"Gods and Monsters" is in limited release and it's a shame. This elegant, moving and strikingly cast film tells the story of British film director James
Whale, who gave us the classic "Frankenstein" and "Bride of Frankenstein." In addition to its clean script, polished look and probing psychology, it's also very, very funny. The movie opens with
Whale coaxing a most annoying interviewer (uncredited Stephen Spinella, who won acclaim for his performance in the Pulitzer prize winning play 'Angels in America') to play strip-interview. This
slightly depraved, naughty and haughty sequence establishes Whale's character and where he is in life swiftly and is damn funny to boot (the audience was howling from the start).
Ian McKellan
turns in a tour de force as Whale in his last days: overwhelmed with the sorrow of his past, cheekily flirting with the hunky gardener, tormenting a thoroughly weaselly interviewer, and coming to terms with his life. It's a phenomenal performance, one that should surely garner him an Oscar nomination
[ed note: McKellan received the nomination]
as Whale turns flirty, devastated, angry, imperious and wheedling, often in the same scene. Lynn Redgrave should get the nod for Best Supporting Actress as Whale's disapproving, protective housekeeper
[ed. note: Redgrave received the nomination]. Her facial expressions alone elicit whoops of laughter from the audience, and it's a delight to watch
her submerse herself into this mother-hen who cares more than she admits, while disapproving of Whale's life. Her scene in the kitchen, when she explains Whale's proclivities to the dim gardener,
is a scream from start to finish as she struggles with her English to find the correct word and can only come up with "bugger." The third lead, and one who delivers perhaps the most surprising
performance of the three, is Brendan Fraser as Clayton Boone. Yep, as in 'George of
the Jungle.' He more than holds his own with McKellan in some very tricky scenes, and makes us believe the logic of his uber-macho character who makes a startling decision to try and comfort his
unlikely friend. It's an inspired casting choice: Fraser's broad American mannerisms and dopey reactions are the perfect counterpoint to the natty Whale's precise speech and razor-sharp tailoring
(even his pajamas are tailored) yet Fraser has an emotional depth and exquisite sense of timing that serves him well in the film's toughest scenes. The interplay between these two is handled with
delicacy and great skill by the director when Clayton and Whale first sit down to lunch and Clayton tentatively asks Whale about his sexual orientation. McKellan plays this scene with all the sly wit
and risque maneveurs at his disposal, to hilarous effect.
The script, from a well-reviewed book, is a marvel at seeking out the precise moments when relationships between people suddenly veer off into
a different realm and skillfully handles Whale's memories and hallucinations without becoming confusing in the least. On the contrary, there will be times when you don't understand why Clayton doesn't
know exactly what Whale sees, so expressive is McKellan's face and so deft is the handling of real and imagined, past and present. This confusion is a result of Whale's ill health and works beautifully
for the film. Towards the end, we're asked to believe a startling turn of events between homophobic Clayton and overtly gay Whale, and it works because all things seem possible in this time-shifting
world. The nature of this unexpected event -- which isn't sexual -- is a genuine surprise, yet one that follows the character's logic. Very tricky to pull off, and it works.
The whole
movie is lovingly put together with a careful eye for telling detail (Whale's Cezannes, Clayton's truck, the fur bed cover) and good use of color, particularly yellow. Sets and shots are carefully
composed and set up (the shot of Whale at his sleek bar tells you bookloads about the character, and note the unusual angle for Clayton and Hanna's first scene when she thinks he's "bent") Costume
design is first-rate (Whale's French-cuffed shirts and smoking jackets are to die for) There are almost no extra scenes here, and its elegatic rhythm is at once deeply nostalgic (the picture takes place in
the mid 50's) and timeless, the way a movie about human relationships can be when it works. "Gods and Monsters" is, on the surface, a movie about the old Hollywood and its hidden gay network, a
misfit-friends tale but vaults beyond the interest of its surface contrasts to demonstrate how the most unlikely people affect each other in profound and unexpected ways. "Gods and Monsters" is a
superb British production free of sentiment and schmaltz with three stellar performances and a surprisingly touching and upbeat final scene. Delicious intercutting of Whale's films works
wonderfully. This film appears to have been made with the collaboration of many people, apparent in a credit for Whale's own films and the authentic ring of the dialogue, especially when the irritating
journalist arranges a cheesy reunion of Whale and his "monsters," the actors Elsa Lanchester and Boris Karloff.
Worth renting, a gem of a film. Weirdest credit: Boris Karloff with a
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