McKellen: Playing the Part

May 25, 2018

1h 32m

★ 7.2

Overview

Built upon a 14 hour interview, McKellen: Playing the Part is a unique journey through the key landmarks of McKellen's life, from early childhood into a demanding career that placed him in the public eye for the best part of his lifetime. Using an abundance of photography from McKellen's private albums and cinematically reconstructed scenes, a raw talent shines through in the intensity, variety and devotion to that moment in the light.

Genres

Documentary

History

Production Companies

Great Point Media

B Good Picture Company

Ugly Duckling Films

Surreal Films

McKellen: Playing the Part Trailers

Cast

Self

Ian McKellen

Scott Chambers

Luke Evans

Young Ian McKellen

Milo Parker

Adam Brown

Frances Barber

Her Majesty's Smallest Subject

Penny Clapcott

Society has created a stereotype of the LGTBQ collective in which its members are young people who are fashionable, who have money, who have a lot of fun and who never pass the age of forty. But where are the older ones? When they reach that age, do they evaporate? This documentary makes visible a little-discussed topic: old age.

4.5

Boys On Film 21: Beautiful Secret

Mar 1, 2021

Those boys you know and love are back! Boys On Film invites you on a voyage of emotion-soaked self-discovery, where same-sex attraction is celebrated, first loves are tenderly formulated, and beautiful secrets burn and bloom. Volume 21: Beautiful Secret includes nine complete films: Theo James Krekis's "Memoirs Of A Geeza" starring Elliot Warren and Tony Richardson; Joe Morris's "We Are Dancers" starring Hans Piesbergen and Simon Eckert; Zachary Ayotte's "My Dad Works The Night Shift" starring Victor Boudreault, Antoine L'Écuyer, and François Trudel; Loïc Hobi's "The Pier Man" starring Hubert Girard and Youssouf Abi-Ayad; Jason Bradbury's "My Sweet Prince" starring Yodi Roodner; Abel Rubinstein's "Dungarees" starring Pete MacHale and Ludovic Jean-Francios; Sam Peter Jackson's "Clothes & Blow" starring David Menkin and Nancy Baldwin; George Dogaru's "A Normal Guy" starring Vlad Bîrzanu and Pedro Aurelian; and Pierce Hadjinicola & Sinclair Suhood's "Pretty Boy" starring Orlando Norman.

5.9

The Colour of His Hair

Jun 20, 2017

Based on an unrealized film script written in 1964 for The Homosexual Law Reform Society, a British organisation that campaigned for the decriminalization of homosexual relations between men, "The Colour Of His Hair" merges drama and documentary into a meditation on queer life before and after the partial legalization of homosexuality in 1967.

4.0

Army of Lovers or Revolt of the Perverts

May 4, 1979

Personal diary-style documentary of German Gay rights activist Von Praunheim's sojourn in the US.

4.8

Secrets of the Gay Sauna

Mar 2, 2016

Gay saunas are places where men meet strangers to have sex. With exclusive access to one Nottingham business, this candid one-off documentary enters the often controversial and always secretive world of the gay sauna for the very first time. The programme meets the people who go there for sexual pleasure - from teachers to plumbers to Tory councillors - and the staff who clean up after them.

1.0

AYOR

May 1, 2021

In 1970, during the annual Dutch national commemoration of those fallen in World War II, two men try to make a statement against gay discrimination. In the moments before and after the incident, their doubt, fear and firm belief becomes clear.

3.8

Hold on Tight

Jul 28, 2011

A short documentary exploring the ways LGBT couples show affection, and how small interactions like holding hands in public can carry, not only huge personal significance, but also the power to create social change.

4.9

Queerama

Jun 9, 2017

Created from a treasure trove of archive, Queerama traverses a century of gay experiences, encompassing persecution and prosecution, injustice, love and desire, identity, secrets, forbidden encounters, sexual liberation and pride. The soundtrack weaves the lyrics and music of John Grant, Goldfrapp and Hercules & Love Affair with the images and guides us intimately into the relationships, desires, fears and expressions of gay men and women in the 20th century – a century of incredible change.

6.1

Outrage

Apr 24, 2009

An indictment of closeted politicians who lobby for anti-gay legislation in the US.

7.2

Milk

Nov 5, 2008

The true story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man ever elected to public office. In San Francisco in the late 1970s, Harvey Milk becomes an activist for gay rights and inspires others to join him in his fight for equal rights that should be available to all Americans.

0.0

Victim of Circumstance

Oct 28, 2024

Scott and Brandon meet at an orphanage in the 1980s. When Brandon sets off for California, Scott follows close behind. Their story lives in the margins of an adult magazine.

5.4

Dream Boat

Jun 28, 2017

A cruise ship and 3,000 men – it is a universe without heteros and women that usually remains a mystery to the outside world. Once a year the Dream Boat sets sail for a cruise exclusively for gay men where most passengers are united by the wish to live life authentically as themselves in a protected place.

4.4

Acts of Love

Apr 29, 2021

When his older boyfriend loses interest in him, the filmmaker relocates to Chicago and uses dating apps to cast new lovers in an amorphous project that his mother hates.

8.2

John Cranko

Oct 3, 2024

The gifted, charismatic artist John Cranko moves to the Swabian province from London, where he is attacked for his homosexuality, and after many crises becomes the great sensation as the new pop star of the arts: the Stuttgart Ballet Miracle.

6.1

The Krays

Apr 27, 1990

Twins Ronnie and Reggie Kray are raised in east London, under the influence of their hateful but doting mother Violet. As they grow up, Ronnie's violent nature takes over, and Reggie follows his brother's lead. The two become notorious crime lords who rule over the East End club scene. But at the height of their power, the brothers veer into different lives, giving the older crime bosses a chance to reclaim what the Krays took from them.

8.1

Prayers for Bobby

Jan 24, 2009

Bobby Griffith was his mother's favorite son, the perfect all-American boy growing up under deeply religious influences in Walnut Creek, California. Bobby was also gay. Struggling with a conflict no one knew of, much less understood, Bobby finally came out to his family.

3.3

Have We Met Before?

Mar 17, 2019

Short docudrama exploring the history of sex in the homosexual community from the 1970s to the present day, and how the internet has changed the way gay men meet forever.

6.0

Pady | Jeff - The Documentary

Jul 16, 2018

Documentary about the musical artist and drag queen Pady Jeff produced by students of the Social Communication degree at the Catholic University of Uruguay.

6.5

Admiral

Jan 29, 2015

When the young republic of The Netherlands is attacked by England, France and Germany and faces its own civil war no less, only one man, Michael de Ruyter, can lead the county's strongest weapon, the Dutch fleet.

4.9

Omelette

Jan 14, 1998

A young man tired of writing and rewriting a screenplay decides to begin a Super 8mm film diary. He films his parents and those close to him and determines to tell the about his homosexuality.