Amazon.co.uk Review
Based on John Lahr's biography of the same name and co-written by Alan Bennett, Prick Up Your Ears charts the 16-year relationship between the monstrously talented but deeply selfish playwright Joe Orton (Gary Oldman), author of West End farces such as Loot and What the Butler Saw, and his neurotic but nevertheless wronged lover and collaborator Kenneth Halliwell (Alfred Molina). Halliwell introduced Orton to art, literature and gay sex only to see his protégeacute; outstrip his mentor with innate and rampant talent for sexual conquest. By turns hilarious and excoriatingly painful, it's as much a tribute to an anti-hero of our times-Orton's ruthless frankness and anarchic mindset helped form the basis of what's called the "queer" sensibility today--as it is a portrait of the Swinging 60s just after the reform of anti-homosexuality laws irrevocably changed society. The modern-day framing device has Lahr (Wallace Shawn) researching his book through interviews with Peggy Ramsay (Vanessa Redgrave), Orton's agent and the diary he wrote, a nimble device which ends up drawing a provocative parallel between Orton and Halliwell's relationship and that of Lahr and his wife (Lindsay Duncan). Director Stephen Frears, fresh off the back of the also-gay-themed My Beautiful Laundrette, nimbly balances our sympathies for both the protagonists while the leads give what may in retrospect look like the standout performances of their careers: Oldman was never more feral and charming, while Molina, foppishingly fretting over his wig and decrying that his lover "even sleeps better than I do" is simply heartbreaking. --Leslie Felperin
Customer Reviews:
Good but flawed.......2007-08-06
This is a great film that is really best seen on the big screen. It was a revelation to see it recently in the cinema since you can see all the detail of the collage in the Noel Road flat plus you realise how much of the sex scenes have been cut from the DVD version. I would say the DVD is a good 10 minutes shorter than the cinema version. Both are still mono too which is a shame since the song "By the sea!" which they sing as they run on the beach in Tangier with all the Moroccan boys would have benefitted by being in glorious stereo.
That said this is still an outstanding study of one man on the up (Orton) and another on the down (Halliwell). We only see Halliwell after he meets Orton so we see nothing of his early life during WW2, his acting in Scotland, his unpleasant father etc, but we do see the young Orton as he struggles to be an actor in Leicester. So it is a bit of a lop-sided portrayal of the two men, possibly concentrating a bit too much on Halliwell's misery. (He wasn't always like that of course.) The scenes from their flat and London life are authentic and Alan Bennett's script is just as sharp as the one he wrote for the film "A Private Function". A better film could probably be made but it would have to delve more deeply into Halliwell's early life to satisfy me. Until then this biopic by Stephen Frears will do nicely.
Fantastic!.......2007-01-25
With a nod to Oscar Wilde, this is one of the best British comedies of all time. How Joe would have loved that. The story of 60's playwright Joe Orton and his lover, Kenneth Halliwell, almost every line will have you falling about laughing, just like a Joe Orton play. The casting is perfect: Oldman plays Joe with cocky bravado, always the poseur; Molina (in a career-best role) captures the pathos of the jilted older lover, desperate for recognition of his clever but ultimately neurotic talent; Vanessa Redgrave steals every scene as Joe's agent, savouring some of the best lines in the film: 'It's a gesture, dear, not a recipe'; and Julie Walters gives a wonderful cameo performance as Joe's mother, complete with false teeth. The script by England's finest, Alan Bennett, scintillates in every line. Anyone who is interested in Britsh comedy will love this film. You can see Orton's influence on comedians like Victoria Wood and Paul Merton. It is a film to be watched again and again.
Have you pricked up your ears?.......2004-10-02
This film i would recommend to any orton fans. Oldman at his best and Molina just superb as the 'billious queen' Haliwell.
I didn't think i would enjoy it as much as i did but i watch it many times.
If you want to see the life of Orton in his last 6 months then check this out.
The death scene very tame but generally shows what happened
Dark, disturbing, but great acting!.......2002-09-24
All I can say about this film is summed up in 5 words:
Dark, Disturbing but great acting!
Wonderful, but disturbing at times. Gary Oldmans finest performance ever.
Just wish he'd done more films like this so he can show everyone that he is the great actor I know he is!
This film isn't to everyones taste, but the true story behind it is worth watching, to see how such a talented playwright was untimely struck down and how his gay lover was found naked and dead in his room.
Sad but true.......2000-03-14
This true story, based on John Lahr's biography of the playwright Joe Orton, is not for the squeamish. Orton (author of 'Loot' and 'Entertaining Mr Sloane' and real-life friend of Kenneth Williams) is played brilliantly by Gary Oldman, while his partner, the less successful and thus increasingly bitter Kenneth Halliwell, is recreated by Alfred Molina. Fond of picking up men in the public toilets of London, Orton lives life to the full, knowing no self-control whatsoever. His rise to fame is meteoric, while Halliwell - portrayed as possibly the better artist - is never recognised. Orton's brutal murder at the close of the film is a heart-stopping shock - but it's portrayed as it actually happened - he was beaten to death with a hammer by his lover, before Halliwell took his own life with an overdose.
