The Boys In The Band

THE BOYS IN THE BAND [1970 / 2018] [Blu-ray] [UK Release]
Extraordinary! Ground-breaking! Controversial! A William Friedkin Tour de Force!

A group of thirty-something gay men gather to celebrate a birthday, but before long, tensions rise, secrets emerge and the insults begin to fly.

Director William Friedkin reassembled the original cast for his film adaption of the ground-breaking Broadway hit.  Playwright Mart Crowley adapted his own play, creating a script full of acerbic speeches and cutting one liners for his cast of unforgettable characters.

Released 50 years after its Broadway debut a year before the Stonewall riots. ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ still has the power to shock.

FILM FACT No1: Awards and Nominations: 1971 Golden Globes: Nomination: Most Promising Male Newcomer for Kenneth Nelson. 1971 Laurel Awards: Nomination: Male Star of Tomorrow for Cliff Gorman. Nomination: Male Star of Tomorrow for Leonard Frey in 4th place.

FILM FACT No2: Mart Crowley and Dominick Dunne set up the film version of the play with Cinema Center Films, owned by CBS Television. Mart Crowley was paid $250,000 plus a percentage of the profits for the film rights; in addition to this, he received a fee for writing the script. Mart Crowley and Dominick Dunne originally wanted the play's director, Robert Moore, to direct the film but Gordon Stulberg, head of Cinema Center Films, was reluctant to entrust the job to someone who had never made a film before. They decided on William Friedkin, who had just made a film of ‘The Birthday Party’ by Harold Pinter that impressed them. Director William Friedkin rehearsed for two weeks with the cast and shot a scene that was offstage in the play where Hank and Larry kiss passionately; the actors who played them were reluctant to do this on film but eventually decided to. William Friedkin then cut it in editing, feeling it was over-sensationalistic; he says now he wishes he had kept it in.

Cast: Kenneth Nelson, Frederick Combs, Cliff Gorman, Laurence Luckinbill, Keith Prentice, Peter White, Reuben Greene, Robert La Tourneaux, Leonard Frey, Maud Adams (uncredited) and Elaine Kaufman (uncredited)

Director: William Friedkin

Producer: Mart Crowley

Screenplay: Mart Crowley (play/screenplay)

Cinematography: Arthur J. Ornitz (Director of Photography)

Image Resolution: 1080p (Color by DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Audio: English: 2.0 LPCM Stereo Audio

Subtitles: English

Running Time: 120 minutes

Region: Region B/2

Number of discs: 1

Studio: Cinema Center Films / Second Sight Films

Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ [1970] finds a group of gay friends celebrating someone’s birthday and at the party we find Michael [Kenneth Nelson], a recovering alcoholic, who is the one throwing the party at his Upper East Side apartment. It’s Harold’s [Leonard Frey] birthday and their friend Donald [Frederick Combs] arrives early to help him prepare. As the other guests begin to arrive, Hank [Laurence Luckinbill] and Larry [Keith Prentice] with their relationship issues, the flamboyant Emory [Cliff Gorman] and the quiet Bernard [Reuben Greene], where the festivities soon get into full swing. However, when Michael’s straight college roommate Alan McCarthy [Peter White] shows up the already spicy atmosphere threatens to explode.

The interaction between the friends is the stuff of dramatic familiarity, where the characters are a mix of free-spirited, tied down closets, successful, failing, hopeful and bitter characters. Mart Crowley covers it all, littering his scenes with palpable reality.  We are launched straight into their world as the gay friends assemble for the birthday party and we find ourselves having to piece together their relationships just as we see them fall apart. Collectively, the cast of characters does what all ensembles should do and form a cohesive unit as different as they are similar in a funny sort of way. Amongst the bitterness, the friends are brutally honest. The secrets of their past brought forward through party games and alcohol. They live lives of disappointment, no matter how happy they try to be, and their pain is a pain that they share, though you wouldn’t think it from the barbed comments they exchange. 

