Product: Gods and Monsters (1998)
Rating: 5.0
A wonderful performance by Ian McKellen...
Ian McKellen, together maybe with Patrick Stewart and Christopher Plummer are today's equivalents to yesteryear's Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud and Richard Burton.Especially here, in "Gods and Monsters", a tale based on the last few years in James Whale's life (legendary director of both "Frankenstein", 1931 and "The Bride of Frankenstein", 1935), in the mid fifties.This is a very stylish told story. It has everything. Elegance, tragedy and comedy, all tied closely together to form an admirable tapestry of a man's story at the end of his career and life.Brendan Fraser delivers a low-key performance, worth watching, especially when compared to his work in the Mummy series.Lynn Redgrave, is as always, mistress of her skills and gives a superb performance with an appropriate Danish accent, as the Governess of this odd household.Even the theme regarding Whale's latent/rampant homosexuality is kept at a discreet and elegant distance. Never too blatant, nor vulgar, but rather stylishly knit into a very coherent story.It's a kind of a Mephisto's waltz performed by an aging Faustus-like figure, in search for a self-redeeming auto-destruction, which eventually will see itself fulfilled, but not the way the hero of our story expects.In the key words to this movie there are definitions to gay DVD, gay movie or gay romance. It is far from that.This movie has absolutely nothing of a gay movie, nor has it anything to do with being directed at gay people.This work has far more style than this alone. It deals with an old man's conflict, who may be a bit of a dandy, when it comes to "boys", but who also genuinely expresses feelings of true tenderness and love, sentiments that today may be unknown to some, even in the so-called heterosexual community, but who are very real and alive in every true human being, be he a woman, a man, or as in this case, a homosexual.What is explored in this picture, is far more the "soul" of the matter, and not just the plain physical aspects of it, although elements of this also briefly appear, but always with a sense of style and never just to shock the audience.It is a movie for mature, and thinking audiences, not for those seeking a self-gratifying moment or a sexually oriented one.The DVD has a very good film transfer, sharp and clean, as well as a very well balanced sound included.It is well worth the money, if one is interested in good actor's performances and in a well told story.I can only recommend it. You have the final saying in this...