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The Naked Civil Servant (DVD)
by GentleGenius
RELEASED: 1975, Cert. 15
RUNNING TIME: Approx. 77 mins
DIRECTOR: Jack Gold
PRODUCER: Barry Hanson
SCREENPLAY: Philip Mackie
MUSIC: Carl Davis
MAIN CAST:-
John Hurt as Quentin Crisp
Stanley Lebor as Mr Pole
Shane Briant as Norma
John ... Rhys-Davis as Barndoor
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FILM ONLY REVIEW
Made for and shown on Thames Television in 1975, plus being based on Quentin Crisp's autobiographical book of the same name, The Naked Civil Servant begins inside of Crisp's family home, when he was a young man. At constant loggerheads with his father, he, Quentin, holds one specific early memory in his mind, which is of him dressing up in girl's clothes, and dancing in front of a mirror. It surely (or even before) was at this point In his childhood that the infamous Quentin Crisp realised he was homosexual.
The TV film of The Naked Civil Servant follows a section of Quentin Crisp's life from the 1930s, through the second World War and right up to the 1970s, but the main crux of his story is set in the 1930s and 1940s.
Out in the big bad world and after having moved to London, Quentin has to contend with at the very least being a figure of fun, and at the worst, being a victim of bullying and violence....simply because he chose not to hide his sexuality under a bushel. Braving the social elements, this young man made it his business to be himself to the world. He dyed his hair, wore makeup, hung out with some very 'camp' friends and managed to courageously deal with every piece of prejudice cast in his direction with a calm demeanour and gentle, intelligent wit.
Quentin lived quite a colourful life. He had one or two relationships after having given up prostitution, eventually making the choice to view people as friends rather than potential lovers. He even attempted to join the army, much to the horror of the military personnel who interviewed him, and he managed to baffle a psychiatrist who was called in to diagnose him as being 'sexually perverted'.
One of my favourite scenes in the film is set in a courtroom, after Quentin was arrested by two plain-clothes policemen who filed a charge against him for soliciting. The dialogue throughout the whole of the film is superb, but it surpasses itself with its own brilliance during this scene as Crisp calmly managed to put his own side of the story forward with delicious eloquence.
It seems that Quentin was at his happiest when either alone, or hanging out with a group of arty-farty friends, as they accepted him.
What stands out for me most of all, is Crisp's attitude towards life. He had an amazing philosophy which although may not have served to make him a distinctly happy individual, he certainly appeared to be content with who he was and his lot....perhaps he had to be! It was a case of do or die, I suppose.
I am a great admirer of John Hurt as an actor, and have seen him play some very commanding roles....his lead in The Naked Civil Servant being no exception. Beautifully slotting into what seems like a second skin, Hurt gives an absolutely stunning and sensitive performance as the beguiling, charmingly endearing character of Quentin Crisp.
The rest of the main cast members also play their parts very well - particularly Stanley Lebor (a few years later to star as Howard in Ever Decreasing Circles) as Mr Pole, a Polish man who befriends Quentin, yet loses his mind and ends up in psychiatric care.
In the early part of the film when Quentin Crisp is feeling his feet, he meets up with and joins a small group of homosexuals/cross-dressers who accept him into their world and show him the ropes. As far as the cast members who played these parts, I do feel that they overdid the 'camp' element somewhat.....but I say that as an observation rather than a complaint.
There is a musical score to The Naked Civil Servant, but despite trying, I've never managed to notice it during the few times I've seen this film since its release back in 1975. I think I get so caught up in Crisp's life, his personality and charm, plus John Hurt's amazing acting skills, that the music doesn't seep into my awareness, so I am unable to comment upon it.
What I like about The Naked Civil Servant, especially bearing in mind that it is factual, is the contrast between the two worlds in which Quentin Crisp moved. The first of those worlds was the one we all see and know every day....after all, he had to get from A to B, cross the street, visit shops to buy food etc., and he frequently encountered blatant prejudice. The other world was Quentin's associations with his friends, people who loved and accepted him for what he was.