The flamboyant Emory [Cliff Gorman] enlists the services of a young blond hustler, “Cowboy Rex” [Robert La Tourneaux], as a gift to Harold, but the men treat him with disdain; as a sex worker, and “Cowboy Rex” occupies an even lower rung on the social hierarchy than the rest of them do. Tensions mount when Michael’s straight college friend Alan McCarthy [Peter White] shows up unexpectedly, putting pressure on the men to conceal their sexualities for as long as possible. Emory cannot fool anyone, and, threatened by his effeminacy, Alan punches him in the face, bloodying his mouth and sweater. The evening climaxes when Michael forces everyone to play an embarrassing telephone game where the participants call the one person that they truly love.

Much of what makes ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ so amazibgly enjoyable and thought provoking in todays climate is Mart Crowley’s superbly funny, vicious and waspish dialogue that really captures the theme of the films scenario in showing what straight people do not encounter or experience at gay parties. Even the classic film like ‘All About Eve,’ touted for its hothouse script, with a barrage of verbal pyrotechnics acid wit, where words are both the weapons and the armour in endless skirmishes, and many of these words have found a permanent place in the gay culture, especially in films and plays of this genre, still resonate today.

Adapted brilliantly by Mart Crowley from his own Off-Broadway production, of “The Boys in the Band” is a whip-smart drama about gay life in New York. William Friedkin has taken the award-winning stage play and seamlessly moulded it for the big screen experience. It retains the theatrics without being overly too theatrical. It’s a film which lives or dies by the quality of the screenplay and of course the acting. Both are superb. ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ is a powerful, funny, bitter and hopeful drama about love and friendship. At the end of the day, ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ best works if you just view it as a product of its time. On top of all that, ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ and gives a rather nuanced glimpse of gay life in the mid-1960's when persecution of gay men was at its height in the United States and was also happening on this side of the pond in the United Kingdom.

THE BOYS IN THE BAND MUSIC TRACK LIST

ANYTHING GOES (Written by Cole Porter) (uncredited) [Performed by Harpers Bizarre]

THE LOOK OF LOVE (Written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach) (uncredited) [Performed by Burt Bacharach]

LOVE IS LIKE A HEATWAVE (Written by Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier and Brian Holland) (uncredited) [Performed by Martha and The Vandellas]

FUNKY BROADWAY (Written by Arlester Christian) (uncredited) [Performed by Wilson Pickett]

THE FROG (Written by João Donato) (uncredited) [Performed by Sergio Mendes]

TAKE THE FIFTH ADMENDMENT (Written by Joe Tex) (uncredited) [Performed by Joe Tex]

GOOD LOVIN’ AIN’T EASY TO COME BY (Written by Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson) (uncredited) [Performed by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell]

THE LOOK OF LOVE (Reprise) (Written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach) (uncredited) [Performed by Burt Bacharach]

Blu-ray Image Quality – Second Sight Films presents us with a really good and impressive Color by DeLuxe 1080p image quality that was probably been sourced from the original master of the Paramount 2008 DVD release, but is helped greatly with the 1.78:1 aspect ratio. It has so much more detail this time round, with slightly brighter and a more vivid coloured image presentation. The film grain is slightly more pronounced, which fits in well with the gritty subject matter. Owners of the inferior DVD release might want to upgrade, as visually, it is just slightly so much better higher-resolution step up from that inferior DVD disc release, because new viewers might be pleasantly surprised at how nice-looking this UK Blu-ray edition release appears and well worth purchasing. Please Note: Playback Region B/2: This will not play on most Blu-ray players sold in North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Learn more about Blu-ray region specifications.

