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Amos Lassen wrote on 02/22/2011:

“THE LINE OF BEAUTY”
Gatsby Lives
Amos Lassen
If “The Line of Beauty” (BBC Video) seems a bit familiar to you, then you probably have read F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”. The two share a common storyline—a young man from an ordinary background who has grandiose ideas about the members of the “smart set”. The major difference is that Fitzgerald’s is very American and Alan Hollinghurst’s (the author of the book from whom the movie was created) is very British. I could not think of a better title for this than “The Line of Beauty” because it is beautiful. The screenplay, the cinematography and the performances are uniformly excellent.
The movie deals almost exclusively with the British upper class but it also follows one man as he maneuvers his way through his own sexual awakening while living in the glamour (albeit fake) of the Tory government of the 1980’s. The politics of the period are played down and instead we focus on Nick Guest (Dan Stevens) and the way he goes about meeting men. Nick is a real looker possessing baby blue yes, a great head of hair and a vibrant personality to boot.
The similarity between “Gatsby” and “Beauty” are evident between the two films. In both cases the narrator is a character and the “Nicks” of both were below the class level of the rest of the characters and both “Nicks” admire the upper class and at some point they believe that they are actually members of the upper class. This association with the upper class ends when both had to pay for the sins they committed against the people they so admired. Both are classics of social difference but “Beauty” has an extra subplot which deals with AIDS. “Beauty has great acting and an admirable script but then it was adapted from a prize winning novel.
I think one of the things that makes “The Line of Beauty” so endearing is that since not much seems to happen on the screen, it does happen in the mind of the viewer. In what seems to be a pretentious script at first, we soon learn that the actors in their excellent portrayals are only playing parts and what appeared to be pretentious was in reality not. As Americans, we are not familiar with the English class system so the class division may seem quite foreign to us.
Unquestionably the book is better than the movie but as an exercise in covering the period of time during which Margaret Thatcher was prime minister, it is ad admirable film.
I have read reviews that tore the film to bits and I cannot agree with them. Perhaps I have nothing but good experiences with films made by the BBC and “The Line of Beauty” is another flower in the bouquet. Well acted, well photographed and well written, it is a very good film.

Musss7 wrote on 05/20/2008:

Yes guys... you're right. I watch this movie again and again too. It is so beautiful in every aspects. I just love the setting, the costumes and the background music. Classic and unique. I do agrre that British gay film is much on romantic side than the Hollywood one. I love Touch of Pink, My Beautiful Laundrette and Maurice. And in those British movie it always focus on class, racism and romantic love. I like Hollywood movies too but rarely I watched them again and again if compared to the British one. It's only take about 10 minutes for me to love this movie and then watching it until the end. I like characters that trying to find their soulmate or partner rather than just to satisfied their sexual needs. The story captured me as long as the acting too. I'm not the kind of people who like to reads novel although I might look like one. So, I cannot compare the movie with its original source. However, this movie sure good enough to make me buy the novel...

CONNER wrote on 03/21/2007:

I FOUND THE "LINE OF BEAUTY" TO BE AN "EXCELLENT" PIECE OF WORK.

I RENTED IT, AND I FULLY INTEND TO PURCHASE IT, AS LIKE MOST BRITISH WORKS, IT HELD MY INTEREST, AND IT MOVED ME.

I "HIGHLY" RECOMMEND SEEING IT, AS YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPOINTED.

THE ACTING WAS EXCELLENT, AND THE STORY LINES INTENSE.

IT DISPLAYED "GAY LIFE", AS IT WAS IN THE "IRON LADIES" BRITAIN.