Rating: 4/5
Hooptober 3.0 | 15/31 | Before 1970 2/5 | Decades 2/5 | 40s
London — 1886 Henry Wotton takes a taxi to see an old Oxford friend, the painter Basil Hallward. Hallward has been secretive about his latest painting, which piqued Wotton’s interest. Despite the butler’s protestations, Wotton enters Hallward’s study to find him working on a portrait of a handsome young man.
We suffer for what the gods give us, and I'm afraid Dorian Gray will pay for his good looks.
At the sound of the piano playing, the two venture into the parlor to find Gray playing. Wotton takes the opportunity to preach his hedonistic lifestyle and to dissuade Gray from a life of philanthropy. While doing so, he captures, kills, and mounts a rare butterfly.
They marvel at the finished painting, shown in three-strip Technicolor to contrast with the otherwise monochrome film.
As I grow old, this picture will remain always young. If it were only the other way... If it were I who would always be young and that picture that would grow old... For that, I would give everything. I'd give my soul for that.
Wotton points to a cat statue of an Egyptian god. He warns that it is quite capable of granting the wish.
Gray follows Wotton’s advice and seeks the pleasures formerly unknown. This inclination leads to him meeting tavern singer Sybil Vane. He courts her with Chopin and the two fall in love.
Wotton gives Gray a test for Sybil to confirm her love. Though Gray thinks it is reprehensible, he cannot help himself. The cost will be more than he can bear. Only the portrait reflects the change, whose expression alters into one of cruelty.
If youth has one folly, it’s the belief that there is still time to fix what you broke. Though life may have many days, their length may grow unbearable with the hard-earned wisdom of the irreparable. For one like Gray, who has traded his soul for endless youth, the misery is boundless, and he must forget his heart to make it through.
The film relies on incessant narration to convey Gray’s inner state. The lack of faith in the audience and dependence on the book dries out some emotional weight. It’s a shame because the movie has moments of genuine heartbreak.
The color inserts of the painting are inspired and are so striking! That’s the only effect done with any effort, unfortunately. Though Gray stays the same age and others age around him, we see no visible change in any other actor except for Gladys, who grows from a child to an adult.
Hurd Hatfield gives a decent performance as someone who lost their soul but still sees from within what is happening. Angela Lansbury shines the brightest — her naive love is the most genuine element on screen.
The film tones down the homoeroticism of the novel, but not by that much. The men can talk of women and whatnot, but how they discuss beauty, especially Dorian’s, has no straight reading.
Overall, I was impressed with how bleak and close to the novel the movie was, especially for the period.