Blu-ray Audio Quality – Second Sight Films brings you just one solid 2.0 LPCM Stereo Audio experience. But again because of the source, has tended to similarly aged, but still very pleasant audio experience, but has very limited audio dynamics, but it still is an enjoyable one and at least you can hear every word the actors speak. During the opening credits, with Harper's Bizarre version of "Anything Goes" playing in the background, people have commented that the audio performance tends to get a little distorted, but that is how the original Harper's Bizarre song sounded when released. Other than that, this was quite a good and pleasant audio track overall, and again with very clear dialogue and a good integration of the various kinds of music elements. So all in all not a bad effort on the part of Second Sight Films, especially with the age of the film and how older films were not very well kept in good condition or preserved for future audiences.

Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:

Special Feature: Mark Gatiss and Ian Hallard on ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ [2018] [1080p] [1.78:1] [23:21] Here Mark Gatiss and his husband Ian Hallard are interviewed in their home about the play and the film, because they both starred in the more recent revival of the play in London in 2017 at the Vaudeville Theatre in London’s West End. Mark Gatiss praises the director William Friedkin, especially praising his other films that included ‘The Birthday party,’ ‘The French Connection’ and ‘The Exorcist,’ and also gives great praise about the brilliant cast in ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ film. Mart Gatiss remembering seeing the film in his early teens and being very impressionable at that age, and especially the final scene at the end of the film, and feels how relevant the film was at the time, especially about loneliness, and that is why Mark Gatiss and Ian Hallard wanted to revive the play in 2017, because the characters in the play reflects how gay people are and also lead very complicated lives, and on top of all that Mark Gatiss and Ian Hallard feel it is a very good play, but also a very revolutionary play. So all in all, this is a really nice special feature and well worth viewing. 

