patrick powell
Oddly enough I had never seen this film and had just seen Oscar Wilde with Stephen Fry as the man himself. I didn't think it was very good, and after watching Peter Finch as Wilde with a fine supporting cast, I realised just how bad that one was. This, on the other hand, pulls it off in spades. The story of Wilde's rise to become the toast of London and his spectacular fall from grace within month's is well known, and The Trials Of Oscar Wilde plays it all very straight (no silly joke intended there). But it scores so well because it gets the tone exactly right and there is not one bad performance in it. Wilde was a complex man. He might now be a gay icon and regarded as a trailblazer for gay rights, but he was also a devoted and loving father for whom possibly the bitterest blow was not being able to see his children again after his release from jail. Too many have the wrong impression that he was nothing more than a flamboyant poseur, but there was, in fact, far more to him than that: he had a sound intellect, was a natural writer and he was self-aware. He was also exceptionally honest, he was kind and he was generous. Few stuck by him after his fall, but notably among his friends were Robbie Ross and Ada Leverson, who had the courage to stick by his side when too many other friends revealed themselves as fairweather folk. By his own admission, he 'went mad' for a few years and destroyed himself. The greatness of the man is very well conveyed in this version of his trials and I recommend it highly. Forget about the Stephen Fry effort, which falls flat on its face compared to this.
ianlouisiana
One should always consider the possibility that had Oscar Fingal O'Flaherty Wills Wilde not fallen inconveniently in love with Lord Alfred Douglas he might now be remembered only as a relatively minor Irish playwright with a propensity for presenting other people's bon mots as his own.His ascent to his unassailable position as the Theatre's great gay martyr is at least to some extent the result of his treatment at the hands of the British judicial system. As unpleasing as it may be to sophisticated 21st century thought,the "homosexual act" -as gay love was referred to in Victorian law books - was considered a crime and the "abominable crime of buggery" was punishable by Life Imprisonment.Queen Victoria refused to endorse laws proscribing Lesbianism because she not only had never heard of it but she refused to believe its existence.Aware of all those facts Oscar Wilde chose to sue his lover's father for libel after the Marquess of Queensberry referred to him as a "somdomite" (sic).It says much for his chutzpah if not his intelligence. Mr P.Finch is a fine,sensitive if rather louche Oscar,clearly besotted with the pretty but insubstantial John Fraser.Mr L. Jeffries pushes the boat out a bit as the Marquess of Queensberry,very much an aristocrat of his time with a zealot's hatred of homosexuality as only an old public school man can have.Mr J.Mason is suitably ruthless as his barrister,cold of heart,tongue and eye. This is a handsome film,a typical superior British product of its era, requiring its audience to stay awake and keep off their mobile phones. If you require an instant fix it isn't for you. Wilde may ultimately have been a victim of his own ego,but the Marquess of Quennsberry must be spinning in his grave over his own contribution to his old enemy's immortality.
kyle_furr
I had heard of Oscar Wilde before but i didn't know who he was. I had seen the 1945 version of The picture of dorion Gray but i didn't know he wrote it. This movie has Wilde being put on trial for having homosexual relations, there's more to it but I'm too lazy to put it down. Peter Finch does a good job and James Mason is the main reason i wanted this, but i didn't know he was basically only in one long scene as the defense attorney.
OscarBewildered
I can't find fault with one thing. My favourite film. I love Wilde, and this really just captured everything. I found this accurate, witty and touching. The court case in particular moved me, as did Finch's portrayal of the man himself. This is excellent and has stood the test of time.
AD
