McKellen: Playing the Part

The Story

British actor Ian McKellen, best known as Gandalf in the “The Lord of the Rings” movies and Magneto in the “X-Men” franchise, is the subject of B Good’s second feature film (and first feature documentary) “McKellen: Playing the Part.” The documentary is based around an exclusive 14-hour interview with McKellen on his life - from his upbringing in Wigan to his international fame as an actor, from Gandalf to gay activism. The film features rare archive material of early work from stage and screen, never-before-seen photography from McKellen’s private collection, and cinematically reconstructed scenes from his life starring Milo Parker, Luke Evans, Frances Barber, Scott Chambers and more. McKellen has been Oscar nominated twice: for “Gods and Monsters” in 1999 and “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” in 2002. He has been Emmy nominated five times.

Rating

M

Duration

91 min

Cast

Ian McKellen

Director

Joe Stephenson