Did Bela Lugosi know what this film was about.
All is dialog was just random stuff that didn't have anything that had to do with the plot. Except for the ending.
share[deleted]
MovieChat Forums > Glen or Glenda Discussion > Did Bela Lugosi know what this film was ...
According to Rudolph Grey's biography of Ed Wood, Nightmare of Ecstasy, on which the screenplay for Ed Wood was based, Lugosi was aware of the film's subject matter but also needed the money.
As a matter of fact, Lugosi turned down the role when he was originally offered it for $500, presumably because of what the movie was about. His wife Lillian changed his mind due to their financial burdens, but not before she renegotiated the offer to $1000.
While the subject matter is embarrassing, Lugosi is not personally put in an undignified position, which was perhaps how he justified his involvement.
Ed Wood probably only did it because he wanted to work with a legend like Lugosi, script or sense be damned. And like others mentioned, Lugosi did it for the money.
--------------------
"Ram this in your clambake, bitchcakes!"
No, Glen or Glenda was definitely a labor of love for Wood. The script was meant to be a representation of himself, and the film is the most personal of all his projects.
The fact that he was able to get Lugosi was great for Wood in being able to work with someone he admired, but it was also very practical because Lugosi was still a film star, if a greatly diminished one.
Yeah, I know that. I meant Ed Wood putting Lugosi in the film. Like, he realized that he could get Bela in his movie and said "Wow! Hmm, I don?t know where to fit him into the plot of this movie. I know, I'll just create a part! Who cares? It's Bela friggin' Lugosi in MY movie!"
shareWhat did Lugosi care? All he wanted was the money, with which to feed his drug habit.
shareWhat did Lugosi care? All he wanted was the money, with which to feed his drug habit.
Despite the quality of many of his films, Lugosi himself was a very dignified man. Film historian Kim Newman made an observation once which I found quite insightful, which is that the idea of being "too good" to do certain projects is typically exclusive to American actors. European actors generally just like to work. That of course doesn't mean they have no standards, but that they see a job as a job.
Lugosi needed money to pay his bills, which is in many ways much sadder. He was an old man on a limited income, who hadn't worked in four years.
Stories of Lugosi's drug habit have been greatly exaggerated. He did develop a medical addiction, but this resulted from very real and debilitating pain from a sciatic nerve condition brought on from war injuries. The idea of Lugosi as some pathetic junkie is false and an insult to a man who sought help long before it was 'fashionable' to do so. share
the opening credits is full of the name george weiss, i recall it well cause that's one of the people portrayed in the 1994 ed wood movie, played by mike starr, who i've always known about but today constantly listens to him in the twilight zone radio dramas, he must be the most reoccurring actor in twilight zone radio, both starring and other episodes part of the supporting cast, he's been in just the greatest episodes "the lonely", "printers devil", "number 12 looks just like you"... i'm sorry, i'm getting off the subject. alot of scenes in this is remade in that ed wood movie, that even became confusing looking at this at times, as this wasn't confusing enough already as it is... i felt this should have ed woods commentary track explaining some of the scenes, hehe. notice the fella reading a paper, and then removing the paper from his face you see him sitting there as a chick but with beard, like that pop star, i saw a documentary about that person where cassandra peterson (elvira) said she had never seen like that with beard before, if i recall right, so this was pretty early, a scene like that being featured in a 1950's movie. the scene in this where he is going to confess to his girlfriend about his urge to dress in female clothing was one of my favorite lines in the 1994 movie "this is your way of telling me?! by putting it in a script?? what kind of sick mind works like that??". looking at ed woods film making is fascinating, at one point you're even watching war footage in this flick, that became too insane, i was afraid i was gonna bust a gut trying not to laugh, that mixed with bela lugosi's strange dialogue, the unexplainable scenes... i don't think i've ever seen such a hysterical movie that is not intended to be a comedy. like the line in the 1994 movie where lugosi after being introduced to the story first says to ed wood "ah, like jekyll and hyde.. i always wanted to play jekyll and hyde.", to be followed later by: "eddie... what kind of movie is this?"
always saw you as harmless,
when suddenly your eyes changed,
forced me down a low place,
dragged me down with eyes of lure,
tricks of womankind and i couldnt fight her,
confused that i once was sloppy and trusted you,
now not knowing what i had given myself into,
stuck in your spell,
controlling the weather and god knows what else.