Gods and Monsters (Special Edition)
by Bill Condon
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Brendan Fraser, David Dukes, Ian McKellen, Lolita Davidovich, Lynn RedgraveDirector: Bill Condon
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled)
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 105 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1999-06-08
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of Gods and Monsters (Special Edition)
Movie Review: Quite simply beautiful.
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is quite simply perfect. Life and death, love and friendship they're all explored here in some detail. There is so much more here than just a film for people looking for gay issues explored. Here we have the story of the fictionalized last days of Frankenstein director James Whale, but more specifically what we have is the story of a friendship between two characters who need something from each other. One who doesn't know how to live, and the other who doesn't know how to die. They both have something to bring to the relationship that ultimately helps the other to grow, although in a sad bittersweet context in the case of Ian McKellen's character.
The movie is a wonderful showplace for Ian McKellen's talents as an actor, and he is mesmerizing as Whale. And Brendan Fraser unexpectantly demonstrates that he is much much more than just another sometimes goofy Hollywood pretty boy, in his portrayal of Clayton Boone. But it is the growth and development of the friendship between Whale and Boone culminating in the dramatic final scene between the two characters is what ultimately makes this movie unforgettable. The beauty of watching Clay rise above his fears of homosexuality and leave himself vulnerable in an act of love and compassion towards helping his ailing friend is breathtaking to behold, and the final resulting climax when Whale reveals what he really wants from Boone, will leave you in tears.
In short, no matter what subject matter you're looking for in a movie, if you just love movies that are brilliantly acted, can easily pull you into a story line, and that stay with you long after the DVD has ended, buy this movie. You won't regret it.
Summary of Gods and Monsters (Special Edition)
One of the most critically acclaimed films of 1998 and winner of several awards including the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, Gods and Monsters is a compassionate speculation about the final days of James Whale (1889-1957), the director of Frankenstein and 20 other films of the 1930s and '40s, who was openly gay at a time when homosexuality in Hollywood was discreetly concealed. Adapted and directed by Bill Condon from Christopher Bram's novel Father of Frankenstein, the film stars Ian McKellen in a sublime performance as the white-haired Whale, who is portrayed as a dapper gent and amateur artist prompted by failing health into melancholy remembrance of things past. Flashbacks of lost love, World War I battle trauma, and glory days in Hollywood combine with Whale's present-day attraction to a newly hired yard worker (Brendan Fraser) whose hunky, Frankenstein-like physique makes him an ideal model for Whale's fixated sketching.The friendship between the handsome gardener and his elderly gay admirer is by turns tenuous, humorous, mutually beneficial, and ultimately rather sad--but to Condon's credit Whale is never seen as pathetic, lecherous, or senile. Equally rich is the rapport between Whale and his long-time housekeeper (played with wry sarcasm by Lynn Redgrave), who serves as protector, mother, and even surrogate spouse while Whale's mental state deteriorates. Flashbacks to Whale's filmmaking days are painstakingly authentic (particularly in the casting of look-alike actors playing Boris Karloff and Elsa Lanchester), and all of these ingredients combine to make Gods and Monsters (executive produced by horror novelist-filmmaker Clive Barker) a touchingly affectionate film that succeeds on many levels. It is at once a keen glimpse of Hollywood's past, a loving tribute to James Whale, and a richly moving, delicately balanced drama about loneliness, memory, and the passions that keep us alive. --Jeff Shannon
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