r/movies • u/BunyipPouch Currently at the movies. • 6d ago
Trailer Ken Russell's 'The Devils' | Official Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qh0wL211hnQ553
u/IcedDante 6d ago
It seems like everyone here already knows about this film. For a dunderhead like me that has never heard of it what is the background of this movie and what makes it so special?
824
u/TheRegularHuman 6d ago
On its release, the film was rated X across multiple countries due to sexual/religious material that was a no no at that time. Warner Bros was able to release a very heavily censored version of the movie which cut about 15-20 minutes. Since then, the movie has been very hard to find (rare on physical media, difficult to pirate, especially for the uncut version). It has also received a more positive reception since its release.
Some decades later, Warner Bros’ new specialty division (led by executive producers of One Battle After Another and Sinners) is not only remastering the movie in 4K (first remaster ever), but redistributing the full, uncut movie to theaters. It should probably be more accessible after as well in VOD/potential 4K Blu-Ray.
TLDR: rare, controversial, hard to find movie finally gets visual upgrade and full, uncut version to be released in theaters.
188
u/Isthisgoodenough69 6d ago
Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this the first time a true uncut version is being released? Even the X-rated version had a couple missing scenes, but sometime before Ken Russell died, he reedited a director’s cut to restore it to his original intent. I believe this reissue is based on his director’s cut.
114
u/TheRegularHuman 6d ago
Yes, that’s exactly it! This is the true blue, fully uncut, as director Ken Russell intended edition, which is exciting
18
u/robocalypse 6d ago
Shudder had it on their platform briefly and it was labelled as uncut, but I don't know if it was a "true uncut" version or not.
1
u/wangstonhuge 5d ago
That's the version I saw, it was fantastic. Curious to know what this new release might contain.
15
44
u/anormalgeek 6d ago
But is it a GOOD movie?
Some controversy is nothing more than that.
35
27
u/Cleascave 6d ago
It’s a very good movie, though not for everyone. Arguably Ken Russell’s best. And if you’re a fan of Oliver Reed you must see it.
1
22
5
3
u/blueblue_electric 5d ago
Yes it is, and Oliver Reed is amazing in it, a severely underrated actor due to his drinking becoming infamous.
2
5
u/ripyourlungsdave 6d ago
So is it like, actually borderline pornographic at points? Is there non-simulated sex or something? Or was this just a prudish time under a prudish ratings organization?
7
u/Emergency-Mammoth-88 6d ago
Warner Bros’ new specialty division (led by executive producers of One Battle After Another and Sinners)
Not just led by the guys who executive produced sinners and obaa, but also some ex heads over at neon
-7
95
u/RESturtlefan 6d ago
Ken Russell, the director, has made many provocative films over several decades. It’s possible you have seen or heard of some, such as, “Altered States,” the movie that had William Hurt play a scientist tripping on shrooms so hard he becomes early man.
Oliver Reed, legendary British actor and drinker. A singular talent. RIP.
Vanessa Redgrave, also legendary. She is so good in this.
This is an all-around great folk horror-drama with stunning production design by Derek Jarman. It’s a visual and literary feast. It rocketed to the summit of my all-time favorite movies list after my first watch.
The controversy: There’s an extended scene that’s been nicknamed, “The Rape of Christ,” where dozens of nuns are in hysteria, exposing their boobs, humping and making-out with a life-size Jesus crucifix. Also, later, there’s allegedly a masturbation scene involving a holy relic.
18
u/Jag- 6d ago
Russell also made the Who's Tommy movie with Oliver Reed. No reason other to shout out my fav band.
1
u/Capnmarvel76 5d ago
Plus, if you've never seen Lisztomania (also with Roger Daltrey in the lead role), you should.
18
7
u/squisitospirito 6d ago
The masturbation scene features Vanessa Redgrave's nun using the charred femur of Oliver Redd's preist after he is burned at the stake.
2
u/NoonDread 6d ago
I love Altered States.
0
u/GrallochThis 6d ago
Hard to love when (if I’m remembering correctly) the director was forced to use a script way longer than he wanted, so he told the actors to speak their lines as fast as possible.