Amongst many things, what for me is most important about Quentin Crisp as an individual, is how he helped to push forward society's acceptance of homosexuality, bearing in mind that he put himself at great risk of ridicule and arrest, simply due to him being who he was....a gay man in a nation where being so was thought of as a disgusting and serious perversion, plus homosexuality was illegal until 1967. Even after its legalisation, disgust towards gay people prevailed for a very long time....and sadly in certain circles such still may exist, although thankfully our tolerance levels as a nation have improved beyond all recognition for the most part.
I have read Quentin Crisp's autobiography upon which this film is based, and it continues past the point where the film ends - but, I understand a follow-up was made in 2009 called An Englishman In New York, which apparently follows his life after he emigrated across the pond. I've not seen An Englishman In New York, but I do remember Sting's song of the same name which contains a couple of quotations directly taken from Crisp's The Naked Civil Servant book....hopefully one day I will rectify this.
The Naked Civil Servant has been issued with a 15 certificate, but I personally am unable to see why, because as far as I'm concerned, it contains nothing that could be deemed as offensive, or 'not for the children'. In fact, I feel it would be a very valuable film for young people to watch, as it may help them learn to understand the psychology behind homosexuality....beautifully conveyed by Quentin Crisp's own words....hence perhaps encouraging them to rid themselves of any potential prejudices which they may be in the process of developing - possibly passed onto them by their parents or peers. I also personally feel that parents really shouldn't have anything to worry about regarding young people seeing this film from the aspect of fearing it may encourage their offspring to be influenced into homosexuality - nobody can make someone else homosexual. A person either is or isn't, and I'd hope that this film would pass across that message perfectly.
All in all, The Naked Civil Servant is a beautifully acted film, with John Hurt perfectly cast in the lead role. It is mildly amusing in parts, very easy to watch and utterly fascinating. Of course it does come across as a little dated regarding the filming techniques, but it was made in 1975, and it wasn't old-fashioned then, so perhaps we shouldn't expect the film to have been made any differently.
I strongly recommend anybody and everybody to hunt down a copy of The Naked Civil Servant and be treated to a highly entertaining, heartwarming 77 minutes of pure brilliance. John Hurt did receive a BAFTA award for his wonderful performance, and it unquestionably was well-deserved.
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At the time of writing, The Naked Civil Servant can be purchased from Amazon as follows:-
New: from £10.97 to £38.00
Used: from £9.98 to £24.99
A delivery charge of £1.26 should be added to the above figures.
Thanks for reading!
~~ Also published on Ciao under my CelticSoulSister user name ~~
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Nighty Night - Series 1 (DVD)
by lyndsey1989
I kept hearing about this programme from a friend and after hearing it had numerous Gavin and Stacey stars in it I decided to give it a go. I watched it as part of my Netflix package and these are my thoughts on series one.
Jill Farrell is in her late thirties. Though she tells everyone she is 27. She is married but is ... currently living alone because her husband is suffering from cancer and therefore is staying at the local hospital. Despite Terry having cancer Jill is keeping her spirits up - infact sometimes it seems as though shes a teeny bit glad Terry is tucked away!
Jill is a hairdresser and is fortunate to own her own salon. She has a couple of employees including Linda who forever seems to be making mistakes and who Jill is often telling off. Outside of work, Jill has befriended her new neighbours Don and Cath. She initiates a friendship with Cath but is it really Cath she wants to be friendly with?!
I had quite high expectations of this because of all the raving reviews I had heard. After watching the first episode which was a pilot I was in two minds. I enjoyed seeing Jills story and I did want to see what was going to happen next however the programme didnt grab me like I was expecting it would. The programme has quite a dry sense of humour and I was firstly a bit sceptical of this, I knew it was supposed to be funny but I found it a little over the top and thought it could have been written a little better.
However, I didnt give up on it and I am pleased to say that over the next couple of episodes I began to enjoy the series much more. I think with this comedy you do need to watch a few first in order to really let you get into the plot and get to know the characters. I believe its essential to fully understand Jill before seeing the programme how its meant to be!
