Madfabulous retells the real story of Henry Cyril Paget, the fifth Marquess of Anglesey out in Wales, a guy who came back at the tail end of the 1800s to claim his aristocratic title, only for his over the top lifestyle to put him at odds with practically everyone around him. It’s a genuinely gorgeous film to watch, worth checking out honestly just for the incredible outfits alone on its iconic queer lead. This version does stray from what actually happened growing up in his real life, but it still pulls in all the major chapters of his story and turns them into something visually rich and beautifully done. Nothing about his sexuality gets stated outright anywhere in the film, but it’s pretty clear he’s meant to read as queer, which should make this an easy watch for queer film fans.
Back in the 1890s, Paget, the black sheep of his family, shows up in North Wales to take on his title as the fifth Marquess of Anglesey, and immediately shocks his uptight relatives with how much he loves wearing flowing dresses. He’s mostly alone and restless, with the only real bond he’s got being his cousin Lily, who’s just as eager as he is to live free of expectations. There are hints dropped early on through his coughing that his health is starting to slip. His father’s only just acknowledged him as his heir but still refuses to actually see him. Eventually Paget marries Lily, but their marriage doesn’t stay happy for long. He brings in theater performers and starts pouring huge amounts of money into these extravagant stage productions, which ends up burying his whole estate in debt. Lily eventually leaves him, and when the rest of the aristocracy tries to have him committed to an asylum, it’s his real family, Lily, his butler, and a maid, who help him slip away to France instead. We later learn that he dies at only twenty nine from tuberculosis.
Paget’s short life was constantly shadowed by his extravagant habits and the unanswered questions around his sexuality. The film never spells it out directly, but a lot of the judgmental side characters clearly suspect he’s gay, pointing to his effeminate mannerisms and openly doubting whether his marriage to Lily was ever consummated. Flamboyant, theatrical, over the top, and completely unwilling to fit the mold society wanted from him, the fifth Marquess of Anglesey feels almost too larger than life to have actually been real. The actor playing Henry gives a genuinely stunning performance, handsome, delicate, pale, almost dreamlike, and surprisingly restrained rather than overtly gay in how it’s played. It’s a much more subtle, careful portrayal, where his sexuality only really gets hinted at through one small gesture from one of the film’s antagonists, nothing about it feels forced onto the audience. The director takes Henry’s story and uses it to show us just what kind of freedom extreme wealth can offer a queer, artistic man. Visually the film is gorgeous. Nearly every frame leans into the luxurious life Paget’s chasing after, the very same lifestyle that ends up being his downfall. The film also makes great use of the North Wales scenery, with its stunning castles and sweeping landscapes adding so much to the whole thing. (6/10)
