As Good As It Gets

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Boy George can certainly be described as an 80's icon. I distinctly remember as a youngster first seeing his band Culture Club perform 'Do You Really Want to Hurt Me' on some kids TV show some time in the early 80's and then seeing him interviewed immediately afterwards and being utterly amazed he was not a she. I seem to recall fellow school-mates being somewhat flabbergasted about this the following day too. These were less enlightened times as far as homosexuality was concerned, so I guess Boy George was even more of a cultural happening taking that into account. Despite his image, part of the reason Culture Club became so massively popular was that George himself was never promoted as threatening sexually, while the band's music was very contemporary new wave pop with little edge. But like most things that connect so fully with mainstream culture, the fame and success only lasted a fairly short while.This TV biopic is unusual in that it hardly focuses on the Culture Club years at all. Instead, it covers George's pre-fame and post-peak tabloid celebrity years. In doing this, it sort of misses out the most dramatic section of the story and looks at what led George there and how it affected him negatively afterwards. This approach means that you have to accept what the film is not, although it definitely makes the story more small-scale and lower key. The early years are typified by the fashion scene that revolved around the Blitz Club which was populated by the New Romantics; while the later scenes happen in the midst of George being hounded by the press over his reported heroin addiction. The film flashes forward and back to these two periods to tell the story. And in some respects it's quite a limited story in all honesty. The early years were typified, after all, by George not really doing a lot and gaining minor celebrity for merely wearing the right clothes. One of the more notable events happens when he briefly hooks up with Malcolm McLaren – very well played by Mark Gatiss – and is photographed with his then pop pets Bow Wow Wow but little came of this, so it's just a colourful detail.Mainly the film works as a time capsule movie, where we are transported back to the early 80's. Several characters from the New Romantic scene appear, such as Steve Strange, Marilyn and Kirk Brandon; the latter of which had a sexual affair with the singer. The costuming and soundtrack have been chosen well and despite the low budget, it's convincingly of its time. The main acting duties are covered by newcomer Douglas Booth, who is decidedly more androgynous than the real Boy George. He puts in a pretty good performance, especially when you consider he was only 17 years old at the time. On the whole, this is a film that should appeal to those who like biopics about popular music figures. It might not be the most dramatic story but it is well told for what it is.

The costumes and setting of this drama looked amazing and I could not fault the lead performances, but it was so SLOW. I lasted one hour and the action could have been taken care of in half the time. And sex and drugs and rock and roll are never as interesting to watch as they are to participate in. Boy George's pre-fame antics did not make for interesting viewing.I was never a fan of Boy George but I always thought that he seemed a lovely, intelligent person and thankfully that view has not changed as a result of this drama, but not enough happened to keep my attention. And I don't remember seeing Mark Gatiss at all, unless he was in some effective 'League of Gentlemen' disguise. Did he appear in the first hour that I watched?

Just watched "Worried about the boy" based on Boy Georges' rise to fame,,,,,, Well,, talk about nostalgia brought it all back to me,,, i,e being different dressing to excess and not giving a fu**,( however during these times I did have a job and did not rob out of coat pockets..lol,,,What struck me about the movie was it seemed soo accurate in the music,,, the times,, clothes,, and the people on the scene,,,...Having not been to the Blitz club and admiring the movement from a distance I really enjoyed the pointing out of who was there,, ie Spandau,, Idol etc etc,, OOOh again I wished I had gone there,,, Enjoyed the kirk Brandon story,, Wow didn't know that happened umm, remember seeing him in Spear of Destiny ( wot a hunk) and just assuming he was a total straight man,,, well u never know apparently,,,, In a later court case about 1999 Brandon sought to prove George a liar over his autobiagrophical claims that they were lovers , the Judge ruled George to be telling the truth,,,, Brandon bankcrupt and now married vied he would continue to prove there was no truth to the story,,, well one only has to look on gooogle images for photos of the two together ( make up your own minds),,Hey back to the film,, Douglas Booth (George) plays a great part despite being only 17, (wow) at times made me look twice at the screen his portrayal ( whilst in full make up) was uncanny, no wonder Boy upon visiting the set was said to be pleased with how the production was going ,, hey wouldn't you want a young established model, lovely boy portraying you??,, Great performances from Matt Horne ( Jon Moss) and Marc Warren ( Steve Strange) But for me the "steal the show" performances in equal measures go to Mark Gatiss ( Malcolm Mclaren) and Freddy Fox ( Marilyn) too many good lines to quote here,, although malcoms " Im being sent a new house,,, but bit by bit" was good,,,,Whether your a fan of " The Boy" or not if u were in your prime in the 80s dressing to excess and having lots of fun this film is for you,,, if not still give it a go as the music, colour,, ambiance and music makes it a ( in Cillas words) A " Lorra Lorra Fun"

I was born in 1991, so i missed out on the 80's, which really frustrates me, because i really wish i could have been part of it. I felt like i kind of was watching this, i thought it captured essences of it really well. Although i wasn't around for the 80's, i know a lot of my stuff about the era, having listened to all the music and loved it, and watched many things. I thought Douglas Booth did a fantastic job playing the role of George. He made it extremely moving to watch, and i cannot believe he is only 17. He really demonstrated his wonderful talent, and will no doubt have a very successful career. Mark Gatiss was another performance that was just basically outstanding, playing the role of Malcolm Mclaren, he was brilliant, i thought he had him down to a tee, he really showed a lot of his characteristics. Then again, i have always found him to be a great character actor. Mat Horne playing Jon moss, i thought was an interesting choice, but i thought he carried it off brilliantly. And i can't forget Marc Warren as Steve Strange. Imspired. He was amazing. The music was used in a very clever way during this programme, not just a load of well known 80s tracks thrown in for good measure, like most 80s programmes we see nowadays. I think every track was so appropriate to the scene it was used in. Also, i was very surprised to hear 'Hiroshima mon amour' playing in the opening titles, it was great. Overall, i thought the visuals were fantastic. The Blitz club sequences were ace, and the outfits were very 80s (and it really is all coming back). I thought this programme was a refreshing TV experience, and i myself, thoroughly enjoyed it. It was funny, yet really moving. All in all a great show.