Englishman in New York (An)
- Director: Richard Laxton
- Writer: Brian Fillis
- Producer: Joey Attawia; Rene Bastian
CGiii Comment
When Quentin grew up and crossed the pond.
Hurt does the same job as he did all those years ago.
Crisp's charm and wit are exposed...here, he's is not the bon vivant - and, thankfully, he is shown as an old queen who opened his mouth too many times without thinking.
He did upset quite a few folk...but, Hurt, as always, is impressive.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
Following the success of his television biography 'The Naked Civil Servant' Quentin Crisp is invited to America to lecture on How To Be Happy, and falls in love with New York's more permissive ambiance. Agent Connie Clausen enables him to be a 'resident alien', writing film reviews and dispensing words of wisdom. Curious about but impervious to trends, he describes AIDS as a "fad, nothing more", actually to divert heterosexual anger but he is misinterpreted and reviled by many gays. A return to popularity occurs when he helps Patrick Angus, a young, AIDS-afflicted artist attain fame for his paintings and his healthy cynicism is marketed by performance artist Penny Arcade, putting him back in the limelight. Poor health causes him to refuse a lecture tour of England but he gives a triumphant final audience at a gay club in Tampa. A postscript informs that he died at the age of 91.
Cast & Characters
John Hurt as Quentin Crisp;
Denis O'Hare as Phillip Steele;
Jonathan Tucker as Patrick Angus;
Cynthia Nixon as Penny Arcade;
Swoosie Kurtz as Connie Clausen;
Nick Adams as Dim Man;
Jeff Applegate as Journalist;
Joseph Basile as Gay Buff Guy;
Monika Baskiewicz as Phillip Steele's Secretary;
Twinkle Burke as Audience Member # 3;
Kevin Cannon as White House Cameraman;
David Douglas as Audience Member # 5;
Benjamin Eakeley as Young Man;
Kara Emry as Theater Patron;
Daniel Fainman as Fan