Worried About The Boy [DVD] - 1980s British Drama Film About Boy George - Perfect for Movie Nights & Music Biopic Lovers

The public gets nostalgic after 20 years. I remember when there was a Monkees' craze in the 1980s. Then, in the early 1990s, young people learned about Jim Morrison through the Stone film. In late 1999, I told some friends, "The 2000s is when folk will rediscover Culture Club!" Well, I was off by a decade, but this film shows that it happened, at least "across the pond."You don't have to be a Culture Club fan to enjoy this film. However, if you had the book "When Cameras Go Crazy" and if you read Boy George's "Take It like a Man," then you will love this. The outfits matched real life. The gist of the story is factual. It was like being a fly on the wall before Culture Club blew up. I never saw "Taboo," so I can't say which was more authentic, but this seemed very real to me. Their lack of altering the facts is a sign of the compelling story that La O'Dowd has. For non-fans, this will be a shocker. Boy George didn't always have a ragdoll look. Here he's more like a Frankenstein. If you remember the "Behind the Music" episode, Jon Moss stated, "He [Boy George] was weirder then than he was in Culture Club."The actor playing Boy George did a wonderful job. Like Boy George, he has a smooth chest. The real Boy George has complained about his weak chin and this actor had a strong jaw line instead. The cover of the DVD resembles the American cover of "Kissing to be Clever." I think the actor playing Mikey Craig probably has just one Black parent whereas Mikey surely has two, but he did look like the bassist. In an interview, Boy George said Jon Moss gave advice on the set. The actor playing him also resembled him. They show him in a pair of briefs and that makes sense as he was the hottie of the band. The Roy Hay character looked NOTHING like the real Roy Hay. Mr. Hay's look is not unique, so I'm surprised they couldn't find a more appropriate actor. In fairness, Roy seems like he wants the least to do with the band, so I doubt he cared one way or the other.I'm an African American and in my community there's a furor about the supposed "down low." Although this cast is mostly Caucasian, I think those interested in that subject would find this interesting. This film shows all kind of men who want to kick it with Boy George but not be seen as a sexual minority. They desire him, but don't want their status as "one of the lads" to be diminished. This is an interesting study on how some men want to maximize man-squared sex but want to minimize facing homophobia. The film uses the real name of one of Boy George's ex-boyfriends, Kirk Brandon. Since he lost his defamation suit against the singer when "Take It like a Man" was published, I guess he must have accepted his fate and allowed his name to be used. Then again, maybe the filmmakers gave him some ka-CHING. Then again too, some say, "There's no such thing as bad publicity."Malcolm McLaren plays a big part in this film, even though he's only mentioned a few times in "Take It like a Man." Mark Gatiss did a fantastic job portraying him (and he has a nice ginger hairy chest too). The real McLaren died one month after this was aired in Britain. Again, "there's no such thing as bad publicity." However, he's portrayed as shady and manipulative. As he had connections with the Sex Pistols and Boy George, some may want to see this film alongside "Sid & Nancy." Still, McLaren fans may be highly upset about the portrayal here. Viewers may ask themselves, "How could the maker of 'Deep in Vogue' have been such a jerk!?"Another surprising portrayal is that of Jeremiah O'Dowd, George's father. In the film, he comes off as a caring, outstanding parent. However, Boy George's mother Dinah has written an excellent autobiography called "Cry Salty Tears" in which she revealed that her husband was abusive, violent, duplicitous, and probably mentally ill. He pointed a knife at his wife when she was carrying George! Wearing my feminist hat, his positive presence here, compared to Mrs. O'Dowd's near invisibility here, is disturbing. Then again, Boy George himself did not reveal his father's bad side until this past decade.Like many Americans, I have beef with "Take It like a Man" because it was drowning in British slang that made no sense to me. In fairness, if an African-American singer wrote an autobiography, I'd probably understand the lingo in a snap while British readers would be perplexed. This film is not loaded with British vernacular. An American viewer would be able to understand it.