The Fruit Machine (1988)

What if you remade Some Like It Hot as a British gay drama in the 80s? … And based the two main characters on those portrayed by James Dean and Sal Mineo in Rebel Without A Cause? … And tagged on a bit of Free Willy? … Finally, if you added a pinch of magical realism?

It sounds atrocious, doesn’t it? It probably shouldn’t work. But it does… mostly work, grounded by the two leading characters, an inspired cameo by Robbie Coltrane, and some shrewd and timely observations of gay life in the 80s. We are talking about the film that was released in 1988 under the title The Fruit Machine, while in the US it is known as Wonderland.

Tony Forsyth

The official synopsis for the movie: "Berated by his father for his camp behavior, Eddie (Emile Charles) runs away from his Liverpool home and joins his friend Michael (Tony Forsyth), a streetwise hustler who is also on the run. The boys witness the gangland murder of Annabelle (Robbie Coltrane), the transvestite hostess of the Fruit Machine club, by a professional killer (Bruce Payne). Fearing for their lives, they are thrown into the arms of a gay opera singer (Robert Stephens) and his manipulative manager (Clare Higgins)."

There's a series of nostalgic delights to be savored in this, now somewhat classic, British gay drama from the '80s. Yet for all of its appeal, including a cast that many an indie can only but dream of and here cue Robert (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie) Stephens, Clare (Hellraiser) Higgins, Bruce (Passenger 57) Payne, Julie (The Bletchley Circle) Graham, together with the one and only Robbie Coltrane, in terms of the narrative, it just does not know where to set its stall, this in spite of having been written by Frank Clarke of Letter to Brezhnev credit and directed by Philip Saville of The Life and Loves of a She-Devil fame. Plus, the film’s score was one of the early works of Oscar winner Hans Zimmer (Rain Man, The Lion King, Gladiator, Inception, Dunkirk) – and the cinematography was by Oscar nominee Dick Pope (Mr. Turner).

The film works best when the relationship between the two friends takes center stage, with many a compelling moment to be found here. Michael, a world-weary sixteen-year-old has seen the ugly underbelly of life. He does not like himself and the only thing that redeems him is the pure and trusting love of Eddie, the starry-eyed innocent. In turn, he offers his friend protection. Their relationship is definitely romantic but we are deliberately left in the dark on whether it’s sexual or not. I believe that the ambiguity works, especially since we’re speaking of sixteen-year-olds.

What also works is the uneasy camaraderie that exists in the gay club. I’ve lived through the 80s and this was the kind of atmosphere that one expected to find. LGBT people were too wounded to be completely trusting, yet the need to belong was strong enough to eventually overcome their mistrust – much of the time.

Best moments

1. Definitely the scenes of the two young leads with Robbie Coltrane’s Anabelle. Especially Tony Forsyth’s dance at the club.

2. The scenes between Michael and Eddie. Real chemistry and good character work.

Worst moments

1. Any scene with either Clare Higgins or Robert Stephens interacting with Tony Forsyth. The scene in the coat-check room is particularly cringe-worthy. I mean, there are enough mustache-twirling villains in the movie, these two definitely needed more depth. Robert Stephens is a very good actor and he deserved better than this cardboard cutout of a predatory older gay man.

2. The finale: Even though there were some good moments, some plot points lacked emotional logic. Plus, a lot of cliches.

On the fence

1. The dolphin plot belonged to another movie. Having said that, after being exposed to all the evil human characters, the dolphins’ inherent goodness was refreshing.

2. The magical realism was neither here nor there. It didn’t hurt the movie but it wasn’t necessary either. I would have skipped it altogether, or at least used it minimally.

Do I recommend the movie? Well, any film that compels me to write about it out of schedule, just as soon as I’ve seen it, is certainly worth something. I mostly recommend it to those who are or want to become familiar with the gay scene in the UK in the 80s. Also, to those who appreciate the virtues of British film-making. Here are some press reviews:

The New York Times: “A loony romantic melodrama about two gay teenage working-class lads in Liverpool who, like Maria in West Side Story, dream of finding that somewhere, sometime, where they can be happy.”

Gay Celluloid: “Intercut with a vibrant disco beat, courtesy of Robbie Coltrane’s transalicious turn of nightclub owner Annabelle, this work is not for those who crave only happy endings.”

TimeOut: “It’s as camp as Christmas, and if it rarely hits the jackpot, playing along with it is wildly enjoyable.”

This is the dance-off scene, which I really liked:

This is the trailer. It’s in German:

This is the film’s theme song. It is performed by Paul Lekakis, while it was written and produced by the trio that ruled the European charts in the 80s, Stock, Aitken, and Waterman:

If you don’t mind the rather poor picture quality, you can watch the whole film here, complete with (phonetically produced) English subtitles: