Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed

It's certainly not news that Rock Hudson led a double life as a world renowned movie star adored by legions of his female fans and a closeted gay man who became the first prominent celebrity victim of AIDS in 1985. This sympathetic 2023 documentary, however, doesn't paint a dour portrait of a tortured soul but rather a self-reliant man who separated his public and private lives through personal finesse and the support of a close circle of friends. Director Stephen Kijak does a masterful job of melding archival footage and contextually relevant clips from Hudson's films to reveal the personal challenges he faced in navigating his carefully presented public image. At the same time, interviews with surviving friends and intimates highlight not only his voracious sexual appetite but his reputation for being a true professional and trustworthy friend. The last section effectively deals with his AIDS diagnosis and his very public physical deterioration including a heartbreaking betrayal from a longtime friend, First Lady Nancy Reagan. Even if you're familiar with his biography, you'll find new surprises here nearly four decades after his death.

For those of us who have read about Rock Hudson's life after his passing, there's really nothing new in this documentary, other than random interviews with people who knew him and who share their memories. The film also doesn't feel complete; strangely, there's the glaring omission of the lawsuit that Hudson's partner, Marc Christian, filed after his death (in fact, there's no mention of Christian at all in the documentary, possibly for legal reasons). They were partners for the six years preceding his death and Christian passed away in 2009... so the fact that the details of their relationship as well as the famous lawsuit were omitted seems particularly striking.

I also found the constant interspersing of clips from Hudson's films to become distracting after awhile. The filmmakers seemed to think it was clever to find similarities in Hudson's life with many of the scenes from his films, but after about an hour I felt the constant interruptions in the narrative with these asides eventually became so overused that it intruded on the tone of the documentary itself. This became particularly obvious at the end when the documentary details Hudson's passing. Probably 30 minutes of the film's 104 minute running time seem to be made up of clips that are used in this manner. Some of them have been edited by the filmmakers to be humorous in order to unnecessarily drive home a point.

Overall, I've been looking forward to seeing this film since I've heard about it but ultimately found it to be pretty disappointing. If you know nothing about Rock Hudson or his life, this might be interesting... but for many of us there isn't much territory that hasn't already been explored here.

We learned quite a bit about his legendary Hollywood dominance and overall story. In the end, a very sad and tragic end to a man so full of life. This is a well-told and heartbreaking story for the most part. There are so many valuable contributors interviewed throughout the documentary. It was touching to hear their experiences and see their shared personal videos and photos of aspects and points in time of Rock's life. My only complaint is that we are treated to an (over) abundance of movie clips cleverly edited to help tell his/the story via dialogue from various movies . By the last half hour or so those clips became a bit grating. The cut back and forth with this creative approach took something away from the actual story and interviews.

Greetings again from the darkness. Actors earn a living thanks to their ability to perform in front of the camera (or a live audience) as someone else ... making the audience believe they are a particular character of interest. But what happens when an actor must continue acting once the cameras stop rolling? Such was the life of Roy Fitzgerald, a man known worldwide as Rock Hudson. Documentarian Stephen Kijak chronicles the complications faced by Rock Hudson - maintaining the All-American public persona, while hiding a personal life that likely would have ended his career had his secret life as a gay man been publicized.

Perhaps the biggest surprise here is that the secret was kept for decades, even though so many in the industry were well aware. The answer to 'why' this wasn't a big deal at a time it certainly would have been a big deal is likely related to just how likeable and nice Rock Hudson was. Not only did he have incredible appeal to both men and women, he was also an extraordinarily nice man ... a matinee idol with the real life personality of Tom Hanks. Of course, here we are almost 40 years later, and Rock Hudson's legacy is often boiled down to the fact that he was the first true celebrity to go public with his AIDS diagnosis, ultimately passing away from the disease in 1985 at age 59.

As is often the case, there is much more to the man than the headlines. After serving in the Navy during WWII, it was 1946 when he headed to Hollywood. There he met Ken Lodge who helped him get his start, and it was industry big-wig Henry Wilson who thought 'Roy Fitzgerald' was a pleasant enough name, but "Rock Hudson" was much better. And it was Wilson who molded Hudson into the 'ladies man' Adonis we grew accustomed to seeing on screen. Wilson even taught him how to come across as "hetero", and stressed the importance of not being photographed with his 'friends' while in public. We even hear candid interviews from George Nader and Mark Miller who were very close friends of Hudson's, and we understand how "The Castle" became the hangout to avoid public scrutiny.

Director Kijack is very clever in his use of archival movie clips that now can be interpreted much differently than when Hudson's movies first played. When clumped together like this, we wonder how the clues were missed, and just how intentional some of the dialogue and situations were. We hear from the doctor who diagnosed Hudson with AIDS, and the importance of Reagan politics in the era is emphasized. One of the most heart-wrenching sequences revolves around the "Dynasty" episode where Hudson, knowing he was infected with AIDS, had to kiss series star Linda Evans. We also see how his long-time friends Doris Day and Elizabeth Taylor rallied around him when he went public.

Classic film lovers know Rock Hudson received his only Oscar nomination for GIANT (1957), and it should be noted that his thirty year career spanned just about every genre: the iconic Rom-Coms with Doris Day (PILLOW TALK, 1959); dramas (ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS, 1955); war (A GATHERING OF EAGLES, 1963); westerns (BEND OF THE RIVER, 1952); science-fiction ("The Mirror Crack'd"); crime-mysteries (PRETTY MAIDS ALL IN A ROW, 1971); and thrillers (ICE STATION ZEBRA, 1968). He also starred alongside Susan Saint James and Nancy Walker in one of my favorite TV series from the 1970's, "McMillan and Wife." Yet, despite so many terrific performances, shows, and films, Rock Hudson's most challenging and impressive role was certainly that of Rock Hudson.

Premiering on MAX on June 28, 2023.

An icon as beloved as Rock Hudson deserves a thorough, thoughtful, and multifaceted documentary. So why is it that he got one that focuses so heavily on his sexuality and conquests, and not nearly enough on the man himself? No person is defined simply by their sexual orientation and nor should they be. This is especially true of one of the biggest movie stars of the '50s and '60s. Going from the Midwest to Hollywood, experiencing the ups and downs of stardom, and being closeted all the while all must affect someone in various ways. But we don't really learn how in this doc. Instead, it consists mostly of interviews with men he had flings with. There is some good insight here and there, but it mostly gets lost amongst talk of his romantic relationships.

Perhaps he was just too private for any truly meaningful content to be put together about him. If that's the case, it probably wasn't worth making this. I also seriously question the director's abilities because, as another review said, the movie clip usage grew tiresome and was uncomfortable at times. There were also a couple of highly unnecessary crude comments about Rock that were inexplicably not edited out.

I personally don't think Rock would appreciate his sexuality being the biggest talking point because I don't think anyone would. He was so much more than that. This is a skip.