A Handsome Picture (don't worry: no spoilers)
[It seems like I'm always just reviewing movies! Maybe I should take it up as a job. :P]
I've just come back from watching Dorian Gray and it was definitely worth a watch in the cinema! I've been looking forward to it all week as I saw the trailer and felt it to be that Sweeney Todd style - slightly cgi but without getting too unrealistic. All in all, I'd say they've done a very good job of taking the story from the book and making it (quite faithfully) into a film. I've been wondering how they would do it, since it's one of those stories that work well as a book, but not always as a movie, but the director seems to have known what he was doing.
What ceases to amaze me, is that there are a lot of people out there who have the narrow-mindedness and thoughtlessness to simple rate it off as 'looks shit'. Seriously, it gets really annoying, especially since all they have to judge on is the trailer and maybe some short clips. I've also heard people mention a correlation between DG and Twilight, which made me start talking sternly at the laptop screen! Twilight, which had it's good points, looks like a real kids' movie compared to this. Dorian Gray is much more for those made of stronger stuff and minds that actually know how to think. It's certainly not for those who are sensitive to explicit material or unable to watch violence, etc.
Ben Barnes did a good job as Dorian, although some people seem to have a bias against him. I've never thought him particularly handsome (he's not my type :P) but there's something in the way he holds himself in the film that portrays the right sort of look. I was also very surprised to see that Rachel Hurd-Wood (the girl who played Wendy in the Peter Pan film) has grown up into quite a woman! In my mind, she's stayed about twelve forever (must be the Peter Pan effect), but apparently, she's like any other human and does actually grow older. Colin Firth was fun to watch, even though he played his typical type of character - dry-humoured, cynical English gentleman - and everyone else kept up to standards.
Of course, there were moments when I personally might have preferred it to be done differently, but over all, I'd say it was a good film. One thing that made me squee terribly throughout, was the fact that a lot of it was filmed at my university! It has these old, 17th century buildings that are perfect for movie sets in old London and apparently, quite a lot of period-y movies are filmed there.
I'm sure there will be others who disagree with what I feel about DG, but I hope people will give it a chance. I found it to be very thought-provoking and sobering in a curious way. Very rich scenery too.
And one has to envy Dorian; to stay looking young forever is quite something, as is selling the soul to the devil.
Here, have some Dorian love:
He can be quite handsome at this angle, can't he? :^)
I've just come back from watching Dorian Gray and it was definitely worth a watch in the cinema! I've been looking forward to it all week as I saw the trailer and felt it to be that Sweeney Todd style - slightly cgi but without getting too unrealistic. All in all, I'd say they've done a very good job of taking the story from the book and making it (quite faithfully) into a film. I've been wondering how they would do it, since it's one of those stories that work well as a book, but not always as a movie, but the director seems to have known what he was doing.
What ceases to amaze me, is that there are a lot of people out there who have the narrow-mindedness and thoughtlessness to simple rate it off as 'looks shit'. Seriously, it gets really annoying, especially since all they have to judge on is the trailer and maybe some short clips. I've also heard people mention a correlation between DG and Twilight, which made me start talking sternly at the laptop screen! Twilight, which had it's good points, looks like a real kids' movie compared to this. Dorian Gray is much more for those made of stronger stuff and minds that actually know how to think. It's certainly not for those who are sensitive to explicit material or unable to watch violence, etc.
Ben Barnes did a good job as Dorian, although some people seem to have a bias against him. I've never thought him particularly handsome (he's not my type :P) but there's something in the way he holds himself in the film that portrays the right sort of look. I was also very surprised to see that Rachel Hurd-Wood (the girl who played Wendy in the Peter Pan film) has grown up into quite a woman! In my mind, she's stayed about twelve forever (must be the Peter Pan effect), but apparently, she's like any other human and does actually grow older. Colin Firth was fun to watch, even though he played his typical type of character - dry-humoured, cynical English gentleman - and everyone else kept up to standards.
Of course, there were moments when I personally might have preferred it to be done differently, but over all, I'd say it was a good film. One thing that made me squee terribly throughout, was the fact that a lot of it was filmed at my university! It has these old, 17th century buildings that are perfect for movie sets in old London and apparently, quite a lot of period-y movies are filmed there.
I'm sure there will be others who disagree with what I feel about DG, but I hope people will give it a chance. I found it to be very thought-provoking and sobering in a curious way. Very rich scenery too.
And one has to envy Dorian; to stay looking young forever is quite something, as is selling the soul to the devil.
Here, have some Dorian love:
He can be quite handsome at this angle, can't he? :^)