Audio Commentary with Director William Friedkin and Writer & Producer Mart Crowley: Here we are introduced by Writer, Director and Producer Laurent Bouzereau [French filmmaker] who is the host for this DVD audio commentary, and first up to be introduced is director William Friedkin, who informs us that way back in 1969 he directed the feature film ‘The Birthday Party’ which was written by‎ ‎Harold Pinter and previously to that in 1968 directed the feature film ‘The Night They Raided Minsky’s’ and as mentioned in the previous special features, that Mart Crowley happened to go the  cinema to see the film ‘The Birthday Party’ and was so impressed that he was keen to contact William Friedkin to ask him to direct the film ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ and was eventually sent a script of the play and from that moment was really keen to direct Mart Crowley’s film, because on top of all that, previously and ironically William Friedkin went to see the Off Broadway production of the “The Boys in the Band” and felt that the play was absolutely brilliant, especially as he felt the script was well written, and a wonderful cast, and felt it would make a wonderful film, because it had so many emotions, from great laughter, to eventually very sad moments that could be incorporated into the film, and most importantly, the interaction with all the actors, but most importantly, it had brilliant witty and waspish dialogue. To see how gay people react to each other in certain situations, Willaim Friedkin was invited to Fire Island, that is an island off the southern shore of Long Island, New York, which was at the time a place where gays would hang out at the weekend, and was totally amazed what he witnessed and eventually decided to rent a house on Fire Island, even though he is straight, as he wanted to soak up the atmosphere, and help him to prepare for when he directed the film, and to also help to get the right atmosphere for the Birthday Party scene in the apartment, as well as to get the right the vibe from the actors like they would of done so either in 1967 or 1968. William Friedkin also informs us that he really worked well with Harold Pinter, which Mort Crowley heard about and that is why he was keen for William Friedkin to direct his film. William Friedkin felt Mort Crowley was a very talented and professional producer and very show business savvy and felt that the two of them would be a very creative collaboration and despite some slight disagreements, they really worked well together, as well as also working well with the cast and crew. Of course ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ was so very different from the other films that William Friedkin had directed, as the film was 100% dialogue driven, and just having a film that is dialogue driven was a very challenging prospect and while viewing the film and doing the audio commentary, was very pleased after all this time how well the film looks and especially the dynamic interaction between the actors and their characters in the film, and how good the framing of each scene looks really good and feels it is a very cinéma-vérité style of film-making that is characterized by realistic acting. William Friedkin talks about the overall performances of the actors that appeared in the stage play and also performing in front of the camera, because William says that the director has to have the camera focusing on the actors, compared with the actors on the stage, as the audience makes up their mind which actor to focus on, whereas the director tried to keep the camera on the most important actor in a certain scene, as well as a group of the actors in certain scenes to help the audience experience that actor or actors that are acting really well in a certain scene. William Friedkin felt seeing the stage play and felt the actors performed really well and to work out in his mind how to create that atmosphere for the film, but of late has been to see a new production of the stage play and felt the chemistry with these new actors were not quite as good as the original actors. One actor that William Friedkin was very proud and impressed was Frank Gorman who played Emory and thought he did a really wonderful performance in both the play and particularly really well in the film, but if William Friedkin made the film today he would have toned down Emory’s camp character, but still have the camp bitchy dialogue and on top of all that William Friedkin felt Frank Gorman was a very talented actor who could turn his acting ability into any other character in a totally different films and in fact has appeared in a lots of very dramatic films. William Friedkin also gives great praise to the actors Laurence Luckinbill who played Hank and Keith Prentice who played Larry, who played brilliant to straight acting guys, but were gay, which reflected the same type of straight people in the real world that are closet gays, and especially Hank who was married, but lived with his lover Larry, whereas Hank only wants a monogamous relationship, but Larry is totally the opposite and is totally promiscuous and wished Hank would be like him. Another actor that William Friedkin liked very much was Leonard Frey, who plays Harold, and felt he too was a brilliant actor, who portrayed his character so well as a totally bitchy Jewish gay man so perfectly, but is another actor who can turn his acting career to other totally different characters in totally different type of film, Even though William Friedkin singled out those particular actors, he also felt the other actors were totally brilliant character actors. At the time of the audio commentary recording, William Friedkin says that it is the first time in 40 years since directing the film, and moulding the actors to portray those particular gay characters in that period of time and now feels the film is very contemporary and of course since that film was released a lot of changes have happed, especially relating to gay issues, but despite this, William Friedkin feels very proud of his work on the film, because at the time it was very ground-breaking and especially in showing how gay men were in New York and especially in that period in American history, especially how everyone had to be in the closet in the straight world, otherwise if they got outed they would get the sack from their job and it was also very prevalent on how many male actors at the time were closet gays, otherwise again if outed they would never work in the acting profession, especially in America. William Friedkin talks about the process of editing the film and how the film tells him whether the film is too long or too shirt or certain scenes should be edited back into the film and all helps with the collaboration between the editor and the director. William Friedkin also talks about the choice of popular music used in the film that was very popular in the 1960s period and also very important to reflect that time in New York. At this point in the audio commentary, Mart Crowley is introduced and talks in-depth his feeling about the film and especially talking his early days in his writing career in New York where he was very down on his luck and feeling very depressed over a seven year period and at one point sent a screenplay to 20th Century Fox for a film that was starring Natalie Wood, who was a good close friend to Mart Crowley, but sadly that all fell through and eventually he was offered a job at Paramount Pictures and wrote another original screenplay for them, but for some unknown reason get got fired, and all his friends thought his career was well and truly over. Then he gets onto to talking about the time he sub-let his New York apartment to a European actor and through a phone call ended up in the big Hollywood Mansion in Tower Road and one mentioned in one of the special features and became a house sitter for six weeks and felt he was in the lap of luxury heaven, but despite that he still felt very depressed, but for some unknown reason in a flash of inspiration he picked up a pad and started writing the dialogue for “The Boys in the Band” play and now total out of his depression, went down the lounge and started typing furiously on his portable Olivetti typewriter the amazing dialogue for the nine characters. Eventually Mart Crowley comes into contact with Natalie Wood and becomes involved after the script was finished and through circumstances started the ball rolling to get the play up and running and again more details of this event is mentioned in one of the special features, so check it out. But eventually it opened in New York in a small theatre that held about 150 people and overnight it became a massive success and well know celebrities clamoured to come and see the play and it ran for eight days and then eventually went to Off Broadway and ran for 1001 nights, and then it was transferred to the London stage and on the opening night Mart Crowley and Natalie Wood attended, as did director Billy Wilder, his wife, his writing companion A.I.L. Diamond and the actress Tuesday Weld. But when Stonewall happened in New York, there was 100% backlash against the play for some unknown reason, and at that time the gay community in America felt it gave a negative stereotype image and was not conducive to the gay community, but 40 years on the film at last has come back to be appreciated for its ground-breaking attitude to the gay community. We now go back to William Friedkin, where he talks about how great the print of the DVD release of the film looks, especially now it has been digitally remastered, and makes it look far superior to its release via the original 35mm print, because they can manipulate the quality of the image with the DVD release and much quicker to produce, but William Friedkin says that when the print was first produced, it usually can take up to six to eight weeks in the process, and he felt that they could never get the quality 100% right and you would end up with the image looking very dirty, scratched or allowing visible splices to be seen when the film was seen in the cinema, and sometimes the film would break when projected, but with this DVD release, which is 100% spotless, clean and the colour is timed just right to look the way it was originally shot and looks totally fantastic, which was all done by the professional film colourist Brian McMann. After the release of ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ film, William Friedkin went onto direct ‘The French Connection’ and that dramatically changed his career substantially, especially as it won 23 wins and 11 nominations awards and especially at the 1972 Academy Awards® it won Best Picture for Philip D'Antoni  and Best Director for William Friedkin who comments that he is totally mystified why ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ film did not win anything at the Oscars, but did win several other awards at the 1971 Golden Globes and the 1971 Laurel Awards and William Friedkin feels the reason for this was poor distribution of the film’s release, so limited amount of people were unable to view the film and of course even worse in the very narrow minded provinces of America where it was boycotted, so denying the rights of people to view the film. Once again William Friedkin praises the quality of the DVD he was viewing for the audio commentary, and feels now people can see how the film should be viewed, especially with its beautiful print quality and also very good sound quality, that has no hiss or splice jumps and of course viewing the film via a DVD is far superior, than what you would of viewed in the cinema when the film was released. William Friedkin also comments that watching the DVD you are seeing the film how it should be viewed and has retained all of its entertainment value, even though it has lost some of its social position in the world, and there is no longer the stigma attached to being gay, as it was when the film was released, and today in certain circles of society, gay people are so much more readily excepted, and to the point that same sex partners can now get married. William Friedkin, again comments that he feels the film is very funny and at the same time extremely entertaining and most important is that the film is very powerful, which of course is helped by the brilliant screenplay by Mart Crowley, and of course the acting is as good as you would expect for this type of genre, and is helped of course with a totally magical group of professional actors, who seven has sadly passed away, but at the time came together to personify this work of Mart Crowley, that has become an extraordinary piece of work to come out of America in a very long time, and feels that the film has not dated, which again all comes down to the brilliant screenplay of Mart Crowley, and with films now being released on DVD’s and Blu-ray discs especially,  and helps to keep alive the art of the cinema. And so ends this fascinating audio commentary, which I found William Friedkins comments very enjoyable and informative, but sadly Mart Crowley was less forthcoming with his comments and only does about 10 minutes of audio commentary. But despite this, it is still worth a must listen, as you find out some really fascinating facts about the process of how the film came to fruition and any fans out there who love this film, like me, then I can assure everyone that this audio commentary definitely gets a five star rating from me, so happy viewing folks.                   