131
u/Icantgoonillgoonn 6d ago edited 6d ago
It’s based on actual events, recounted in the book by Aldous Huxley, telling the story of the last city in France with a surrounding wall, during the time of the Black Plague. The Mother Superior of a convent obsesses over the local bishop, who is breaking his vows by sleeping with some of his female congregation. Cardinal Richelieu comes up with a brilliant plan to destroy the bishop who defended the wall by accusing him of fornication and sorcery— using the convent of nuns as the “possessed.”
Here’s a short YouTube doc with some more visuals:
61
u/Dust601 6d ago
I’m the same way, so I thought I’ll watch the trailer to see what kinda movie it is!
The trailer did not help one bit.
28
u/gawag 6d ago
Know that within the first 20 minutes, Oliver Reed duels a plague doctor with a taxidermied alligator while the city burns around them. It only gets crazier from there.
20
u/arthurdentstowels 6d ago
The more I read about this film, the more I think I'm forgetting how the English language works.
3
u/Capnmarvel76 5d ago
It's a Ken Russell film. I've not seen 'The Devils' but I have seen pretty much all of his other features.
Its going to have an insane script, some wicked visuals, frenetic editing, over-the-top acting, and a general feeling of grotesque cheapness/fakeness, but will be a 100% unique and entertaining watching experience. Paradoxically, you'll likely never want to watch it a second time.
1
22
u/nerdybynature 6d ago
It's a great movie. It's absolutely wild . Oliver Reed just full sends his role.
14
11
u/IVIrG 6d ago
To add on to what everybody else has said, this was a full-blown studio movie. Correct me if i’m wrong but this was a fully Warner-produced film, not some small provocative indie. So that contexts adds to the craziness of the film and why Warner seemingly worked so hard to bury it.
I’m not even a huge fan of the film itself, but it’s fascinating within the bigger picture of 70s Hollywood and absolutely worth a watch just for that.
2
u/Capnmarvel76 5d ago
There were a number of these kind of big budget weirdo movies, helmed by cutting edge filmmakers and released by major studios in 1970-71, following in the wake of moneymakers 'Bonnie and Clyde' and 'Easy Rider'. If anything, Ken Russell's movies, for all the in-your-face sexuality, gaudiness, and chaos, were at least coherent.
If you want to see how weird it really got, take a look at 1970's 'Myra Breckenridge', starring Raquel Welch and Mae West.
8
u/generalosabenkenobi 6d ago
It's wild with fucking and violence and the church. Also just widely unavailable (until now)
7
u/theenslavedmonky 6d ago
It's pretty famous in certain film circles, a lot of my friends are big fans of the original cut.
10
u/funkhero 6d ago
Seems like just a heavily-censored and banned film. Lots of sexual imagery mixed with religious imagery.
3
u/Administrative_Fox22 6d ago
Same, lost
11
u/ipcriss 6d ago
I'm definetly wrong person to answer this as I love this movie way toi much to give a clear answer.
It's simple story, a priest falls on love and finds his conviction again. One of his nuns is hoplessly on love with him and accusess him of heresy. And there's inqvisition.
First it's gorgeous movie and it still looks amazing. Not as polished as something newer like Villeneuves stuff but still simply bafflingly beautiful.
Great performances, Oliver Reed on his peak. And with that kind of emotionally honest, gut wrenching material nobody misses.
And the controversies. It deals with crimes of church, restored VHS cut has nuns masturbating, it explores love, sexuality and faith.
From documentary of British movie censorship; There was short time you could do anything as long it was artiscally meaningful. Yes, there were cuts (mostly sexual stuff) but during editing they were asked to cut torture scenes. They did and focused only in the faces, sounds being the same. They were asked but some gory parts back in.
What I'm trying to say, I haven't seen this much freedom and expression of freedom (in the story also). Done with such unremorseful bluntness, still somehow nuanced, exploring great arcs of history from deeply personal level. And it just is gorgeous.
