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The Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde [1854-1900]. First appearing in the June 20th, 1890 edition of Lippincott's Monthly Magazine, the story was revised and published again in 1891. The novel was adapted for this movie by screenwriter Toby Finlay.

The children playing around the effigy and asking for "a penny for the guy" were celebrating Guy Fawkes Day. Guy Fawkes [1570-1606] was a Catholic who took part of a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England, an act known as the Gunpowder Plot. Caught red-handed, Fawkes was subsequently interrogated, tried, convicted, hanged—which he made sure was fatal rather than the intended punishment process—and posthumously drawn and quartered, in the Old Palace Yard in Westminster, but not before he ratted out his co-conspirators. The uniqueness of his overall story contributed to his fame and notoriety. It remains the custom in Britain, on 5 November, to celebrate Guy Fawkes Day with fireworks and a bonfire. In the weeks running up to the 5th, children make "guy" effigies of Fawkes from old clothes, newspapers, and a mask to be burnt on the bonfire.

Dorian makes arrangements to leave London with Emily. At Dorian's farewell party, Harry makes a comment to Dorian about bartering his soul, and Dorian suspects that Harry knows the truth. Dorian rushes home, but Harry has beaten him and discovered the portrait in the attic. While Dorian tries to stop him from viewing it, Harry tosses a lamp at the portrait, setting it on fire. Harry then locks the attic gate, trapping Dorian inside. Emily races upstairs to Dorian. She begs him to give her the key, but Dorian refuses and swears his love for her. Harry drags Emily away as the portrait burns and the image growls and howls. Dorian grabs a sword and stabs the portrait. As the portrait burns, Dorian becomes the image and is consumed in the fire. In the final scene, Harry is speaking to Lady Agatha on the telephone. He wishes that Emily would talk to him again. Picking up a cigarette and coughing, he hangs up and heads to the attic to see Basil's portrait of Dorian. "Poor boy," he says. "Who can bear to look at you now?" He locks the door and leaves the attic.

Yes. Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray is in the public domain and can be downloaded for free from Project Gutenberg.

From those who have both seen the movie and read the book, the consensus is that the film is not a literal translation of the novel, but it does capture the heart of the story, i.e., the painting of a portrait that becomes twisted into an evil pact, the way that Lord Henry Wotten swayed Dorian Gray into a life of debauchery, and how Dorian attempts to atone for his ways when life catches up to him. However, there are some substantial differences between the movie and the novel. One is the addition in the film of Emily Wotten (Rebecca Hall) who does not figure at all in the novel.

The film follows the first part of the novel closely, but deviates from the source material after Basil's death. The ending has completely changed, in the novel, Dorian does not fall in love with Henry's daughter (he does not have a daughter in the novel) nor is Henry aware of Dorian's debauchery and does not know of the painting. Dorian's death is different as well. The novel ends with Dorian coming to the conclusion that he will turn around his life. He believes killing the painting will erase his sins, but when he tears the canvas, he in turn is stabbed and becomes old, which restores the painting to it's original state.