SincereFinest disgusting, overrated, pointless

Frances Chung Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Michelle Ridley The movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

CinefanR What makes this movie a very pleasant experience is, of course, Peter O'Toole. He performs with great gusto in the role of a narcissistic, typically selfish and spoiled movie star. The press conference scene alone is the reason why we watch movies. Unforgettable, brilliant, timeless O'Toole. There are flaws, however, such as the uninspired choice of C. Firth to play the writer and a not-so-good script to develop the story. The basic idea is very good and has great potential, but the script goes on a single note and the actor-writer relationship remains somehow undeveloped. There is a brief naked scene thrown in, not fitting the rest and completely unnecessary - just an example of confused direction, a "what the hell was that for" moment. And, well, when the movie ended, I felt that it could have been more. The movie does have a certain surreal quality, plus a great performance from O'Toole. And it's still a relevant commentary on the ephemeral nature of fame, a look into our fascination for movie magic and movie stars, but also a bitter-sweet reminder of our mortality. "Wings of Fame" definitely deserves more credit... and a better DVD treatment, by the way.

darkteilani *SPOILERS!!! SPOILERS!!! SPOILERS!!!*What a brilliant idea for a plot! An afterlife-resort just for famous people? No matter how the fame was gained? Fascinating!!It really reminds me in many ways on Jean Paul Sartre's "Huis clos". You cannot quite decide whether it's Heaven or Hell. It all depends on the celebrities and what they do to each other. The worst thing for those famous souls isn't death but to vanish into oblivion.Peter O'Toole plays Cesar Valentin, an actor on the height of his fame. He is frantic that his stardom will soon be over but he manages to gain new attention as he writes a bestselling book.Colin Firth is Brian Smith, a nobody, who seems to stalk the famous actor. He is constantly on Valentin's toes and tries to get his attention. At a filmfestival where the actor continues to ignore him, Brian spontaneously grabs a pistol from a security officer and shoots Valentin. Directly after that he himself is killed by accident. And here the real story starts......Both end up on this island for dead celebrities. Brian's fame results from his murdering the famous actor. So both fates are intertwined in the afterlife and the quality of their accommodation and the service of the Hotel rises and falls with their fame.It's amazing how the famous actor and the nobody cope with that.Valentin tries to figure out why he was shot. The dialogues between him and Brian are most fun to watch! Brian is playing games with him, enjoying every moment. He couldn't care less that eventually he will fall into oblivion since he never was famous by own accomplishments.This story is about vanity, self-knowledge, evolving above yourself or selling yourself for something as transient as fame. The conclusion is unexpected and as fascinating as the story throughout! O'Toole and Firth are both uniquely brilliant in their performance. But Colin Firth is the one who made my day! Desperate, mad, curious, cunning, caring, loving and forgiving. He does all that so convincingly and endearingly, it really took my breath away!This is a real treat! 10 of 10 by all means!

LekkereKwal I saw this movie a couple of years ago but I can still remember it well and the movie (and its story) allways facinated me. I have only now discovered that this movie was in fact a Dutch production (from my own country), but because of all the foreign actors I allways thought that the movie was American.Maybe the reason why the story appealed to me so much was perhaps that the theory of heaven based on popularity could be very realistic and would make very much sense to me. Ofcorse in the movie it is based on allready believed in theories (like the Styx).I find it almost impossible to believe that the movie is not available as DVD (well maybe in Dutch stores but at least not at Amazon), because the movie was not that bad that it should die a quiet death on slowly detoriating VHS tapes...

Mr.Big This movie deals with the subject of fame and legacy in a hauntingly surreal fashion.Though relatively unknown (and under celebrated) it truly is a masterpiece, and should be seen by everyone who is, was, or ever wished they could be "famous".