A Wilde time with ‘Prince’
THE film “The Happy Prince” is about the oncerevered, worshiped, much-adored but later crucified, jailed and impoverished ending of Oscar Wilde, poet and author of works such as “The Importance of Being Earnest.”
Rupert Everett, its creator, writer, director, editor, star, who’s done all but sell the theater popcorn, says: “Colin Firth is also in this. Independent film financing, with only three UK outlets available, is tough getting off the ground and took me years to get this done.
“I’m lucky Colin’s my friend. We’ve worked together. His name made funding possible. Without him, the project would have collapsed.
“My interest in Wilde began as a child. My mother read to me. Mine was a conventional military background, and his writing gave comfort and pleasure. I experienced what I couldn’t understand.
“Wilde’s grandson, who owns considerable memorabilia — clothes, ledgers, books, paintings, even hair — reacted well to this film.
“We had a difficult, 47day shoot. One cafe scene took 100 extras. People dancing, me singing. Complicated, challenging, it took four days. If you didn’t make what you needed, you lost out. The schedule was rigid because money was tight.
“I hadn’t planned to direct, but my chosen director became unavailable. The whole project was a crunch. So, working on it forever, knowing it in my sleep, my directing was an accident. There was no choice but to do it. I loved that because I made sure to give myself lots of close-ups. Also, in the editing process, since I liked my own performance, I made sure to favor me.
“I went to hotels Oscar Wilde visited. He and his lovers wrote letters all day, every day. I read them all. I went through his published letters, articles, books. Looking back, the process was difficult. I wrote this in 2008. It took me three months.”