has had at least once. The way they go from guitar lessons to making out in the car to full-on passionate sex? Chef’s kiss. It’s hot, it’s tender, it’s awkward in all the right ways. You actually believe Elyse is falling for a woman for the first time.

And let’s talk about the sex scenes for a second because hello – this is one of the few lesbian movies that actually shows us having good sex. Not that soft-focus, straight-male-gaze nonsense. Real bodies, real desire, real moaning. There’s a scene in Elyse goes down on Becks in the car and I literally yelled at my TV. Thank you, directors Elizabeth Rohrbaugh and Daniel Powell, for giving us what we deserve.

But what makes Becks different from every other lesbian heartbreak movie is how honest it is about the mess. Becks isn’t some perfect victim – she’s kind of selfish, kind of an asshole sometimes, drinks too much, sleeps with a married woman knowing it’s going to blow up, and still somehow makes you root for her. Elyse isn’t some innocent straight girl who gets “turned” – she’s deeply unhappy in her picture-perfect suburban life and uses Becks as an escape. Their relationship is passionate and destructive and feels so real it hurts.

And the music? Oh my god. The original songs by Alyssa Robbins (the real-life singer the movie is loosely based on) are heartbreaking. Lena Hall sings her face off in those bar scenes – “I Want You” and “The Long Way” will destroy you if you’ve ever loved someone who couldn’t love you back the way you needed. I still have the soundtrack on repeat when I’m drunk-crying over an ex.

The supporting cast is perfect too. Christine Lahti as the mom who’s trying so hard to be okay with her lesbian daughter but still flinches when she says “girlfriend”? Painfully accurate. Dan Fogler as Dave, Becks’ old high school friend who gives her gigs at his bar and low-key had a crush on her back in the day? Hilarious and sweet. Even Hayley Kiyoko shows up just long enough to break your heart as the hot, ambitious girlfriend who chooses fame over love (been there).

Look, I know we’re all tired of lesbian movies where someone dies or ends up alone, but Becks earns its bittersweet ending. When Becks finally leaves Elyse behind and gets on that train back to New York? I sobbed. Not because it’s tragic, but because sometimes that’s what healing looks like for us lesbians – walking away from someone you love like crazy because staying would destroy you both.

This movie came out in 2018 and it’s still one of the best lesbian films of the past decade. It’s sexy without being exploitative, sad without being depressing, and so authentically queer it feels like someone spied on my life and made a movie about it.

If you’re a lesbian who’s ever:

Moved for a girl who didn’t deserve you

Fallen for someone “straight” or married

Gone home to your problematic family after a breakup

Used music to survive heartbreak

…then Becks is going to punch you right in the feelings.

Stream it on Tubi (it’s free!), buy it on Amazon, whatever – just watch it. And then come back here and cry with me in the comments because I know you’re going to have feelings.

Have you seen Becks? Who’s your favorite character? Did that car sex scene ruin you too? Drop it in the comments, let’s talk about it. I’m still not over it in 2025.

Lots of gay love,

Your forever heartbroken lesbian blogger