Dorian Gray (2009)

Director Oliver Parker is not new to making films and while most of what he has made I have not heard of he has had a few films that I have. I just haven’t seen any of them and none that I have heard of were in the horror genre. Off the bad this may be worrisome that someone known more for movies involving romance is doing a horror film but the amount of sleaze brought forth in the lust filled world of this film practically requires it. I can’t say that he has no experience in the horror genre as he was an actor in Hellraiser, Hellraiser 2, and Nightbreed. Clearly there is a little love for the darkness of films we all love. Dorian Gray is of course based off of the original novel by Oscar Wilde about a man who would not age though the painting that was done of him did. This screenplay was written for the big screen by Toby Finlay who has done nothing before or since and I kind of hope that changes since a lot of potential was shown in this film.

While the film itself can’t be said to be fully faithful to the original novel to make it the horror film that it is would be impossible to have kept it 100% in line with the original. That works perfectly though as the constant barrage of sex and violence that is shown fits exactly for how the movie itself plays out. The story focuses around Dorian (Ben Barnes) who is a young man recently come to wealth that has just arrived in the city. Here he knows not a soul or how the social structure works or how dark many of the people he is soon to meet are within their circle. He is quick to meet Basil (Ben Chaplin) a famous artist who is enamored with his looks and eventually is the one to catch his likeness on canvas. At one of the first social events he is brought to he is introduced to Lord Henry (Colin Firth) who is the embodiment of hedonism. Lord Henry quickly realizes that the young Dorian is extremely impressionable and willing to listen to nearly anything he says so tries to teach him the ways of Earthly pleasures that he lives by.

As Dorian slowly starts to succumb to the temptations of an overly sexual lifestyle it is agreed that he will allow Basil to paint him. At the paintings completion, having fallen into the lifestyle of hedonism, Dorian mentions he would sell basically attach his soul to such perfection for eternal pleasure. This is of course is exactly what happens as his soul becomes attached to the painting so that anything that is negative which he does or would happen to him in fact happens to the painting while he is left untouched.

Dorian ends up needing to kill to keep his secret and instead of feeling remorse decides to travel the world as he does not wish to be thought of as involved in that. He spends over 30 years away and when he returns his still living friends are shocked to see that he has not aged. A lifestyle of sin has completely corrupted the painting that stores his soul and when he finally finds something to live for it is predictable what befalls the painting itself. Overall it is a good tale and while the ending didn’t feel right with how Dorian acted right up to it was still a fun watch.