Special Feature: Act 1: The Play [2008] [1080p] [1.78:1] [14:00] Here we take a fascinating look at the history of the original Off-Broadway production of “The Boys in the Band” with an in-depth interviews, starting with Mart Crowley [Playwright, Screenplay and Producer of the film] and the surviving members of the cast. Mart Crowley talks about his early life when he was unemployed in New York, and ending up in a Hollywood mansion, where he was house-sitting for a friend, the actress Diana Lynn, who had this big Hollywood Georgian Mansion with lots of household servants on hand for his every need, and felt like he was in total luxury and so started writing the dialogue for the play “The Boys in the Band.” Mart Crowley informs us how the title for the play came about and was based on the Judy Garland and James mason film ‘A Star Is Born,’ because there is a scene in the film where James Mason gives Judy Garland a pep talk, and says, “Forget the camera, you are singing for yourself, and for the boys in the band.” Also making some comments is Dominick Dunne [Executive Producer of the Film] who met Mart Crowley through the actress Natalie Wood, who was a great friend of Dominick Dunne’s wife Ellen Griffin Dunne, who Mart Crowley worked for, but one day Dominick Dunne asked Mart Crowley what was the play about and said no way would he produce the play or even put it on, especially in that period in America at the time, especially with very homophobic attitudes, and thought the play would never happen. At the time Natalie Wood was married to Richard Gregson (30 May 1969 – 12 April 1972) who was a co-partner for the London International Agency in England, but was also a film producer and screenwriter. Eventually the script was sent to Richard Barr who at the time was head of the Playwrights Units in New York and suddenly got a call from the agency and eventually the play was put on via a workshop theatre in New York. Then we hear comments from the actor Laurence Luckinbill who played Hank and also comments from actor Peter White who played Alan, and they were both stunned and in awe of the script when they read it and of course they were warned if they appeared in the play, they would never be able to work in the theatre ever again, especially New York ever again, but of course they defied the negative critics and their agents and of course they rebelled and eventually went onto a glittering acting career, and they both felt it was the best decision in their acting career to first appear in the play and of course eventually appearing in the ground breaking film. Then we hear from Tony Kushner [American Playwright and Screenwriter] and also praise all of the actors who appeared in the play and the film, who also felt they were very brave, especially with the negative attitude towards gays at that time in America, but also at the same it was a very scary experience. The workshop was only supposed to run for five nights, but of course the reaction was explosive, especially in the gay community, because of the reaction of the play and its theme, and next the next morning after the first performance, Laurence Luckinbill was walking to the theatre and saw a massive que for the play and of course it consisted of 100% of gay men waiting to see the play and because of its box office smash success, it eventually went to Off Broadway, where it played for 1001 nights. From then on it went to London and again was a massive box office smash hit, and eventually got translated in many foreign languages and was also a massive world-wide box office smash hit and was 100% respected where ever it was performed. But after a long run, for some unknown reason started getting negative reactions from the gay community, especially in America, and eventually went out of favour, but in 1996 it got revived in New York and again became a massive box office hit and everyone who appeared in the play were very honoured to appear in the play and dared to be courageous, especially honouring the part that Mart Crowley had in producing the play, that all started in a luxurious bed in a massive Hollywood Mansion and of course Mart Crowley feels very proud and honoured to be associated with the play and all who participated in the play, especially all over the world and was also honoured to work with such professional actors who performed impeccably and working with the director William Friedkin was such a joy and so proud he was asked to make the film, that still resonates today in our very volatile world, where in certain countries gays are still oppressed, where today we now take for granted certain gay freedoms that were denied to gays when the film was made. One thing that really shocked me, was seeing the actors Laurence Luckinbill and Peter White in this 2008 special feature, in how dramatically they had aged so much and obviously time has not been very kind to these actors and if their names had not been shown, I would not have known who they were. So all in all, this Act One special feature is a joy and at the same time fascinating to view.  

