Sorry there's no bloopers on this one. I had a cool thing filmed with my other cat Sir Terry but everytime I tried to upload the new video to youtube it got corrupted D:
Hey, Dom, not related to Dorian Gray, but don't cover 365 Days if you don't want too. I think a lot of us are very very serious about you not doing it if it's going to be too upsetting, even if the poll said yes. Thanks for your endless devotion to literature and art. You're the coolest.
Same. There are already a whole bunch of funny reviews of it, even though they don't cover the adaptation angle, I really don't see the need to scar oneself for it if one doesn't want to.
Completely agree, Dom does such a great job discussing things he actually likes (or that at least have their merits) that to me it would not at all be worth it to have to cover something actively upsetting. With certain channels discussing such things is their bread and butter, but I don't think this one needs it all especially if it would be painful to make
When you realise you only liked Lord Henry because you first saw him portrayed by Colin Firth and that man could make Jack the Ripper charismatic and likeable
I never saw that version! What year is that from? It’s hard for me to really see him playing the part. I think that George Sanders was the perfect actor to portray him in the 1945 film.
I remember reading this book in my teens and being blown away by how much more hatable Lord Henry Wotton was that Dorian himself. His smug nihilism and hateful rhetoric are what help mold Dorian into the monster he becomes, without ever lifting a finger to actually DO anything evil. It’s kind of fascinating.
One of the things that showcase I'm getting old is that it annoys me no end that characters like Dorian Grey, who is an undeniable monster in the original but sexy became "sexy antihero" in popular media. Like... didn't Beauty & the Beast leave any lesson?
That’s what I think the original 1945 movie adaptation of the book gets right. Dorian is not portrayed as “sexy antihero”, but is a cold hearted ass for what he has done to people. Although I don’t think it was bad for him having a last moment of humanity towards Donna Reed’s character (even though she’s not in the novel) before he destroys himself
Spoiler warning: Even League of Extraordinary Gentlemen didn't really turn him into "sexy antihero". It did start out making him look that way, but he eventually turns out have been a narcissistic asshole all along, just playing the part of an antihero to get access to do villain stuff.
A character like Dorian Gray was never going to survive Hollywood, thematically speaking. Hollywood is populated almost entirely by Dorian Grays who see themselves as sexy anti-heroes instead of narcissitic sex offenders
@@trequor Even aside from that, it's hard to do "Beauty is skin deep" stories in a visual medium. Compare Brienne of Tarth in the books (bucktoothed with protruding eyes and later a prominent and ugly facial scar) to the beautiful Gwendolyn Christie with no make up. Book Brienne also has this interiority and hidden vulnerability that's much easier to convey when the readers are privy to her thoughts. It's easier for readers to sympathise with an ugly character when they see straight into their soul, but harder for audiences who just see the outward appearance.
Fun facts: Arthur Conan Doyle had dinner with Wilde and the editor of the magazine where Dorian Gray was published, Doyle wrote the sign of the four for the same magazine Doyle also endorsed the picture of Dorian Gray in a way that seems like he was fine with Wilde being gay
The first version of this story I came across was a satire where Dorian ate a lot and the painting gained weight for him. I remember this so well because the painting gained a lot of weight when Dorian ate a watermelon. I remember thinking how difficult it would be to gain weight that fast just by eating watermelons.
The portrait, the decrepit version, was done by Ivan Albright. All his works look like that painting and it is amazing in person. Angela Lansbury's entire career can be traced to this film. She and Dorian's actor remained friends his entire life. Also fun fact, Basil Rathbone wanted to play Lord Henry but was deemed to despicable to be played by Sherlock Holmes. The studio didn't want to work out a deal for him to work at a different studio and possibly hurt his box office draw as a wholesome leading man.
Both ways you talked about in which Dorian abandoned Sybil are terrible and hurtful, but the one in the book is more fitting to his character and the story's themes. In the book he decides to live for the sake of pleasure *and* beauty alone, so when he abandons Sybil it's clear his love for her was entirely conditional on her embodying Art and Beauty (with capital letters because he was pompous like that). After she dies there's like half a chapter dedicated to all the shiny stuff he collects s.a. gems and fabrics instead of doing anything meaningful, reinforcing he only lives for pleasure and beauty.
As a gay guy I can say that Wilde's frustration with women in his work is normal. I had a very incell-y view on women before I came out of the closet. When you're not attracted to them emotionally or physically yet society insists you need to it can seriously fuck with your mentality. If you're out and proud and make it clear you have no intentions of dating women these feelings tend to go away, they did for me at least.
