WILDE
Reviewed by Harvey Karten, Ph.D. Sony Pictures Classics Director: Brian Gilbert Writer: Julian Mitchell from Richard Ellmann's "Oscar Wilde" Cast: Stephen Fry, Jude Law, Jennifer Ehle, Tom Wilkinson, Vanessa Redgrave
Oscar Wilde once said "In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it." This can be paraphrased by a similar axiom, "Don't wish too hard for what you want. You may get it." Why is this philosophy the central conceit of "Wilde," a heartfelt biopic of the great 19th-century writer's later years? Simply this. Wilde was married to a woman he loved and was devoted to the children he had with her. Had he remained faithful while dashing off successful plays like "The Importance of Being Earnest" and stories like "The Picture of Dorian Gray," his tragedy would be his failure to give in to his deeply felt homosexual longings. He would, in fact, be the very hypocrite he disparaged in another marvelous theatrical piece, "Lady Windermere's Fan," which uncovers a scandal that threatens the idyllic early married life of Lord and Lady Windermere in turn-of-the-century London. To avoid the tragedy of hypocrisy, he gives in to his natural inclination--his love for his fellow man--is found out, disgraced, tried for violation of England's sodomy laws and imprisoned at hard labor for two years.
Yet the anguish which afflicted him could have been avoided. Wilde could have continued enjoying his double life, retaining the loyalty of his devoted wife, had he not blown his cool and attacked one of the most powerful people in London society. "Wilde" is the story of the fatal flaw that not only propelled the writer's downfall but contributed directly to his death at the age of 46.
As portrayed by Stephen Fry--whose formidably large demeanor is strikingly similar to the writer's--Wilde is a colossus of a man whose wit matches his height and girth and whose appeal is so broad-based that he can wow a crowd of Colorado miners as easily as he captures the attention of London bluebloods. The film opens, surprisingly enough, in the Wild West, where Wilde delivers a talk on Socrates to a rapt body of grimy workers in a Leadville, Colorado quarry in 1882. After completing a one-year's lecture tour in the U.S. and Canada, he is wed to the lovely Constance (Jennifer Ehle) and has two sons, though it's obvious from the way he had looked at the bare-chested fellows in Colorado he has yet to mine nature's entreaties to indulge in the sensuous company of men. Enlightenment arrives in the form of a Canadian guest, Robbie Ross (Michael Sheen), who intuits the writer's bent and exposes himself while Constance is bedding her two sons.
As though to demonstrate the theory that it's not what you do that matters to anyone, it's what you appear to others to be doing, Wilde's alleged activities in male dens of iniquity cause society to buzz while at the same time the well-heeled of London flock to his plays, enjoying the manner by which the author satirizes the hypocritical customs of the upper class. It becomes apparent that the so-called rent boys with whom he fraternizes can safely ignore the country's laws against homosexuality since they are young and cast a low profile outside their usual haunts. Wilde's fall from grace begins when he is introduced to the dashingly handsome but petulant and promiscuous Alfred Douglas, aka Bosie (Jude Law), who hates his homophobic father and thereby insists on flaunting his relationship with the author. When Bose's dad, the miserable Marquess of Queensberry (Tom Wilkinson), discovers the liaison, he threatens to cut his son off from the estate and poison-pens the writer, accusing him of being a sodomite. Wilde goes ballistic, unsuccessfully sues the cantankerous and much-feared patrician, and is himself charged with criminal violation of England's anti- homosexuality laws. Jailed at hard labor for two years by a judge who treats the poor man as though he were a serial killer, Wilde suffers a physical decline, his creativity all but destroyed.
Though director Brian Gilbert's name has hardly been a household word, his "Wilde" is conclusively the best of the three accounts of the author's life to date. Ken Hughes's "The Trial of Oscar Wilds" (1960) was a triumph for Peter Finch in the title role and "Oscar Wilde," released at the same time by Gregory Ratoff, displayed an ideally cast Robert Morley as the hapless essayist. This production, however, is particularly blessed by featuring a man who resembles the writer most closely and moves the audience all the more because it focuses on Wilde's continued love for his enduring wife and for the children he was ultimately forbidden to see. Nothing in the version thirty-eight years ago boasts the gloss of the opening, unconventional scene in the American West, nor can the previous versions strut absolutely stellar supporting roles such as those of "Pride and Prejudice"'s Jennifer Ehle as wife Constance, blond god Jude Law as the love of Oscar's life, and Tom Wilkinson as the disagreeable marquess. As a result, Wilde's wit comes across most sharply, and we are motivated to read works featuring such bon mots as: "The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it," "Work is the curse of the drinking class," and the especially pertinent one, "A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies." Not Rated. Running time: 115 minutes. (C) Harvey Karten 1998
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