Because the story is airbrushed to the point of uncertainty, The Trials of Oscar Wilde, the other 1960 Oscar Wilde film, pales by comparison to Oscar Wilde. Clearly, the more expensive movie, filmed in Technicolor – the cinematographer is Ted Moore – with a large cast, it does, however, boast a better Bosie (John Fraser) and a better Queensbury (Lionel Jeffries). Directed by Ken Hughes, with Peter Finch as Wilde and James Mason as Sir Edward Carson. The film was released by Warwick Films, a partnership between Cubby Broccoli and Irving Allen, one week after the release of Oscar Wilde. SUBMITTED and APPROVED WITHOUT CUTS by the PCA – FRAMED AS A MORAL TRAGEDY – THE DOWNFALL OF A HOMOSEXUAL. Please see Table for a Wilde–to-Wilde comparison.
Streaming on YouTube.
https://thebrownees.net/oscar-wilde-1960-queer-film/
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https://thebrownees.net/sunday-bloody-sunday-1971-queer-film/
https://thebrownees.net/north-by-northwest-1959-queer-film-hitchcock/
https://thebrownees.net/85-queer-films-made-under-the-hays-code-1934-1968/
https://thebrownees.net/85-queer-films-from-the-new-hollywood-1968-1980/
THE TWO 1960 OSCAR WILDE MOVIES COMPARED
Oscar Wilde vs. The Trials of Oscar Wilde BOTH FILMS WERE APPROVED BY THE HAYS OFFICE BECAUSE BOTH SHOWED THE DOWNFALL OF OSCAR WILDE, THE DOWNFALL OF A HOMOSEXUAL. BOTH MOVIES WERE FRAMED AS MORAL TRAGEDIES, particularly Oscar Wilde. The Trials of Oscar Wilde suggested that Wilde may have been heterosexual and perfectly happy with Constance, only to be tempted into sexual deviancy by Bosie and other nefarious characters. | |||||
| 1960 movie | Oscar Wilde | The Trials of Oscar Wilde | 1960 movie | Oscar Wilde | The Trials of Oscar Wilde |
| Hays Code Seal of Approval | SUBMITTED: YES APPROVED: YES | SUBMITTED: YES APPROVED: YES | Rating @TheBrownees | B- | (C) |
| SOURCE | Play OSCAR WILDE by Leslie and Sewell Stokes | Unproduced play THE STRINGED LUTE by John Furnell (the pseudonym of Phyllis Macqueen) | WILDE | Robert Morley (straight actor) | Peter Finch (straight actor) |
| ADAPTION | Screenplay by Jo Eisinger | Screenplay by Ken Hughes and Montgomery Hyde | BOSIE | John Neville (straight actor) | John Fraser (gay actor) |
| DIRECTION | Gregory Ratoff | Ken Hughes | MRS. WILDE | Phyllis Calvert | Yvonne Mitchell |
| PRODUCTION | William Kirby | Harold Huth in conjunction with Warwick Films (Irvin Allen and Albert R. Broccoli) | ROBBIE ROSS | Dennis Price (gay actor) | Emrys Jones (straight actor) |
| DISTRIBUTION | Wide release in the UK, US and Europe. TCF in the US. | Wide release in the UK, US and Europe. Columbia in the US. | QUEENSBURY | Edward Chapman | Lionel Jeffries |
| BUDGET | $250,000 (black and white) | $400,000 (color) | Sir Edward Carson | Ralph Richardson | James Mason |
| Box office | Modest loss – broke even in some regions | A major flop – it almost bankrupted Warrick Films | Sir Edward Clarke | Alexander Knox | Nigel Patrick |
