The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945/2009)

I’ve always felt that Dorian Gray gets cinematic short-shrift compared to his contemporaries, Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster, and Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. While everyone else has had brides and sons and run-ins with Abbot and Costello, Dorian has been largely absent from the big screen. In the 60 years that span between the two films I am about to discuss, no significant addendums have been made to Dorian’s tale.

The most remarkable thing about the two films I am about to review is how utterly similar they are, though produced so far apart. Of course, there are the pacing and aesthetic changes that one might expect, and the recent version is able to be more explicit where the original is not. But what is truly remarkable is how both films treated the source material virtually the same, in my opinion, right down to hitting the same marks and making the same mistakes.

Doubt (2008)

Here's a straight movie review just because I can't get this one out of my head. Of course, that was the author's intent, as I will explain. This is definitely one of those films that should not be judged by the promos. Yes, the plot revolves around a Catholic priest who is accused of abusing an altar boy, but it is not the anti-Catholic screed one might expect. In fact, I’d say this is the first trick the author, John Patrick Shanley, plays on his audience as he toys with various prejudices throughout. Is it a perfect film? No. But it is probably one of the finest films I’ve seen in a long time.