Special Feature: Act 2: The Film [2008] [1080p] [1.78:1] [24:49] With this special feature, we take another in-depth look at the transition of the play to eventually making it to the silver screen, and bringing in the brilliant director William Friedkin, and how the cast had to make adjustments in making the play feel like a film. Again, at the start of this special feature, we have Mart Crowley [Playwright, Screenplay and Producer of the film] saying that successful plays, eventually get turned into a films, and that is what happened with the play “The Boys in the Band,” and of course the actors in the play eventually went onto appear in the film, because they were so perfect for their individual parts and their characters and Mart Crowley felt they would be so perfect to perform in front of the camera, but the Hollywood moguls at the studio had other ideas about who was to appear in the film and especially wanted well known Hollywood actors, and to have this happen Mart Crowley was going to be given a vast  amount of money if he had the well-known actors appear in the film, but he turned them down and said he would only make the film with the actors who appeared in the play, as Mart Crowley was very loyal to his fellow actor thespians and insisted that only those actors would appear in front of the camera, and he got his wish, but was not able to secure the director of the play, who was Robert Moore [American stage director], instead they said that they had to have a film director who had a track record. So when Mart Crowley happened to go the cinema and went to see ‘The Birthday Party’ by Harold Pinter, and was directed by William Friedkin, who Mart Crowley had never heard of before and was very impressed by the film. So eventually William Friedkin was sent the script of the play, who funny enough went to see the play and was very impressed by the whole production, and especially the actors, and Mart Crowley felt that William Friedkin at that time, was a very exciting director, who loves actors, and if allowed would talk if possible about film for 24 hours, that is how dedicated he is towards films. William Friedkin comments that he wanted the film to have different styles, in different points in the film, and the opening scenes in the film was homage to New York in 1967, and really captured a certain part of Upper East Side of New York and its lifestyle at the time. The first scenes in Michael’s apartment, Willian Friedkin wanted it to look bright and have lots of movement, then over time the lighting becomes different and very sombre, and eventually the place slows down, and especially near the end of the film where Michael has a breakdown, but eventually the story becomes all about friendship and love, also William Friedkin did not want too many stylistic factors going on at the time of the party. William Friendkin also felt the film should be totally different to the play, and to keep the dialogue very simple and interesting and looking at the film in 2008, William Friedkin feels the film still looks good. We are informed that the apartment was based on Mart Croley’s friend, the American actress and singer Tammy Lee Grimes (January 30, 1934 – October 30, 2016) and she had the balcony and so they decided to shoot the film there, especially the outdoor scenes, but of course the scenes in the evening was shot in the studio and when it rains, that to was shot on the sound stage. William Friedkin felt the actors that appeared in the play, were totally perfect for the film and was a much more difficult situation and setting. Before filming started, the actors were told that before filming started they would have to do some rehearsing, but they felt why should we have to, as we knew our lines and how to act on the stage, perfectly for many years, as they knew all their parts and there was a little bit of anxiety on their part on whether they could perform in front of the camera, as it was a totally different ball game, but after a pep talk from William Friedkin, they did the rehearsal and found out it was really worth it, as they had to change their style of acting to suit what would be portrayed in the film. Willian Friedkin goes onto to say that he thought the actors were brilliant and totally perfect to their characters, and really praised the actor Cliff Gorman who played Emory, because he was so convincing as an effeminate homosexual, that after the film’s release, that when he was out walking with his wife in the street, people would shout out, “What are you trying to prove” and that is why he was such an acclaimed professional actor, who could transform himself so perfectly. One sad aspect about the film is the actor Robert La Tourneaux who played “Cowboy Rex” who was a really lovely guy, but not long after the film’s release, sadly died of A.I.D.S. and at the time of his illness Cliff Gorman and his wife supported him, as he felt very vulnerable and they both nursed him until his sad demise. Everyone felt the lines were most poignant and especially the final scene with Michael and his very profound comments about his father dying in his arms, which to this day nobody really understands what the words meant, but those words were very true, because Mart Crowley’s father actually died in his arms and actually said those poignant words. But all who precipitated in this Act Two special feature, say that on the set it was a brilliant atmosphere, everyone got on really well, and at the end of a day’s shoot, they would have a little party to relax and have lots of nice food together, and it was a great pleasure working on the film, and had very fond memories and also a great honour to be involved with the film. Once again Act Two was equally impressive to the previous special feature and is well worth viewing.   

