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41-448: William Condon (born October 22, 1955) is an American director and screenwriter. Condon is known for writing and/or directing numerous successful and acclaimed films including Gods and Monsters , Chicago , Kinsey , Dreamgirls , The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 , The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 , and Beauty and the Beast . He has received two nominations for

82-418: A Razzie for Worst Director for these films, winning for Part 2 . Condon directed The Fifth Estate (2013), a thriller about WikiLeaks starring Benedict Cumberbatch . He said he chose the project for a change of pace and liked its non-ideological approach to a very complex subject. He saw it "in the great tradition of journalistic thrillers". It received mixed responses from critics and underperformed at

123-526: A 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes , based on 67 reviews, with an average rating of 8.4/10. The site's critical consensus states: " Gods and Monsters is a spellbinding, confusing piece of semi-fiction, featuring fine performances; McKellen leads the way, but Redgrave and Fraser don't lag far behind." On Metacritic , the film has a score of 74 out of 100, based on reviews from 32 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". James Whale had several men (and women) pose nude for him, and some of these are shown in

164-529: A book party celebrating Kinsey's latest publication on gall wasps , Kinsey approaches the dean of students about an open-forum sex education course as opposed to the anti-sex propaganda taught in a general health education class. It is approved, but on the grounds that it is open only to teachers, graduate or senior students, and married students. Kinsey begins teaching the sex course to a packed auditorium. Kinsey continues answering students' questions in personal meetings but his answers are severely limited by

205-717: A dry change of clothes. Whale can only find a sweater, so Clayton wears a towel wrapped around his waist. Whale decides to try to sketch Clayton one more time. After some minutes, he shows his sketches to Clayton, disclosing that he has lost his ability to draw. After Clayton drops his towel to pose nude, Whale makes him wear a World War I gas mask and then uses the opportunity to make a sexual advance on Clayton, kissing his shoulder and neck, and forcefully reaches for his genitals. An enraged Clayton fights off Whale, who confesses that this had been his plan and begs Clayton to kill him to relieve him of his suffering. Clayton refuses, puts Whale to bed, then sleeps downstairs. The next morning, Hanna

246-435: A filmmaker began with screenplays for the independent feature Strange Behavior (1981), an homage to the pulp horror films of the 1950s, and the science-fiction feature Strange Invaders (1983), which starred Nancy Allen and Wallace Shawn . His directorial debut was Sister, Sister (1987), an eerie Southern Gothic mystery starring Eric Stoltz and Jennifer Jason Leigh . Test screenings led to major changes to

287-414: A lot to say on the subject of sex, which it treats with sobriety, sensitivity and a welcome measure of humor." He continued: "I can't think of another movie that has dealt with sex so knowledgeably and, at the same time, made the pursuit of knowledge seem so sexy. There are some explicit images and provocative scenes, but it is your intellect that is most likely to be aroused.... Mr. Condon's great achievement

328-438: A professor of biology lecturing on gall wasps . Kinsey falls in love with a student in his class, whom he calls Mac , and marries her. Consummation of their marriage is difficult at first, because of a medical problem Mac has that is fixed easily with minor surgery. At the university, Professor Kinsey, who is affectionately called "Prok" by his graduate students, meets with them after hours to offer individual sexual advice. At

369-536: A series of strokes that have left him fragile and tormented by memories: growing up as a poor outcast, his tragic World War I service, and the filming of Bride of Frankenstein . Whale slips into his past and indulges in his fantasies, reminiscing about gay pool parties and sexually teasing an embarrassed, starstruck fan. He battles depression , and at times contemplates suicide , as he realizes his life, his attractiveness, and his health are slipping away. Whale befriends his young, handsome gardener, Clayton Boone, and

410-483: A sketch of the Frankenstein monster drawn by Whale, and signed, "To Clayton. Friend?". Clayton later walks down a street at night in the rain, miming the movements of Frankenstein's monster. Gods and Monsters received positive reviews from critics, with McKellen's, Fraser's and Redgrave's performances singled out for particular praise. Time Out called it "not a complicated film, but warm and clever". The film has

