Review: Hayley Kiyoko's 'Girls Like Girls' Short Film Balances Dark Queer Adolescence with a Hopeful Ending

Fran Hoepfner

8d ago· 7 min readenReview

Summary

Fran Hoepfner reviews Hayley Kiyoko's directorial debut 'Girls Like Girls,' a short film adaptation of her hit song. The review explores how the film takes its characters' cruelty and emotional darkness surprisingly far, depicting bullying, homophobia, and the painful dynamics of closeted queer adolescence in the 2000s. While the film leans into authentic meanness and period-specific details (AIM, flip phones), it ultimately opts for a somewhat easy, hopeful ending that slightly undercuts its earlier edge. The piece also reflects on the evolution of queer representation in media and the significance of Kiyoko's work for LGBTQ+ audiences.

Source

Twitter / XReview: Hayley Kiyoko's 'Girls Like Girls' Short Film Balances Dark Queer Adolescence with a Hopeful Endingvulture.com

Key quotes

· 3 pulled

It's almost surprising how far 'Girls Like Girls' takes its characters' meanness, though it also opts for an easy ending.

Depending on the day or my mood, the sound could mean a friend was logging on, or a crush was signing off. It was a sound of possibility, or of disappointment.

The film doesn't shy away from showing how cruel teenagers can be, especially when they're grappling with their own identities.

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It’s almost surprising how far Hayley Kiyoko’s directorial debut ‘Girls Like Girls’ takes its characters’ meanness, though it also opts for an easy ending.

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