I love The Picture of Dorian Gray, I love Colin Firth, I love Oscar Wilde. But I literally hate this movie. I'm wondering if the producer actually read the book or he just get this idea from somebody else and thought "Changing picture? Cool!". He changed every single details, and those details are so important to build this story. All I got from this movie was a beautiful young man who wanted to be beautiful forever, nothing else. I even didn't see his struggle or regret or worried or any complicated thing at all. His feeling was very deep. The Picture of Dorian Gray is a great book, one of my favourites. And I'm sorry, this movie is like a joke.

I really enjoyed this film, I do not agree with the bad reviews some viewers left.Its atmosphere is very dark and Gothic, so it helps if you like these qualities in a film. Splendid costumes and settings, and very good acting all around. Dorian Gray is perfect as a smooth faced naive high society boy who slowly gets corrupted.There are quite a few diversions to the original story. I have read the book quite a few years back and it' s one of my favourites. Having said that, I found the changes to the story in this film very plausible and interesting. There have been so many films about Dorian Gray, so I am not against a version that changes something, as it still keeps the values and ideas of the book in mind.

Here's the Thing. It is Recommended that Before Watching this Film that is Worth a Watch, Read the Book. Or if You are a Movie Only kind of Person than View the 1945 Version. Only then is it Advisable to give this one a Go.Because the 1945 Film is Infinitely Better and the Book is, well, The Book. This Movie's Watchability is Only So Because of the Witticisms and Cynicisms of Oscar Wilde. Otherwise this Mediocre Movie is Nothing More than a Bad Version of a Good Hammer Film.It Relies on Nudity, Bloody Violence, and Modern Cinema Trickery to make this a Product of its Time and Persuade Current Audiences that this is Hip to the Jive of what Today's Moviegoers Expect. But it is done Without Much Style and is Rather Pedestrian.Ben Barnes as Dorian and Colin Firth as His Mentor Henry are Adequate Both, But the Film is Forever Pushy with its Ridiculous CGI 3D Painting and Long Sex Scenes that Bury the Story with Excessive Overkill that is Frankly a Bit Boring. The Things that make the Classic Book and the Better Forties Version So Much More Rewarding is Charm and Style. This One has Precious Little of Both and is a Middle of the Road Exercise that should Only be Seen as a Curiosity after Experiencing the Aforementioned Book and or Movie.

Well, it seems they have taken some liberties with adapting the story from the original novel, which sadly for Hollywood films, almost always leaves the movie just a bit worse than than the book. My first thought about the movie after the ending was : "well they had some gorgeous outfits".Though Dorian depicted here wasn't what I expected (I expected a life- size porcelain doll), Ben Barnes was nevertheless charming and did keep my attention during the film.The portrayal of Lord Henry was exactly what I expected and fun to watch, but not as nearly as interesting as reading his words from the book.The actress playing Sibyl Vane was beautiful, but her storyline was completely ruined, she wasn't given any personality and they cut out one of the best parts from the book: the real reason why Dorian breaks off the engagement(which is not her nagging about him going to the club, but her obsession with his love) which signifies the start of him becoming shallow and eventually evil.What lacked in this film was more of Wilde's philosophy, charm and Lord Henry's paradoxical opinions. I guess they had to cut all of that out in order to make room for a couple of sex scenes and a pointless subplot about Henrys daughter Emily, which of course did nothing good for the film. I know that literature back in the 19th century was subversive, but good Lord, they really read between the lines. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't remember Dorian sleeping with half of London in the book. They also dedicated a few seconds to advertise autocompany Fiat which ddidnt exist at the time.One more thing, the musical score made the film sound like a horror movie.The photography, the visuals and production design were amazing, but it is a missed opportunity.