Anytime i think about giving it another chance, thinking that maybe i was too young to understand a lot of it, i remember that chapter. I don't care how many carpets you have for god's sake
After writing a thesis on the book I gotta say, yes that chapter may have been boring, but damn if it wasn't a goldmine of little things to analyse. I can appreciate it for that at least.
The 2009 Dorian Gray strays from the book but is still an enjoyable film. Lots of graphic content though. It addressed the aging of those around him better.
I didn’t care for the 2009 film because it was a bit too much for my tastes, but I really liked the idea of Lord Henry turning his life around and having to protect his daughter form the monster he helped create.
Speaking from an art perspective I love the painting they made for Dorian’s ugly form and how they took advantage of making it in color giving it a poisonous, toxic waste color scheme
Truly the poster child (Or would “portrait child” be more appropriate under the circumstances?) of “good standalone film, iffy adaptation” for me. But I’m open to being swayed.
I always read the aggressive misogyny as Wilde's way of playing up how despicable he thought the attitude was, given how it ends. Also, now I can only think of him as "Lord Hemorrhoid" so thanks for that.
Yeah he had some very close and even romantically tinged friendships with women and generally seemed to like them, plus he was very close to his mother. On the other hand once he started being open about his preferences he was really nasty to/about his wife at various times. A lot of the time he said things for effect though I think
The way how Dorian Grey is described in the book is very similar to how the Lestat character in ‘Interview With The Vampire’ is described. Both are immortal, unchangeably appearing twenty years old, blond with blue eyes and very handsome. Anne Rice based Lestat on her husband but I wonder if there was some Dorian Grey influence.
I read somewhere (correct me if I’m wrong it was a while ago) that Dorian represented a lover and friend he had who was blonde with blue eyes. From what I read he felt he was being played and though Oscar’s emotions grew his lover didn’t feel the same and used him for his own purpose.
As a fellow Gray/Grey with a female cousin named Dorian this book was basically a required reading. I loved the blonde book version of Dorian Grey as it seemed like more of a contrast to his behavior and inner awfulness. This was one of my many plane reading books in college since I took flight often back and forth to visit family. This book and The Scarlet Letter were the ones I eventually worked through while only reading them on flights.
I think the most interesting part of this book is that nearly all the bon mots which people attribute to Oscar Wilde are actually sayings of the characters he intends for the readers to see as either loathsome or foolish, and that is 100% the case with Henry. I grew up hearing his comments cited as though they were actual Wilde-isms, but nope. They were things Wilde viewed as contemptible -- and by the end of the book, even Dorian sees them as such. Loosely related: If you haven't, you should check out the "Kids In The Hall" episode in which Scott Thompson's ultra-flaming alter-ego, Buddy Guy, gets to meet Oscar Wilde whom he regards as an idol.
I think this is the only version that I have watched... I was like "uhh, wasn't the whole point that Dorian Gray lived a libertine style lifestyle that was extremely sadistic toward women and collected males?" Oh, we're talking THAT era of cinema.
WHERE ARE THE CAT BLOOPERS 😂 Oooh, you mentioned the '09 version! Thank you. I just adore Ben Barnes' performance. Gotta check this version as well though. I personally always saw Dorian as the dark haired, dark eyed smoky hot pie. Needless to say, I was quite surprised when I read the book and found out he's a bloody *blonde* lol
They are tied as my two favorite versions. Angela Lansbury is wonderful and I end up having her song in the movie stuck in my head afterwards every time.
Hey Dom, quick question. What are your thoughts on the planned Percy Jackson Disney+ series? You think they're actually gonna manage to nor fuck it up this time?
@@hernanpizarro8383 ah but heres the difference: Rick Riordan is HEAVILY involved in the disney+ series.he is writing it, helping cast it, produce it etc. I think he even said JK Rowling levels of control of the project
Personally, my main concerns are that Percy Jackson doesn't always fit the "Disney Brand". Disney is SUPER kid/family friendly & sometimes Percy & Greek/Roman mythology aren't PG, especially in the later books. Beyond that I worry about excessive Disney product placement & attempts to replace the AMAZING & SMART jokes/sass from the books with "MCU humor".