451-447: A thousand years. Kinsey replies that the tree seems to display a strong love in the way its roots grip the earth. The two walk off together, Kinsey remarking "there's a lot of work to do". Producer Gail Mutrux handed Bill Condon a biography of Kinsey in 1999 to spark his interest in writing a screenplay. Condon then based his original screenplay on elements in the biography combined with his own original research on Kinsey. Ian McKellen

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492-446: Is alarmed when she cannot find Whale, prompting a search by Clayton and Hanna. Clayton finds Whale floating dead in the pool as a distraught Hanna runs out, clutching a suicide note . Clayton and Hanna agree that he should disappear from the scene to avoid a scandal. A decade later, Clayton and his son, Michael, watch Bride of Frankenstein on television. Michael is skeptical of his father's claim that he knew Whale, but Clayton produces

533-609: Is on the sexual habits of the male, is a large-scale success and a best seller. Kinsey turns his research to women and is met with more controversy. With the release of the volume on female sexual behavior, support for his work declines in a time when Senator Joseph McCarthy 's witch hunts against Communists and homosexuals (the latter known as the Lavender Scare ) lead the Rockefeller Foundation to withdraw its financial support, fearing that it be labeled "Communist" for backing

574-446: Is produced by Paul Colichman , Gregg Fienberg , and Mark R. Harris; Clive Barker served as executive producer. As well as featuring reconstructions of the production of the Bride of Frankenstein , the film's title is derived from a scene in Bride of Frankenstein , in which the character Dr. Pretorius toasts Dr. Frankenstein , "To a new world of gods and monsters!" Gods and Monsters

615-595: Is straight and receives Whale's assurance that there is no sexual interest, but Boone storms out when Whale graphically discusses his sexual history. Boone later returns with the agreement that no such "locker room" discussions occur again. Boone is invited to escort Whale to a party hosted by George Cukor for Princess Margaret . There, a photo op has been arranged for Whale with "his Monsters": Boris Karloff and Elsa Lanchester from "ancient" movie fame. This event exacerbates Whale's depression. A sudden rainstorm becomes an excuse to leave. Back at Whale's home, Clayton needs

656-619: Is to turn Kinsey's complicated and controversial career into a grand intellectual drama." In 2005, he received the Stephen F. Kolzak Award at the GLAAD Media Awards. Condon wrote the screenplay for and directed Dreamgirls , an adaptation of the acclaimed Broadway musical of the same name . It was released in December 2006. Condon received Directors Guild of America and Broadcast Film Critics Association nominations for directing. The film

697-545: The Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay , Gods and Monsters and Chicago , winning for the former. Condon was born in New York City on October 22, 1955, the son of a police detective , and was raised in an Irish Catholic family. He attended Regis High School and Columbia College of Columbia University , graduating in 1976 with a degree in philosophy. Two films had a significant impact of Condon's early life. At

738-488: The age of twelve, he found himself drawn to screenplay writing with his first viewing of Bonnie and Clyde . In college he saw Sweet Charity (1969), which led to "a lifelong love affair with movies that are reviled and rejected in their time." After completing college, Condon worked as a journalist for film magazines, including American Film and Millimeter . In 1981, he won "the world's most difficult film trivia quiz" sponsored by The Village Voice . His career as

779-479: The animated 1991 film Beauty and the Beast , starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens . A few weeks before the film's scheduled release on March 17, 2017, Condon announced that one character, LeFou, has "a nice, exclusively gay moment", which resulted in an "internet meltdown" of contrasting support and condemnation. He co-authored the screenplay for The Greatest Showman , a biography of P.T. Barnum , starring Hugh Jackman and released in December 2017. He rewrote

