Review of The Dying Gaul (2005) by Shazzer W — 26 Jan 2006

[font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000] [/color][/size][/font][color=#787878][font=Arial]I'm not usually the kind of person who believes that if an indie film is unheard-of, it must be good. I think that Tom Hanks can affect someone just as much as a no-name indie star. [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial] [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial]However, on a boring evening a few weeks ago, I decided that I would see whichever obscure film was playing at Valley Art that night. It was risky, but I?m just that kind of a person. I saw that [i][font=Arial]The Dying Gaul[/font][/i] was playing but being that I?m actually no risk taker at all, I looked up cast and plot info to support my decision. Peter Sarsgaard? Playing a gay writer? This is a must-see. [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial] [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial]So I packed up my bag and was off. [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial] [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial]Peter Sarsgaard plays a homosexual screenwriter whose partner recently died of AIDS. To pay tribute to his love, he decides to write a film of his struggles. When film studios reject the film unless he changes his partner from a male to a female, he doesn't know where to go from there. Of course being a true off-the-wall indie film, that's not the central plot. There are twists and turns that will leave you puzzled until the credits. [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial] [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial]The film is incredibly powerful in depicting the struggle of a lost love. However, it was Sarsgaard that hit me the most with his chilling performance, effectively securing a spot in my favorite actors of all time. [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial] [/font][/color].

[color=#787878][font=Arial]I'm sure this film has come and gone by now, no matter where you are reading from. But look for it on DVD. This film captures an Antonio Banderas, post-[i][font=Arial]Philadelphia [/font][/i]struggle that is as moving as it is fascinating. While touching on relevant issues such as homosexuality in film. A must see![/font][/color].