‘Madfabulous’ review: Wales-set debut proves too pedestrian for its flamboyant real-life subject

Dir: Celyn Jones. UK. 2025. 108mins

For a film intended to celebrate a man who was his own unique creation, Madfabulous sometimes suffers from an identity crisis. Inspired by a true story, this comedy-drama stars Callum Scott Howells as Henry Cyril Paget, who sought to claim his aristocratic inheritance at the end of the 19th century only to have his flamboyant lifestyle put him at odds with those around him. Although beautifully shot and designed, Celyn Jones’ solo feature debut fails to fully satisfy as either a tart romp or a tender portrait of self-acceptance.

 Resorts to feel-good cliches rather than exploring complexities

Madfabulous premieres at BFI Flare before opening theatrically in the UK on June 5. Howells is joined by Ruby Stokes and Rupert Everett, and local audience awareness of Paget could help drive interest. Elsewhere, this spirited but lacklustre crowd-pleaser may appeal chiefly to arthouse crowds intrigued by its proudly rebellious protagonist.

In the 1890s, family black sheep Paget (It’s A Sin star Howells) arrives in North Wales to assume his rightful title of Fifth Marquess of Anglesey, immediately scandalising his conservative relatives with his fondness for wearing flowing frocks. Soon marrying his equally mischievous cousin Lily (Stokes), he goes about indulging his passions, including jewelry and theatre, excited to have control of a sizable fortune. But a debilitating illness and grumblings among his snooty kin threaten to cut short his hedonistic pursuits.

Paget died in 1905 aged 29, his brief existence marked by lavish tendencies and questions surrounding his sexuality. Madfabulous never answers those definitively, but many of the film’s judgmental supporting characters suspect him to be gay due to his effeminate manner and doubt that he and Lily have consummated their marriage. Jones, who previously co-directed the 2022 drama The Almond And The Seahorse, isn’t interested in speculating regarding the character’s romantic appetites, simply presenting him as an impudent soul incapable of living inauthentically.

Howell’s giddy performance never allows Paget to be viewed as a cautionary tale or a tragedy. Early in Madfabulous, when Paget coughs up blood, audiences can reasonably anticipate that this young man’s days are numbered. (His long battle with consumption would eventually lead to his demise.) And yet, despite that, Howell focusses on Paget’s joie de vivre, which often masks darker realities concerning his health and discomfort in a heteronormative world. The only person truly able to get close to Paget is Lily, who Stokes portrays with an impish spark. The two actors’ rapport is conspiratorial rather than romantic, as Paget and Lily bond over their shared feelings of being outsiders in this cloistered environment.

Assisted ably by cinematographer Laurie Rose and costume designer Francisco Rodriguez-Weil, Jones makes fine use of the North Wales locales with their gorgeous castles and sweeping panoramas. Nearly every scene emphasises the opulent life that Paget craves; one that will become his undoing. Seduced by pretty trinkets, blow-out parties and his artistic impulses, Paget shocks the pearl-clutchers around him — including the blandly uptight Lord Penrhyn (Paul Rhys) — but Madfabulous remains clear-eyed about his immaturity and capriciousness. Paget may have been a trailblazer by refusing to conform to rigid gender norms, but Howell doesn’t shy away from the character’s selfish, spoiled behaviour.

Unfortunately, this potentially compelling character study gets shortchanged by Jones’ inability to master contrasting tones. When Paget parades his fabulous threads — women’s dresses, bright pink suits — Madfabulous’ pedestrian filmmaking strains to be an irreverent salute to an iconoclast. Later, when the picture grows more dramatic once Paget’s poor choices risk bankrupting his family, Lisa Baker’s superficial screenplay lacks the heft to convey this more sombre mood. (Additionally, a subplot involving Paget’s impassioned attempts to reconnect with his estranged father proves emotionally underwhelming.) Eventually, the storytelling resorts to feel-good cliches rather than exploring the complexity of a gentle, vulnerable troublemaker who struggled to fill the voids within himself.

Several of the supporting performances veer toward the needlessly broad, and too many in the ensemble try to outdo one another at being stiff twits aghast at Paget’s outrageousness. Yet Everett does nice work as Gelert, the family’s loyal ageing butler who comes to enjoy Paget’s company. Madfabulous ends up being too timid to do justice to this vibrant black sheep, but Everett quietly brings some needed gravitas and wit.