820-744: The box office. In late 2013, he directed a revised version of the 1997 stage musical Side Show at the La Jolla Playhouse . A production of this revision played in June and July 2014 at the Kennedy Center . Charles Isherwood described it in The New York Times as "a full-scale reimagining" of the musical that involved "the addition and subtraction of several songs ..., the reordering of others", and new dialogue contributed by Condon. That production received excellent reviews when it moved to Broadway in

861-510: The character of Clayton Boone is completely fictitious. Kinsey (film) Kinsey is a 2004 American biographical drama film written and directed by Bill Condon . It describes the life of Alfred Charles Kinsey (played by Liam Neeson ), a pioneer in the area of sexology . His 1948 publication, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male (the first of the Kinsey Reports ) was one of

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902-462: The country, interviewing subjects about their sexual histories. As time progresses Kinsey realizes that sexuality within humans, including himself, is a lot more varied than was originally thought. The range of expression he creates becomes known as the Kinsey scale , which ranks overall sexuality from completely heterosexual to completely homosexual . The first sexological book Kinsey publishes, which

943-652: The draft of co-author Jenny Bicks . In October 2017, Condon postponed pre-production of a remake of Bride of Frankenstein for Universal Pictures . Deadline Hollywood reported that Condon and David Koepp wanted to rework the script. Condon is a member of the Independent Feature Projects (IFP) in Los Angeles, a non-profit organization which supports independent films, as well as the Independent Writers Steering Committee, which

984-444: The fall, but it proved a failure at the box office and closed after just seven weeks. In 2015, Condon directed Mr. Holmes starring Ian McKellen . Condon noted its similarity to Gods and Monsters , not only because of its lead actor but because "[b]oth movies are about aging and mortality. You have a celebrated man facing the decline of his public image." Condon directed the 2017 Disney 's live action film adaptation , based on

1025-448: The film, which still proved a critical failure that set back Condon's career. Condon emerged a few years later directing a series of made-for-TV thrillers, including Murder 101 (1991), which earned Condon and co-writer Roy Johansen a 1992 Edgar Award for their screenplay. During this period he also wrote the screenplay for the thriller F/X2 (1991), which was directed by Australian director Richard Franklin . In 1994, he directed

1066-415: The first recorded works that tried to scientifically address and investigate sexual behavior in humans. The film also stars Laura Linney (in a performance nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress ), Chris O'Donnell , Peter Sarsgaard , Timothy Hutton , John Lithgow , Tim Curry , and Oliver Platt . Professor Alfred Kinsey is interviewed about his sexual history. Interspersed with

1107-573: The interview are flashbacks from his childhood and young-adulthood. The early years show his father, a lay minister of the Methodist church , denouncing modern inventions as leading to sexual sin, then in early adolescence, humiliating Kinsey in a store by denouncing its keeper for showing him cigarettes, while his adolescence shows his experiences as a Boy Scout and a late teenage scene shows Kinsey disappointing his father by his chosen vocational intentions. The adult Kinsey teaches at Indiana University as

1148-497: The making-of featurette. Several of his paintings were bought by a collector and loaned to the studio for the making of this film. Whale suffered from strokes towards the end of his life, which affected his mental abilities, and he was found dead in his pool. There were rumours that this was a homicide, but the evidence only pointed at suicide. In the documentary included on the DVD and in interviews, novelist Christopher Bram explains that

1189-485: The paucity of scientific data about human sexual behavior. This leads Kinsey to pass out questionnaires in his sexual education class from which he learns of the enormous disparity between what society had assumed people do and what their actual practices are. After securing financial support from the Rockefeller Foundation , Kinsey and his research assistants, including his closest assistant, Clyde Martin , travel

1230-521: The sex researcher is hailed as adventurous, clever, and subversive, with fine performances by Liam Neeson and Laura Linney." On Metacritic , the film has a weighted average score of 79 out of 100 based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Reviewing in the Chicago Sun-Times , Roger Ebert gave Kinsey four out of four stars and hailed it as a "fascinating bio" whose strength lies in "the clarity it brings to its title character ...