DAMN those paintings in the movie are beautiful! Also can I say how much I loved that you refused to give Lord Douche Nozzle his proper name throughout most of the video? ^-^
I really love the fantasy of Dorian's painting that I went to such lengths as having a full-body oil painting of myself hanged on a wall in my living room, the only downside is I still keep on aging :(
I've loved this film since I was a child. (I actually had read the book first. I have been a classic literature nerd from a very young age.) My grandma used to buy me old films, and this one was extra special because we would always watch Murder, She Wrote together. 💖 Anyway, I had my eldest child watch this with me after he became obsessed with tictoks featuring George Sanders' Prince John. I still had to give it away with a "Power. POWER! Forgive me a cruel chuckle... Hehehe mmmmpower." But, in the end, he did enjoy the movie.
i really liked the story of dorian gray. a tragic character in my opinion. he was basically groomed by a horrible man to be just like him. yet in his last moment he tried to redeem himself. i would have loved to see a young angela lansbury i loved her as an actress. great video.
Another really bad adaptation that I remember as a kid was both the black and white and color film versions of Wuthering Heights. Those were the first movies I'd watched where I read the book and got to witness the butchering of the source material
@@vanyadolly It has got to be pretty hard to adapt a work with half-siblings having an extramarital affair tastefully. Especially because they're both the focus of the story and pretty terrible people even putting aside their relationship.
the thing with herry is, that he is not aware of how fare dorian is fallen. he plays with poking him unaware how well it works for dorian shows none of the signs since the picture takes all of them instead.
"blame the kitties" is one of the most wide spread cinema trope.. 😆 your video made me want to read and ser the movies.. known the story, never got arround to read it! good job! 😁
The Dom is doing DORIAN GRAY? OH HELL YES! This is one of my favorite gothic novels. It's so underrated! I actually liked the 2009 adaptation better than the 1945 one, mostly for its dark and sensual atmosphere that I thought matched the tone and philosophy of the novel. The 1945 movie didn't feel Victorian, or gothic. The 2009 one wasn't as true to the book in terms of plot, but I think it made up for that with the decadence and the extra gay. One thing that bothers me is that in most adaptations, it's always Lord Henry's fault that Dorian breaks up with Sibyl, either because of his callous philosophizing, because of shockingly bad romance advice, because he tempted Dorian to come to a brothel instead of going to see Sibyl perform, etc. In the book, it's all Dorian. He realizes that he fell in love with Sibyl's acting and not with her, and so he cruelly dumps her. It's the first time we see any actual cruelty from Dorian, and it's not actually Henry's fault. I don't think Dorian was actually that great of a person to begin with, and Basil was projecting onto him out of infatuation.
I've never seen the 1945 film, but I do love me some Colin Firth & Ben Barnes fantasy. I've seen it, liked it, read the book, watched it again and liked it even more. And then there's the Dorian from Penny Dreadful... That one's just so magnificent, you can freaking fight me on it 🙈
If you're interested, the audio drama company Big Finish has a series for $40 that contains hours of adventures in horror, morality, and hedonism starring Dorian Gray as the immortal narrator and main character. In the world, he's real and didn't kill himself, at least not at 40, and lived a very long life running into monsters and causing trouble while befriending Oscar Wilde and fighting off the boredom of eternity. They're really awesome.
The technicolor color painting of the sick version made for the film is on display at the Art Institute of Chicago and it is terrifying to round the corner and see it leering at you.
Thank you for the video! The book was one of the ones my 12 year old self read and started to decode further from between the lines I like that it's not ONLY 2000+ movies that you do!
I once saw the evil Dorian picture featured in the film. It was quite striking. I also remember hearing that the Lord Henry character was based on an actual person. Supposedly, the change that occurs in Dorian represents the depravity that will eventually occur as a result of carrying out Lord Henry’s philosophy. Wilde, himself, was seduced by that misogynistic philosophy, which he rejected later in life. Perhaps Wilde thought that Gray represents what he might have become had he continued on that path. Hence, the story.
i'm having vague fever dream memories of another film version i saw as a little kid.. it was a high-80s, low-budget interpretation called 'the sins of dorian gray' that made dorian an actress and her "true image" a film reel instead of a painting.. i'd almost forgotten about it until this vid, so i don't remember too many details, just that it was one of those "so bad it's good" tv movies they rerun on basic cable in the middle of the night and held my attention (at least when i was 8).
I agree about the narration being overused. However, I found it an overall very enjoyable interpretation/adaptation of the book. Plus, I loved George Sanders in this.
