The untold story of the last days in the tragic times of Oscar Wilde, a person who observes his own failure with ironic distance and regards the difficulties that beset his life with detachment and humor.
Take a look back at the talented actors and actresses who took home a Golden Globe for Best Actor/Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama since the category was created in 1951.
In a cheap Parisian hotel room Oscar Wilde lies on his death bed. The past floods back, taking him to other times and places. Was he once the most famous man in London? The artist crucified by a society that once worshipped him? Under the microscope of death he reviews the failed attempt to reconcile with his long suffering wife Constance, the ensuing reprisal of his fatal love affair with Lord Alfred Douglas and the warmth and devotion of Robbie Ross, who tried and failed to save him from himself. Travelling through Wilde's final act and journeys through England, France and Italy, the transience of lust is laid bare and the true riches of love are revealed. It is a portrait of the dark side of a genius who lived and died for love.Written by
Beta Film GmbH
Principal photography on this movie began in mid September 2016 in Bavaria, Germany. Filming was also done in France, Belgium, and Italy. See more »
Goofs
Reggie Turner (1870.6.2-1938) played by 48 year old Firth. See more »
Quotes
Oscar Wilde:
All I'm saying, Reggie, dear, is I have lived in the grip of vice and pleasure. It was wrong and I have paid. Perhaps the slate is wiped clean, perhaps it is not, who knows? At any rate, I am now ready to return to life.
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Crazy Credits
During the end credits Oscar Wilde is heard and seen singing a French song in a cafe. Then there are flashbacks of audiences applauding his works in a theatre. See more »
"The Happy Prince" is an interesting, sad look at the great poet and playwright Oscar Wilde at the end of his life, when he lived in poverty, declined health and social exile in France. The film seems like a labor of love for Rupert Everett, its star and director, but the finished product looks a bit low-budget and claustrophobic. The shaky camera work was distracting at times. Anyone who loves Wilde will appreciate this film's sensitive exploration of his inner thoughts and emotions, and how he suffered after his trial, incarceration and social exclusion for his sexual relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas at a time when sex between two men was illegal in England. Although Wilde is shown here living freely in France, he is separated from his two children and his career has been destroyed, so Everett delves into these painful aspects of the writer's later life, partially through dreamily lit flashbacks. "The Happy Prince" is a touching, rather slow film for Wilde fans, but I prefer Stephen Fry's crackling portrayal in Brian Gilbert's "Wilde" (1997), and that earlier film is better overall, perhaps due to superior direction and production quality.
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"The Happy Prince" is an interesting, sad look at the great poet and playwright Oscar Wilde at the end of his life, when he lived in poverty, declined health and social exile in France. The film seems like a labor of love for Rupert Everett, its star and director, but the finished product looks a bit low-budget and claustrophobic. The shaky camera work was distracting at times. Anyone who loves Wilde will appreciate this film's sensitive exploration of his inner thoughts and emotions, and how he suffered after his trial, incarceration and social exclusion for his sexual relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas at a time when sex between two men was illegal in England. Although Wilde is shown here living freely in France, he is separated from his two children and his career has been destroyed, so Everett delves into these painful aspects of the writer's later life, partially through dreamily lit flashbacks. "The Happy Prince" is a touching, rather slow film for Wilde fans, but I prefer Stephen Fry's crackling portrayal in Brian Gilbert's "Wilde" (1997), and that earlier film is better overall, perhaps due to superior direction and production quality.