Gods and Monsters (1998, UK)

I watched Gods and Monsters a couple of days ago. The main reason I decided to watch it was Sir Ian McKellan—also Blockbuster recommended it to me because of my other rentals. (Side note: I think that Blockbuster thinks that I want to watch nothing but GLBTQ films.) Then I found out that Brendan Fraser was in it, and I seriously reconsidered.

But I'm glad I watched it. It was quite interesting. It's about the director of such classics as Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. Apparently he was very openly gay, and it caused him a lot of trouble in his career and personal life. This film explores the final days of his life, leading up to his suicide in 1957. I loved the fact that it was a somewhat true story. I love that it was about the Golden Age of Hollywood. I loved that I didn't hate Brendan Fraser for once. I loved the incorporation of Whale's stroke/mental instability that led to increasing numbers of flashbacks. I loved piecing his history together.

And I loved Ian McKellan. This role was exactly how I've always pictured Sir Ian in real life—very British, very neat and polished, and very unashamed of his sexuality. He was brilliant. And almost sexy. Not to mention the fact that his acting was the most brilliant I've ever seen. (I always figured he had the potential, but I haven't seen enough of his movies to know for sure. Yeah, he's great.) Lynn Redgrave was also perfect.

So, although this isn't one of those films you could watch over and over, it was still wonderful. Adding all the good bits together gives it a pretty high rating for a non-repeater.

Rating: 4.0