1271-451: The subversion of traditional American values . Kinsey feels he has failed everyone who has ever been a victim of sexual ignorance. A customs officer is tipped off to an importation of some of Kinsey's research material, which only exacerbates the financial hardship of Kinsey's research organization. Kinsey suffers a heart attack, and is found to have developed an addiction to barbiturates . Meeting with other philanthropists fails to garner

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1312-404: The support needed. Still, Kinsey continues his taking of sex histories. Returning to the initial interview, Kinsey is asked about love and whether he will ever conduct research on it. He responds that love is impossible to measure and impossible to quantify, but that it is important. Kinsey and Mac pull over to the side of the road for a nature walk. She remarks about a tree that has been there for

1353-502: The television movie The Man Who Wouldn't Die , which was met with mixed reviews. He directed Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh (1995), a sequel to Bernard Rose's 1992 horror film. It was a critical and commercial failure. Reminded years later of this phase of his career, Condon said: "It's hard to be lower on the totem pole than being the director for a sequel to a horror movie." Condon wrote and directed Gods and Monsters (1998), which

1394-401: The two begin a sometimes uneasy friendship as Boone poses for Whale's sketches. The two men bond while discussing their lives and dealing with Whale's spells of disorientation and weakness from the strokes. Boone, impressed with Whale's fame, watches Bride of Frankenstein on television as his friends mock the movie, his friendship with Whale, and Whale's intentions. Boone assures Whale that he

1435-598: Was announced that Condon would write and direct a film adaptation of the musical version of Kiss of the Spider Woman , with Jennifer Lopez attached to star and co-executive produce. Condon is gay . He is in a long-term relationship with Jack Morrissey. TV movies TV series Gods and Monsters (film) An international co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, Gods and Monsters

1476-481: Was at one point in negotiations for a supporting role. Kinsey was the first film permitted to show human genitalia uncensored in Japan , known for its strict censorship policies regarding genitalia. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 90% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 196 reviews, with an average rating of 7.66/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "A biopic of

1517-524: Was based on a novel by Christopher Bram . His screenplay won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay . The New York Times said Condon "may have been the most stunned person at the Academy Awards when his name was announced as the winner for the best adapted screenplay. He has struggled for years in Hollywood as a screenwriter and journalist and is unaccustomed to the hoopla that is now around him." He

1558-523: Was initiated by the Writers Guild of America (WGA). In July 2021, Condon signed on to direct a Guys and Dolls movie adaptation by TriStar Pictures but left the project in 2023 and was replaced by Chicago director Rob Marshall . That same year, he co-produced the live stage filming of the Broadway production of Come from Away , which was released to streaming on Apple TV+ . In December 2023, it

1599-469: Was nominated for eight Academy Awards in six categories. Condon was executive producer of the 81st Academy Awards television broadcast that aired on February 22, 2009, working with producer Laurence Mark . Condon directed both parts of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn (2011 and 2012), adapted from the fourth and final novel in The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer . He was twice nominated for

1640-409: Was nominated for the same award for his screenplay for Chicago , based on the Broadway musical of the same name . He received a second Edgar Award for his Chicago screenplay as well. In 2004 he wrote and directed the film Kinsey , chronicling the life of the controversial sex researcher Alfred Kinsey . In The New York Times , A.O. Scott wrote that "Bill Condon's smart, stirring [film] has

1681-755: Was nominated for three Academy Awards , including Best Actor for McKellen and Best Supporting Actress for Redgrave, and won for Best Adapted Screenplay . Despite receiving positive reviews, the film was a box office failure . It was later adapted as a play of the same name which premiered in London at the Southwark Playhouse in February 2015. In the 1950s, James Whale , the director of Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein , has retired. Whale lives with his long-time housemaid, Hanna, who loyally cares for him but disapproves of his homosexuality . He has suffered

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