Product Details

• Actors: John Hurt, Liz Gebhardt, Patricia Hodge, Stanley Lebor, Katherine Schofield
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 1.0)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: BBC Worldwide
• DVD Release Date: May 29, 2007
• Run Time: 77 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000NJXG72
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #38,623 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Naked Civil Servant" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

The Naked Civil Servant created a furor in 1975 when it premiered on PBS in North America with viewers threatening to yank their support of their local stations. It was a film ahead of its time about a man even more ahead of his time. The Naked Civi Servant is based on the autobiography of Quentin Crisp, a man struggling to live an openly flamboyant, gay lifestyle during a time when homosexuality was against the law in Britain. His outlandish behavior shocked the intolerant pre-WWII British society and provoked frequent homophobic attacks, but Crisp staunchly refused to compromise his lifestyle and went on to become a cult celebrity and an international gay icon, a 20th-Century Oscar Wilde. This colorful, heartwarming coming of age tale is by turns funny and tragic.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sad and funny, October 10, 2001

By 

Nightreader "-bb-" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Naked Civil Servant [VHS] (VHS Tape)

"John Hurt", quoth Quentin Crisp, "is my representative on earth." And so he is. The two men become indistinguishable. I bought this film because I wanted to see John Hurt and didn't really care in whatever character - in fact I was afraid this might be a silly exploitative fairy comedy like "A cage of fools". But then I got captivated, and not only because Hurt makes a really cute fairy (and shows so much skin). The film has a lot of atmosphere, there are many witticisms - my favorite is Quentins reason why he thinks he'd make a good soldier: "Anyone can get killed. Even I can do that." There is so much that is ridiculous and sometimes repulsive, so much that is sad, or funny, or deeply moving like the courtroom scene. In the end the film left me wondering why a man must suffer so much for simply being different, when his being different hurts no one.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I WANNA BE ME..., January 15, 2002

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Naked Civil Servant [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This is an amazingly good film with a superlative performance by John Hurt in the role of Quentin Crisp, a flamboyant English homosexual in the days when being such was anything but comfortable. Brilliantly played by Hurt, Crisp was a born in 1908 and was aware that he was different from an early age. He grew up in an era where homosexuality was not an option as a life style. Still, he managed to make it in a world that was decidedly unfriendly to those like him. Witty and self assured, he lived his life as he wanted, despite the hardships he faced due to his self professed homosexuality. He was a trailblazer and poster boy for an alternative life style.

John Hurt deservedly won the British Best Actor award for his incisive portrayal of Quentin Crisp. It is no wonder that his performance was critically acclaimed. It is nothing short of brilliant. His is a touching and sympathetic portrayal of an individual who wanted nothing more than to be able to be himself. It is a performance that is not to be missed. The film is an absolute gem.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars where is the DVD version???, February 28, 2004

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Naked Civil Servant [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This brilliant piece of work should long since have been released on DVD. And "An evening with Quentin Crisp" (now OP even in VHS) should also be DVDized!