Dorian Gray (2009)

Director:

Oliver Parker

Writers:

Toby Finlay (screenplay)
Oscar Wilde (novel)

Release Date:

9 September 2009 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Forever Young. Forever Cursed.

Plot:

A corrupt young man somehow keeps his youthful beauty eternally, but a special painting gradually reveals his inner ugliness to all.

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel | Character Name In Title

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Colin Firth	...	Lord Henry Wotton
Ben Barnes	...	Dorian Gray
Rachel Hurd-Wood	...	Sybil Vane
Rebecca Hall	...	Emily Wotton
Emilia Fox	...	Lady Victoria Wotton
Ben Chaplin	...	Basil Hallward
Caroline Goodall	...	Lady Radly
Fiona Shaw	...	Agatha
Maryam d'Abo	...	Gladys
Douglas Henshall	...	Alan Campbell
Johnny Harris	...	James Vane
Michael Culkin	...	Lord Radley
Pip Torrens	...	Victor
Jo Woodcock	...	Celia Radley
David Sterne	...	The Theatre Manager
Max Irons
Hugh Ross	...	Priest
Noli McCool	...	Jj
Louise Rose	...	Angelique
Paul Warren	...	Tea Wagon Owner
Tallulah Sheffield	...	Caroline Bennett
Aewia Huillet	...	Elisa
Lily Garrett	...	Young Emily Wotton

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Certification:

UK:15 (Cut) | Ireland:16 | Australia:MA | Finland:K-15 | Ireland:15 (DVD rating) | UK:18

Filming Locations:

Café de Paris, Coventry Street, Soho, London, England, UK

Company:

Ealing Studios

Trivia:

This is the second film starring Rachel Hurd-Wood (Sybil Vane) that involves an eternally youthful male lead. The first was Peter Pan (2003).

Quotes:

[from trailer]
Lord Henry Wotton: You have the only two things worth having: looks and youth.

Movie Connections:

Version of Take Off (1978)

Soundtrack:

A Perfect Picture

Unimpressive, Shallow and Underwhelming - Deeply Disappointing

Literary Legend, Oscar Wilde has always been known for his boundless wit – to see the beloved playwright's only novel be adapted to the screen should be a pleasure right? Haha, Nope not by a long shot! 'Dorian Gray' follows the story of a young English bureaucrat whose blind pursuit of hedonism lands him into a world of supernatural trouble. Visually, the film was stunning - the audience were frequently dazzled by a myriad of immaculate cinematography showcasing the artificial mess that was 19th Century London. That was the good thing, now let's get onto the bad. After the first 25 minutes, the film ran out of steam, it transformed into a lengthy, predictable chore. Furthermore, the film boasts some sort of philosophical edge that is bound to make the ears of some budding pseudo-sophistos to flare up. Once you get past the obvious moral, the film is painfully shallow, made evident by the faltering characterisation in a script that had horrible pacing issues. At times, the film slid over to something you'd find in an old, perverted Italian film rather than a British Costume Drama. But anyway, 'Dorian Gray' was a bore-fest – I thought of calling it Sweeney Todd's more mature older brother but I really wouldn't want to place it in such a high-flying gene-pool...