I rewatched the movie again over the weekend & I do agree about Sir Cedric Hardwicke’s narrative being mostly unneeded. However the acting from its cast is still excellent & the cinematography is exquisite; there’s actually 4 Technicolor shots (2 per painting of Dorian)
There's a pattern of how the film versions feeling more tragic than their book counterparts. Henry Frankenstein and his Creation, 1933 Invisible Man, Dorian Gray, and 1976 Carrie White.
The "real" Dorian Gray painting is at Chicago's Art Institute. I was there one day, turned a corner in one of the galleries, and they it was in all it's rotting glory staring right at me. And... it's huge. The color shots of it in the film are great, but it was amazing to actually look at. Scarier than anything Hollywood has produced lately. Also, they have 1 or 2 more of the artists paintings, really worth a visit, if you can.
One of the adaptation changes for this story that I really love is when they make the last love interest for Dorian the daughter/niece of Lord Henry. I think one film adaptation did this, and while I haven't seen it in years, I remember there being a LOT of tension between Dorian and older Lord Henry, the latter was incredibly upset that Dorian was courting her, despite Dorian actually having good intentions towards his daughter and genuinely falling in love with her. It adds an extra layer to the story as it forces Henry to face the results of living with and spreading his bad behavior and sexist ideologies. Granted it's because it's directly impacting him, though I would think/hope raising a daughter taught him the error of his ways and forced him to grow as a human being. I don't remember him having a (living) wife in that movie, so I think he raised her solo. (Though, again, I could be wrong) It's also interesting because Henry has to contend with the monster that he made of Dorian. It's a bit of karmic justice in a way, and leaves a message that, if you spread toxic and harmful messages to the younger generation, it will come back to haunt you when you grow older. Maybe it's also that I enjoy seeing an asshole character face retribution for their bad actions, but despite not being in the book, it's a change I'm fond of. The movie that I'm talking about is, I think named either Dorian or Dorian Grey and I think it was a 2009 movie.
dom: the symbolism in this movie is obvious me: it can't be that bad lord henry: read les fleurs du mal in a very convenient and obvious angle at 15:44 me: oh???
Just when I thought "that young woman looks a lot like Jessica in Murder she wrote"... yes, it's her! Angela Landsbury just looks great at any age, doesn't need a painting to age for her :)
The tv show "The Librarians" did a good modern update of Dorian Grey, where his "portrait" is a photomosaic made of selfies taken by people who visit Dorian's night club. When Dorian engages in bad behavior, random people from his "portrait" suffer the effects, such as apparent drug overdoses even though they're completely sober.
Hurd is the PERFECT actor for this adaptation. Kind of cold and stoic and the perfect pretty boy. I really enjoyed the 1945 version, and it gave me the serious creeps the first time I saw it.
i just want to bring this to Doms attention and say that there is a Biographics channel here on youtube that covers famous people and they did do Oscar Wilde if you have the chance to see it (i know that this is way late but still i think people would love to see Simon the voice and the person in said biographics videos)
Wilde once said that the character of Lord Henry is based on the public's image of him, but doesn't represent his true personality. So perhaps he was also nodding to public misperceptions that he hated women. And even in the book, Basil says that he believes Lord Henry is secretly a devoted husband, as much as he likes to play at being scandalous. And as for Dorian himself and his opinions of women, we know very well that his views are not to be trusted on moral issues.
Never read the book, just its entry in my mother's copy of PLOT OUTLINES OF 100 FAMOUS NOVELS. At least that enabled me to recognize the plot swipe (or nod to, if you wish to be polite), when it was used to keep 1897 Quentin Collins from turning into a werewolf in the original daytime soap opera "Dark Shadows". Look up "Portrait of Quentin Collins" in the Dark Shadows wiki if you want to see how the portrait looked in 1897 and its 1970 version.
I'm not very far into the video yet but I did want to mention that having a hard time knowing where the character ends and the author begins makes a lot of sense because Wilde once wrote to someone saying Dorian, Basil, and Henry are all facets of his personality. Basil is who he is, Henry is how the world sees him, and Dorian is who he might have been in another life. It's interesting that out of the three male leads we see Henry and Dorian degrade women while we never see Basil do this (that I can recall at least). Basil just never shows an interest in women. I've heard the stereotype before about gay men hating women so I wonder if those characteristics in Henry (the world sees Wilde as a gay man so he must hate women) and Dorian (internalizing that stereotype) could have been caused by this stereotype. I kind of wish I'd taken this approach in my final paper about the novel last semester; it would have been really fun to research. Damn.
There was a film? I don't know there was a film. Wow, I learn something every day being trapped in my condo watching RU-vid while the world falls apart. Who would have guessed?
