Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon
Bad Romance
•
1h 30m
Directed by John Maybury | 91 mins | 1998
Long before Daniel Craig pursued a fraught gay romance in "Queer" (2024), there was "Love is the Devil": in this brutal but scintillating flashback to 1960s London, Craig portrays George Dyer, the petty criminal from the rough-and-tumble East End who became Francis Bacon’s lover and the model for a number of his greatest works. John Maybury’s debut feature is a fittingly grotesque portrait of one of the most storied, and tragic, artist-muse relationships.
Up Next in Bad Romance
-
Possession
Directed by Andrzej Zulawski | 124 mins | 1981
Banned upon its original release in 1981, Andrzej Żuławski’s stunningly choreographed nightmare of a marriage unraveling is an experience unlike any other. Professional spy Mark (Sam Neill) returns to his West Berlin home to find his wife Anna (Isabe... -
Ema
Directed by Pablo Larraín | 107 mins | 2019
Unlike some of the Chilean auteur Pablo Larraín’s tortured heroines—namely Jackie Onassis, Princess Diana, and most recently Maria Callas—the fictional Ema, the electric, bleach-blonde dancer at the center of this crackling drama (Mariana Di Girolamo), ... -
Love at First Fight
Directed by Thomas Cailley | 98 mins | 2014
Adèle Haenel stars as tomboy survivalist Madeleine in this Cannes Directors’ Fortnight selection, a rom-com that packs a punch. Pursuing his crush on her, the listless Arnaud (Kévin Azaïs) impulsively enlists in the military boot camp she’s signed up fo...