Special Feature: Act 3: 40 Years of ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ [2008] [1080p] [1.78:1] [5:32] With this final special feature, that is sadly far too short, but despite this, it was still good to take a look at the history of this infamous play and of course the thought provoking film. Here we start off with Tony Kushner [Playwright/Screenwriter] what talks about two years later after the play finished its run, and then when the film was released and Tony was about Thirteen or Fourteen years of age and had seen ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ on television and was at the same time shocked what he viewed, but at the same time was totally amazed what he witnessed. Dominick Dunne [Executive Producer of the Film] felt the film was thrilling and very exciting, especially when it was directed by William Friedkin, and it was the first feature film that Dominick Dunne he had produced and felt there was nothing to offend anyone, because its sole purpose was a drama, but it also had a story to tell, but also had wonderful camp dialogue and added to the mixture were very funny guys, but at the same time it had a lot of pathos and sadness, which reflected the gay community as a whole. When the film opened, they decided to have two big premières, one in New York and the other one in Los Angeles and lots attended, especially the big stars and all the male actors went out and bought new wardrobes and the actors from the film that attended were all very excited, but also very nervous at the same time. William Friedkin cannot remember what the critics thought of the film at the time, but CBS Television who put up the money really loved the film, and of course they were totally supportive of the film. Mart Crowley remembers the critic’s reviews, some were very supportive, but an equal amount of critics were very negative towards the film. The cinemas in the major cities in America were keen to show the film, but of course in the provinces of America, not one cinema booked the film to be seen by the local people, but in the end, it has now become a great classic cult film and deservedly so. William Friedkin says that there are not a lot of films he has directed that he is not keen to watch, but his film ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ he really likes to view now and again, because he feels there were nine great performers, and it was in a class by itself, and people who have viewed the film were always moved by it and respected it and it was artistically well performed and making their mark, as well as their place in history and also helping to make being gay an acceptance in our society today. At the end of this very short special feature, they do a very nice dedication to the actors who are no longer with us and they are: Robert La Tourneaux (1941 – 1986); Leonard Frey (1938 – 1988); Frederick Combs (1935 – 1992); Keith Prentice (1940 – 1992); Kenneth Nelson (1930 – 1993) and Cliff Gorman (1936 – 2002) and of course it was a fitting tribute to these wonderful professional thespian actors.

Finally, ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ was a seminal and classic moment for the “queer cinema” that really divided the gay community at the time of its release in 1970. It was first released in part because the original play by Mart Crowley had impacted members of the gay community in very different ways, some of whom were fiercely against its portrayal of gay men. Those divisive sentiments were targeted at the film as well, which was memorable for also including the F and C word and considered the first for an American film and also being one of the first American films to entirely centre on around gay characters, becoming a milestone in “queer cinema.” Remembered for its caustic wit and savage putdowns, Mart Crowley adapted his own play for the screen, bringing his acerbic speeches and cutting one liners to cinema audiences who were witnessing these memorable characters for the first time. Making the transition from stage to screen were actors including Kenneth Nelson, Peter White and Leonard Frey who form part of the group of men celebrating one of their friend’s birthdays. As the drink flows and the drunken backbiting begins to get fiercer, intimate anxieties and past scars are revealed. One of the director’s favourite films of those he made, ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND’ has been described by Time Out as one possessing a “truthfulness … not as a coming-out drama but as a keyhole into the lives of already-confident outsiders.” With the Second Sight Films UK Blu-ray it features an in-depth look at the film, the play it was based on and its cultural impact and resonance in the years since it first caused a massive controversy. So that is why I am very honoured to feature this Blu-ray review on William Friedkin’s ground-breaking film, ‘THE BOYS IN THE BAND.’ Highly Recommended!

Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado 
Le Cinema Paradiso 
United Kingdom