Amazon.co.uk Review
Based on John Lahr's biography of the same name and co-written by Alan Bennett, Prick Up Your Ears charts the 16-year relationship between the monstrously talented but deeply selfish playwright Joe Orton (Gary Oldman), author of West End farces such as Loot and What the Butler Saw, and his neurotic but nevertheless wronged lover and collaborator Kenneth Halliwell (Alfred Molina). Halliwell introduced Orton to art, literature and gay sex only to see his protégeacute; outstrip his mentor with innate and rampant talent for sexual conquest. By turns hilarious and excoriatingly painful, it's as much a tribute to an anti-hero of our times-Orton's ruthless frankness and anarchic mindset helped form the basis of what's called the "queer" sensibility today--as it is a portrait of the Swinging 60s just after the reform of anti-homosexuality laws irrevocably changed society. The modern-day framing device has Lahr (Wallace Shawn) researching his book through interviews with Peggy Ramsay (Vanessa Redgrave), Orton's agent and the diary he wrote, a nimble device which ends up drawing a provocative parallel between Orton and Halliwell's relationship and that of Lahr and his wife (Lindsay Duncan). Director Stephen Frears, fresh off the back of the also-gay-themed My Beautiful Laundrette, nimbly balances our sympathies for both the protagonists while the leads give what may in retrospect look like the standout performances of their careers: Oldman was never more feral and charming, while Molina, foppishingly fretting over his wig and decrying that his lover "even sleeps better than I do" is simply heartbreaking. --Leslie Felperin
Customer Reviews:
Good but flawed.......2007-08-06
This is a great film that is really best seen on the big screen. It was a revelation to see it recently in the cinema since you can see all the detail of the collage in the Noel Road flat plus you realise how much of the sex scenes have been cut from the DVD version. I would say the DVD is a good 10 minutes shorter than the cinema version. Both are still mono too which is a shame since the song "By the sea!" which they sing as they run on the beach in Tangier with all the Moroccan boys would have benefitted by being in glorious stereo.
That said this is still an outstanding study of one man on the up (Orton) and another on the down (Halliwell). We only see Halliwell after he meets Orton so we see nothing of his early life during WW2, his acting in Scotland, his unpleasant father etc, but we do see the young Orton as he struggles to be an actor in Leicester. So it is a bit of a lop-sided portrayal of the two men, possibly concentrating a bit too much on Halliwell's misery. (He wasn't always like that of course.) The scenes from their flat and London life are authentic and Alan Bennett's script is just as sharp as the one he wrote for the film "A Private Function". A better film could probably be made but it would have to delve more deeply into Halliwell's early life to satisfy me. Until then this biopic by Stephen Frears will do nicely.
Fantastic!.......2007-01-25
With a nod to Oscar Wilde, this is one of the best British comedies of all time. How Joe would have loved that. The story of 60's playwright Joe Orton and his lover, Kenneth Halliwell, almost every line will have you falling about laughing, just like a Joe Orton play. The casting is perfect: Oldman plays Joe with cocky bravado, always the poseur; Molina (in a career-best role) captures the pathos of the jilted older lover, desperate for recognition of his clever but ultimately neurotic talent; Vanessa Redgrave steals every scene as Joe's agent, savouring some of the best lines in the film: 'It's a gesture, dear, not a recipe'; and Julie Walters gives a wonderful cameo performance as Joe's mother, complete with false teeth. The script by England's finest, Alan Bennett, scintillates in every line. Anyone who is interested in Britsh comedy will love this film. You can see Orton's influence on comedians like Victoria Wood and Paul Merton. It is a film to be watched again and again.
Have you pricked up your ears?.......2004-10-02
This film i would recommend to any orton fans. Oldman at his best and Molina just superb as the 'billious queen' Haliwell.
I didn't think i would enjoy it as much as i did but i watch it many times.
If you want to see the life of Orton in his last 6 months then check this out.
The death scene very tame but generally shows what happened
Dark, disturbing, but great acting!.......2002-09-24
All I can say about this film is summed up in 5 words:
Dark, Disturbing but great acting!
Wonderful, but disturbing at times. Gary Oldmans finest performance ever.
Just wish he'd done more films like this so he can show everyone that he is the great actor I know he is!
This film isn't to everyones taste, but the true story behind it is worth watching, to see how such a talented playwright was untimely struck down and how his gay lover was found naked and dead in his room.
Sad but true.......2000-03-14
This true story, based on John Lahr's biography of the playwright Joe Orton, is not for the squeamish. Orton (author of 'Loot' and 'Entertaining Mr Sloane' and real-life friend of Kenneth Williams) is played brilliantly by Gary Oldman, while his partner, the less successful and thus increasingly bitter Kenneth Halliwell, is recreated by Alfred Molina. Fond of picking up men in the public toilets of London, Orton lives life to the full, knowing no self-control whatsoever. His rise to fame is meteoric, while Halliwell - portrayed as possibly the better artist - is never recognised. Orton's brutal murder at the close of the film is a heart-stopping shock - but it's portrayed as it actually happened - he was beaten to death with a hammer by his lover, before Halliwell took his own life with an overdose.
UK DVD:
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- Prime Suspect 5 - Errors Of Judgement [1996]
- Prince - Purple Doves - Interviews [2007]
- Pure [2003]
- Quincy M.E. - Seasons 1 And 2
- Quiz Show [1995]
- Regular Lovers (Les amants réguliers) [2005]
- Rock Follies Of '77 [1977]
- Romero [1989]
- Rosamunde Pilcher - The Complete Collection
UK DVD List
UK DVD
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