Oscar Wilde

The movie "Wilde" is on display in Singapore. It came out in 1997, and one wonders why it is shown here more than 10 years later. Perhaps the censors have finally decided that the Singapore audience is mature enough to be exposed to Oscar Wilde's homosexuality.

It is a beautiful production, which benefits enormously from glorious settings. Wikipedia informs us that "Scenes were filmed at Knebworth House in Hertfordshire; Lincoln's Inn in Holborn; Lulworth Cove, Studland Bay, and Swanage Pier in Dorset; Luton Hoo in Bedfordshire; Magdalen College in Oxford; and Somerset House in The Strand". These settings and the opulence of the late 19th century interiors and costumes make this movie one of the best period pieces that cinema has ever achieved.

The movie owes much to Stephen Fry's performance. Throughout the movie, Oscar Wilde tells a story of a giant to his two sons, and Stephen Fry successfully conveys the notion that Oscar Wilde, below his veneer of socialite and brilliant writer equipped with a sharp wit, was himself a gentle giant. This comes out most movingly when, under questioning during his trial for indecency, he gives a definition of "the love that dares not say its name". His gentleness and humility in front of the prosecutor questioning him make for the most effective eloquence, which wins him the support of the court's audience, to the great chagrin of the judge.

The real hero of the movie is Wilde's flowing prose, magnificently delivered by Stephen Fry. Ultimately, this is what makes this movie successful, together with the brilliant cast around Stephen Fry: Jude Law (eleven years ago, he really looked like a pretty boy in his role of Lord Alfred Douglas), Vanessa Redgrave and others.

The love scenes, I must admit, made me uneasy, and I suspect that many reacted to them in the same way. It still strikes most people as shocking to see sex scenes between two men. The musical score did not help, as its swelling romanticism, annoying enough during heterosexual scenes, felt in this case totally out of place. This is, I think, the one weakness of this movie.