| Wilde | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover |
|
| Directed by | Brian Gilbert |
| Produced by | Marc Samuelson Peter Samuelson |
| Written by | Richard Ellmann (book) Julian Mitchell |
| Starring | Stephen Fry Jude Law Vanessa Redgrave Tom Wilkinson Jennifer Ehle Michael Sheen Ioan Gruffudd |
| Music by | Arthur Sullivan Debbie Wiseman |
| Cinematography | Martin Fuhrer |
| Editing by | Michael Bradsell |
| Distributed by | Dove International, Sony Pictures Classics |
| Release date(s) | September 1, 1997 |
| Running time | 118 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom/Germany/Japan |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $10,000,000 (estimated) |
| Gross revenue | $2,158,775 |
| Official website | |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Wilde is a 1997 period biopic directed by Brian Gilbert and adapted from Richard Ellmann's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography by screenwriter Julian Mitchell. Wilde chronicles Oscar Wilde's rise and fall as the most prominent and flamboyant creative personality in England. It stars Stephen Fry in the title role, Jude Law as his lover Lord Alfred Douglas, Vanessa Redgrave as his mother Jane Wilde, Jennifer Ehle as his wife Constance Lloyd Wilde, Tom Wilkinson as The Marquess of Queensbury, and Michael Sheen as Wilde's life-long friend Robbie Ross.
Contents |
Plot
The film begins in 1882 with Oscar Wilde's visit to Leadville, Colorado during his lecture tour in America. It describes his marriage, his wit, his homosexuality and his popularity, before depicting his downfall caused by his prosecution for gross indecency and his time in prison. Its frankness about Wilde's homosexuality and graphic love scenes made the film somewhat controversial.
Details
Julian Mitchell also wrote the screenplay for Another Country, which also discusses homosexuality among the British elite in the early 20th century. The now popular British actor Orlando Bloom makes a one-line appearance in Wilde playing a rent boy outside a train station.
Awards
Stephen Fry won the Golden Space Needle Award as Best Actor,
Maria Djurkovic won the Evening Standard British Film Award for "Best Technical/Artistic Achievement" and
Jude Law won the Evening Standard British Film Award as "Most Promising Newcomer". The music was composed by Debbie Wiseman, for which she won an Ivor Novello Award.
