A review by mixxie67
The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies by Vito Russo

4.0

I read this book around the time it first came out. Since then I've read it at least 2 more times. I've since read a very scathing review of it which was written in response to its 30th anniversary edition that has made me rethink it to a degree but I still think it is a valuable contribution to film history. It certainly helped to fuel my abiding interest in film and film lore. I think the reviewer made some valid points but he is coming from the point of view of a much younger gay man who grew up in Australia in what has to have been a very different environment compared to Russo's childhood in NYC against the backdrop of the turbulent McCarthy era. So, take it with a grain of salt. Mark Adnum's review of The Celluloid Closet