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British director Basil Dearden followed his gay blackmail thriller Victim with 1962’s All Night Long, which re-imagines Shakespeare's Othello at a late night London jazz jam. Patrick McGoohan is drummer Johnny Cousins, the scheming, pot-smoking Iago who prowls the party stirring up jealousy and fear to tear the interracial couple of bandleader Aurelius Rex and his wife Delia apart so Delia will sing with Johnny when he leaves Othello's band. An excellent score helps drive the tightening downward spiral, with Charles Mingus and Dave Brubeck showing up as themselves throughout the party. [more inside]
posted by mediareport on Apr 25, 2023 - 4 comments

Basil Dearden's landmark 1961 noir about gay men in London victimized by a blackmail ring is credited with helping shift British attitudes about homosexuality. Closeted actor Dirk Bogarde plays the guilt-ridden lawyer who decides to fight back. Surprisingly thrilling, and sympathetic to a range of gay characters who are presented with minimal stereotyping (for the time). Banned from wide release in the US because Dearden refused to make concessions. 100/87 at Rotten Tomatoes, on HBO and the Criterion Channel. [more inside]
posted by mediareport on Apr 8, 2023 - 2 comments