Jill is a nightmare to be honest. She is a less than perfect wife, a less than perfect boss and a less than perfect friend. However, her antics are hilarious! Jill thinks she is gods gift to men and isnt afraid to show it, often wearing rather revealing clothing and behaving in a very sexual way towards anyone.
I find Jill quite a difficult character to summarise how I feel about her - she does some unthinkable things which I think are unacceptable but then as she is the main character so therefore we spend all the series with her and she does seem so naive it does make me like her.
I think the other main characters are very well created. Linda - Jill's employee and friend provides a real source of entertainment and humour whilst the neighbours Don and Cathy are also amusing in the way that they really dont know how to accept Jill.
The acting in the series is very good and Julia Davis as Jill really is fantastic. Initially I was worried I may see her as Dawn from Gavin and Stacey but this label soon disappeared as the character of Jill is so poweful that you fail to see her as anything else! Linda is played by the fabulous Ruth Jones and she really does a brilliant job of portraying the unfortunate friend who doesnt quite know how to react to Jill. I think the main humour of the series is directed at Cathy who is played by Rebecca Front. Jill is absolutely awful towards her and although initially I did think is this really funny or is it cruel? I soon began to understand Jills ways and after understanding her a little more then I did find it more humorous.
The series has six episodes which are each half an hour long. I think this is a good length for each episode as it allows mini stories to be told in each of the episodes. I think it would definitely be better to watch this as a series but it would be ok to watch them out of order if you see them showing on TV or something. However, do be aware that Jill does take a little bit of getting used to!
A second series of this was released which I will review over the next few days.
The programme was originally shown on BBC Three in 2004.
The DVD for series one is currently available on Amazon for £4.99.
The series stars Julia Davis, Ruth Jones, Angus Deayton, Kevin Eldon and Rebecca Front.
To sum it all up, this is a comedy with a dark sense of humour. It takes a little bit of getting used to but it is an interesting and humorous series. However, I wouldnt recommend the programme if you are easily offended as I do find there are a lot of on the line jokes.
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Not Going Out - Series 4 (DVD)
by shuvozofudge
I am a HUGE Not Going Out fan, so when I found out a 4th series was to be returning I was thrilled.
Although I was disappointed with the knowledge that Barbara, the spunky, but useless cleaner was not returning, I decided to give Series 4 a chance.
Lee Mack is a brilliant and hilarious comedian, who in my eyes absolutely makes ... the show, without him and his witty remarks, Not Going Out would not be the great show it is.
For anyone who has not watched this show, then you are missing out, with some hilarious comedians lending in their jokes to help Lee Mack along the way, it truly is a great show!
Although I was disappointed with this series.
Compared to series 1,2,3 it just pales in comparison, the jokes are not as hilarious and the acting not as free, everyone seemed very scripted and mechanic.
This kills me to say as Not Going Out is by far the best comedy show out there and I could watch it repeatedly(which I do), my advice is start from the beginning, go straight to series 1 and don't judge it from this series 4.
Basic Storyline:
Episode 1- Lee and Tim get mixed up in a situation involving drugs, and must risk life and limb to fix the problem.
Episode 2- A mysterious girl turns up on the scene and it brings back a whole host of memories for Lee.
Episode 3- Lee rents the flat out to be used as a location for a dirty film, without Lucy's knowledge.
Episode 4- Lee plays marriage councillor for Tim and Lucy's parents.
Episode 5- An elderly, lost woman turns up on the flat doorstep and it's up to Lee to return her home.
Episode 6- Lee gets hit by a car and fights for his life in a coma all the while he's dreaming about an alternate life.
Main cast:
Lee Mack-Lee-Lucy's lodger.
Tim Vine- Timothy Adams -Lee's best friend.
Sally Bretton-Lucy Adams-Tim's sister and Lee's landlady.
Katy Wix-Daisy-Tim's girlfriend.
Advantages:
-Great comedians.
-Lots of wit.
-Lee Mack is a comedy genius.
-Still an awesome series.
-Great hidden storyline.
Disadvantages:
-No 'Barbara'
-Lack of good acting.
-Low budget jokes.
-Some new characters do not 'fit in'.
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