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Gods and Monsters - DVD
Director: Bill CondonCharacters: Ian McKellen - James Whale Brendan Fraser - Clayton Boone Lynn Redgrave - Hanna Lolita Davidovich - Betty David Dukes - David Lewis Kevin J. O'Connor - Harry Mark Kiely - Dwight Jack Plotnick - Edmond Kay Rosalind Ayres - Elsa Lanchester Jack Betts - Elder Karloff Matt McKenzie - Colin Clive Todd Babcock - Leonard Barnett Cornelia Hayes O'Herlihy - Princess Margaret Brandon Kleyla - Young Whale Pamela Salem - Sarah Whale Features: Interactive Menus, Trailer, Film Highlights, Bios, Production Notes, Feature Commentary With Director, Widescreen 2.35:1 (Anamorphic), ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC], Review: "To a New World of gods and monsters!" - from James Whale's classic film, Bride of Frankenstein. Some films are just so amazing that they have to be seen more than once. Gods and Monsters is one of those films. This film is about the last few weeks of director James Whale's life (Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, Showboat). It delves very deeply into his personal life and his past, showing his day to day routine after a stroke has destroyed a portion of his brain and is causing him to hallucinate. Of course, it's the revelations that occur during this process which make the movie so good. The story is fictional, but based on real-life accounts of Whale's life. As far as anyone knows, Brendan Fraser's character is fictional, though Lynn Redgrave's character, Hanna, is based on Whale's real-life maid and caretaker, and of course several supporting characters are based in reality. The film starts out by showing Whale as a dirty old man, interested only in getting young guests out of their clothes and into his pool in a state of nakedness. It immediately becomes apparent that this is not going to be an ordinary Point A to B to Z story as most Hollywood movies are. In this case, this is a very good thing. The story weaves its web around you, slowly introducing those characters who are important, and through a series of flashbacks, hallucinations and monologues explains Whale's childhood and young adult years. This all helps to bring McKellan's character even more to life, and to bring sympathy to an otherwise misogynistic man. All the meanwhile, subplots are evolving and coming to a head in a brilliant climax which will remain unrevealed here. Ian McKellan, Lynn Redgrave and Brendan Fraser all give great performances here. McKellan and Redgrave both have received Oscar nods for their work in this film (we'll see if they win on Sunday...), and both deserve to take home the Golden Boy. Fraser's performance seems to have been underrated because he plays "the dumb guy". I don't see it this way at all, since Fraser's character is completely believable. No, he's not an Oxford-educated snob, he's a regular joe, and he plays it that way. He also shows with a few simple gestures that there's a lot more going on under the surface. As the movie progresses, Fraser's character literally "bubbles" with interesting revelations, and this helps to keep the movie flowing. An absolutely stunning performance, and proof that there's more to this guy than Encino Man or George of the Jungle (though both are films which I enjoyed immensely, they hardly stretch his acting muscles).Fortunately, in the Mummy, he got to wear a shirt. Needless to say, Bill Condon has impressed me with this film. I'm even more impressed when I consider that Condon's previous work is the little-seen horror flick sequel Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh. It's obvious that Condon sees a little bit of himself in James Whale, and allows that to reflect into his vision. The difference is, that whereas Whale is best remembered for his films which he didn't really care for, Condon will easily be remembered for brilliant works of art if this is to be his quality of film from now on. Of course, with him being such a close friend of Clive Barker, there is a very real possibility that he could end up back in the horror genre before long. With the right script, though, this could be a great thing for horror. I originally wrote this review after seeing the film in the theatre. I now have the DVD in my possession, and it's a great disc. Well worth picking up. The disc contains the movie, as well as a behind the scenes documentary on the making of the film (which I gather has aired on Showtime previously). The disc also contains an audio commentary with writer/director Bill Condon. The documentary is great, and spends a lot of time talking about the real James Whale (and which parts of the movie are fact versus fiction). The documentary is interesting, because you can hear how much Condon appreciates his actors. All in all, the Gods & Monsters DVD is a disc I would heartily recommend to anyone. Theater Review Gods and Monsters "To a New World of gods and monsters!" - from James Whale's classic film, Bride of Frankenstein. Some films are just so amazing that they have to be seen more than once. Gods and Monsters is one of those films. This film is about the last few weeks of director James Whale's life (Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, Showboat). It delves very deeply into his personal life and his past, showing his day to day routine after a stroke has destroyed a portion of his brain and is causing him to hallucinate. Of course, it's the revelations that occur during this process which make the movie so good. The story is fictional, but based on real-life accounts of Whale's life. As far as anyone knows, Brendan Fraser's character is fictional, though Lynn Redgrave's character, Hanna, is based on Whale's real-life maid and caretaker, and of course several supporting characters are based in reality. The film starts out by showing Whale as a dirty old man, interested only in getting young guests out of their clothes and into his pool in a state of nakedness. It immediately becomes apparent that this is not going to be an ordinary Point A to B to Z story as most Hollywood movies are. In this case, this is a very good thing. The story weaves its web around you, slowly introducing those characters who are important, and through a series of flashbacks, hallucinations and monologues explains Whale's childhood and young adult years. This all helps to bring McKellan's character even more to life, and to bring sympathy to an otherwise misogynistic man. All the meanwhile, subplots are evolving and coming to a head in a brilliant climax which will remain unrevealed here. Ian McKellan, Lynn Redgrave and Brendan Fraser all give great performances here. McKellan and Redgrave both have received Oscar nods for their work in this film (we'll see if they win on Sunday...), and both deserve to take home the Golden Boy. Fraser's performance seems to have been underrated because he plays "the dumb guy". I don't see it this way at all, since Fraser's character is completely believable. No, he's not an Oxford-educated snob, he's a regular joe, and he plays it that way. He also shows with a few simple gestures that there's a lot more going on under the surface. As the movie progresses, Fraser's character literally "bubbles" with interesting revelations, and this helps to keep the movie flowing. An absolutely stunning performance, and proof that there's more to this guy than Encino Man or George of the Jungle (though both are films which I enjoyed immensely, they hardly stretch his acting muscles). Unfortunately, Fraser still spends a lot of time in this movie with his clothes off...maybe in the Mummy he'll get to wear a shirt. For those of you who are in areas where Gods and Monsters is not playing in theatres, or where it has already played and left, the movie is coming out on DVD sometime in the spring or summer, so we can look forward to that. Hopefully it'll be a special edition! Needless to say, Bill Condon has impressed me with this film. I'm even more impressed when I consider that Condon's previous work is the little-seen horror flick sequel Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh. It's obvious that Condon sees a little bit of himself in James Whale, and allows that to reflect into his vision. The difference is, that whereas Whale is best remembered for his films which he didn't really care for, Condon will easily be remembered for brilliant works of art if this is to be his quality of film from now on. Of course, with him being such a close friend of Clive Barker, there is a very real possibility that he could end up back in the horror genre before long. With the right script, though, this could be a great thing for horror. Until next time, go see a movie! Ken Pierce Dvdken@home.com Contributing Editor, www.dvdfuture.com |
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