We’ve all encountered them from time to time – the mindless, continental European comedies that are cheaply produced and tossed out on video-on-demand or streaming platforms for a quick diversion after a long day. They’re a dime-and-dozen, and while they can be very entertaining, they’re not always particularly good. However, there are some instances where one of these films strikes gold and manages to actually be quite effective in what it’s doing or saying, allowing us to look beyond the more notable shortcomings and instead see it as a relatively worthwhile endeavour, even if it isn’t all that essential. So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! (Spanish: Salir del ropero) embodies this idea, and while intrepid viewers might be drawn to it with a morbid curiosity based on that bewildering title (the Spanish title roughly translates to “coming out of the wardrobe”, which is far more appropriate considering a centrepiece theme of the film, but also one that doesn’t quite capture the zany energy of the film), what keeps us engaged is how it actually manages to be far more than just a run-of-the-mill mindless comedy, but rather a socially-charged film that has a lot of heart, even if its quality ebbs and flows with more consistency than the story surrounding it. Ángeles Reiné may not have known exactly how to go about producing this material without falling victim to cliché, but her heart was certainly in the right place, and the result is an effervescent, heartwarming little comedy about important issues that may be overly-sentimental at some times (as well as taking a few unnecessary liberties in logic), but has its existence justified by the sheer virtue of the good intentions it demonstrates throughout.

Eva (Ingrid García Jonsson) lives a wonderful life in the luxurious seaside city of Porto, where she is about to be married to Stuart (Leander Vyvey), the heir to an affluent Scottish family that has deep political ties across the world, particularly in the conservative sphere. This isn’t too much of a problem for Eva, since she is always willing to toe the party line and do what she needs to do to impress her future parents-in-law. However, what no one knows is that her sophisticated exterior actually hides a secret that she is terrified the rest of the world will find out – her family is far more eccentric than she would like to admit, each one of them featuring a quality that goes against the conservative values, whether being a libertine performance artist, a convert to Islam, or, in the case of the most recent revelation, deeply in love with your life-long best friend of the same sex, who is insistent on getting the approval from the Pope himself to be married. Eva sees this as a monumental problem, so she quickly rushes back home to coastal Spain, where she confronts her grandmother (Verónica Forqué), as well as her future wife (Rosa Maria Sardà), trying to convince them against going forward with the wedding, in the hopes that it will prevent scandal. Her wedding is on the near-horizon, and she is terrified the plans will be derailed if the world finds out these secrets that she is so ashamed to admit. However, she soon learns that there is more to life than one’s image, and she realizes that sacrificing the happiness of another for the sake of meeting the ridiculous standards of the status quo, is not any way to live your life.

So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! isn’t a perfect film, nor is it one that we haven’t seen in some way or another over the years. Queer-oriented filmmaking has been telling these stories for decades, even if they’ve been obscured by censorship or relegated to near-obscurity by distributors who didn’t believe these stories would be embraced by the wider population. This isn’t an original film – but it never purported to being, and I’d argue it serves a much stronger and more important purpose, insofar as it normalizes the themes at its core. We’ve seen independent and arthouse films attach themselves to stories of queer romance, exploring the trials and tribulations faced by those in the LGBTQIA+ community for years – and whether celebrating their love, or questioning society’s treatment of these individuals, they always have a message to relay. Its been a more recent development for these stories to be taken to the mainstream, with only a few major, widely-seen films having any trace of queer content, let alone centring on these issues as a primary part of the plot. If So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! serves any purpose, it would be that it shows that these stories can be made for a wider audience, especially in the form of being openly celebratory of these issues. There isn’t an iota of shame or despair to be found anywhere in this film – there are moments of conflict, but there is never any implication that the same-sex relationship between the two main characters is anything other than natural, or not worthy of the same admiration as the straight romances that have dominated cinema for over a century now.

Not every film about social issues needs to carry the sensation of being important itself – simply being seen is enough, since the themes embedded in them only work when they’re witnessed by an audience. The existence of So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! is peculiar but worthwhile once we look beyond the irreverent premise – and the moment we realize that this isn’t a film that will serve as a mockery of queer issues, but rather function as a lovable ode to romance in its various forms, the sooner we realize how admirable of an effort this film was. The marketing around it has understandably positioned it as some over-the-top, vaguely offensive comedy that makes light of important issues – this is far from the truth, since there is a sophistication to this film that doesn’t come across in the efforts to make it appeal to a wider audience. Inarguably, most of us that took the time to watch the film would’ve likely only done so after having our curiosity piqued by that title and the promise of a colourful, exuberant comedy – and in this case, we can see how effective this audience-oriented manipulation can be, since it results in a much more intimate, simple film being seen by viewers, rather than the flippant, inappropriate comedy we were led to believe we were seeing. Its doubtful anyone will be disappointed by this, since So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! has a lot of heart in it, and really does well with the material it is given to work with, boldly telling this beautifully romantic story without even a hint of hesitation, relaying this gorgeous tale of two women in love with a sensitivity we may not have expected to come from a film like this.

The manner in which the director traverses this material and delivers something meaningful, while still making a very funny and insightful film, shouldn’t be underestimated, since there is something quite special underlying this film, if we can look beyond the surface-level absurdity and appreciate it for what it is, a tender and lovable story about two women finally living their best lives, and not surrendering to the expectations of those around them who seek to diminish their love in favour of outdated social principles. There is a heartfulness underlying So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! that forces us to appreciate the innate humanity that comes from such films – it isn’t necessarily a revolutionary work, but rather one that plays its part in normalizing discussions that are still spoken about in hushed tones in many parts of the world, but which this film is fully committed to shouting from the rooftops, celebrating the endless beauty of any form of love, which transcends worldly boundaries like gender, which this film shows is merely just a way to divide us and keep us in line with archaic societal concepts that have no place in the modern world. Simple, effective, heartfelt and always funny, So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! is a lovely little film, and a worthwhile 90 minutes for anyone who wants a boost of feel-good emotion and a thought-provoking story that helps spread a message of acceptance and the need to joyfully celebrate life in our own way, regardless of the constraints we feel are defining us.