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How to describe "The Dying Gaul." That is a challenge. It is very much like a play (which makes sense, seeing as it was adapted from one), and it makes one of the most skillful transitions from stage-to-screen that I have ever seen. It works like a play, but visually it thinks of itself as a movie. Confusing I know, but a person who has seen the movie will know what I'm talking about.<br /><br />In terms of what genre "The Dying Gaul" fits into, it's more of a drama/mystery. It has a slight noirish tone to it, but this is not "The Big Sleep." The beginning is a drama, but its transition to mystery is perfectly executed with such a subtle build-up that looking back, it's hard to believe that the beginning was from the same movie as the end of it, or that it all was accomplished in 101 minutes.<br /><br />Robert (Peter Saarsgard) has written a brilliant script after the death of his lover, Malcolm (Bill Camp). Movie producer Jeffrey Tishop (Campbell Scott) loves it, and wants to make it into a movie, but he insists that Robert change the relationship from homosexual to heterosexual. Jeffery's wife, Elaine (Patricia Clarkson) becomes interested in Robert, and then a few secrets are spilled which changes everything.<br /><br />"The Dying Gaul" is really about the three characters. Everyone else has only a few token lines of dialogue at best that simply flesh out the story. The three actors-Saarsgard, Scott, and Clarkson, develop their roles well, and the three of them are fully three-dimensional. Ironically, while Saarsgard may have the most interesting character on paper, he's actually rather flat compared to Clarkson and Scott. Clarkson plays the housewife who still has a job even though she could easily live off of her husband's wealth, and she's not as clueless as many other movie housewives are.<br /><br />Campbell Scott, though, is the real joy of "The Dying Gaul." At first he's a money-obsessed movie producer (the kind that seem to fill Hollywood these days), but as the movie goes on, he fleshes out his character and becomes a pretty sympathetic man. Scott dominates this movie, and it shows how truly gifted he really is.<br /><br />As good as this film is, it isn't perfect. The music, particularly at the beginning is too loud and threatens to drown out everything else. The film also leaves a few questions open-ended even though doing so serves no purpose.<br /><br />Still, "The Dying Gaul" manages to throw in a few unexpected twists and surprises, and it is very watchable and highly recommendable. |