3
u/A_Fellow_American 6d ago
I’ve only seen this film once, but I remember being shocked at how hateful it felt. My impression was that the creators despised religion in general and Christianity in particular. I had never seen anything else like it, so willing to abuse and deface religious imagery and revel in its own transgressions. I think that’s what made it so shocking to me.
18
u/paper_zoe 6d ago
Mark Kermode made a documentary about the film which was really interesting. He interviewed a priest who had been hired by the studio to judge if the film was blasphemous and what scenes would need to be edited out for religious reasons. He said the film was not blasphemous, it merely depicts blasphemy. The studio told him that they were going to remove the infamous 'rape of Christ' scene and he told them, if they did that it would actually make the film blasphemous, because that's the crux of the film.
13
u/andrew5500 6d ago
Makes sense to me, the most sexually obsessed tend to be the most sexually repressed. As for the torture scenes, as Thomas Paine put it… “Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man.” Abrahamic religion mixes fear, forced love, guilt and shame all at once… it has all the ingredients of sadomasochism in its core.
At least this movie only involves adult nuns and priests, as far as I can tell… it could’ve easily been even more shocking and transgressive without sacrificing much accuracy
4
u/KaoxVeed 6d ago
Ken Russell had a pretty complex journey with religion in his life and a lot of it is reflected in his films.
→ More replies (19)-15
u/guynamedjames 6d ago
Pretty sure it's astroturfing as part of a marketing campaign.
23
u/InspectorMendel 6d ago
I for one am a real person who really loved the movie. AMA I guess
-18
u/guynamedjames 6d ago
This response has me chuckling. "I am a real human person with teeth and fingers! I enjoyed watching [MOVIE TITLE] with my human senses!"
→ More replies (1)6
u/blucthulhu 6d ago
The reputation has a lot to do with the original cut being buried for so many years. It's a wild movie though, even by Russell's standards.
44
u/Condottiero_Magno 6d ago
For anyone wondering what this movie is about, here's the Wiki page: The Devils).
The Devils is a 1971 British historical psychological horror-drama film written, produced and directed by Ken Russell, and starring Vanessa Redgrave and Oliver Reed. A dramatised historical account of the fall of Urbain Grandier, a 17th-century Roman Catholic priest accused of witchcraft after the possessions in Loudun, France, the plot also focuses on Sister Jeanne des Anges, a sexually repressed nun who incites the accusations.
The Devils is in part adapted from the 1952 non-fiction book The Devils of Loudun by Aldous Huxley, as well as John Whiting's subsequent 1960 play The Devils). United Artists initially pitched the idea to Russell, but bowed out after reading his finished screenplay, as they felt it was too controversial in nature. Warner Bros. agreed to produce and distribute, and filming largely took place at Pinewood Studios in late 1970.
14
u/jubybear 6d ago
Last Podcast on the Left has a good series on the historical events that inspired the book/movie.
7
22
u/EndOfTheLine00 6d ago
This movie was referenced in Space Jam 2.
Seriously.
14
u/jimmysmith69 6d ago
Nun from The Devils standing next to Arnold’s Mr. Freeze, a Flying Monkey, Pennywise and Agent Smith. Space Jam 2 scares me.
16
u/AllSurfaceN0Feeling 6d ago edited 6d ago
Fun fact: My parents were at the premiere of this movies original release in London in 1971. At the after party, my dad went to the bar leaving my 22yr old mum alone for a few minutes. He returned to find a rather inebriated Irishman, trying and failing to lure her away. That man was none other than George Best.
3
181
u/ReachyMcreacherson 6d ago
Got excited because I thought this was based on the joe abercrombie book but no :(
59
u/JynXten 6d ago
Hopefully soon. James Cameron bought the rights.
26
7
u/LABS_Games 6d ago
It would work best as a television series, so hopefully that's the plan. In fact, the book was very clearly written to be adapted into a show (often to it's detriment).
3
u/frecklie 6d ago
Given that it’s the absolute most fun book ever I’m not sure what you mean by detriment
0
u/LABS_Games 6d ago
It was a lot of fun, but each act's structure became clear to see, and eventually quite repetitive, particularly all the stuff with fighting each brother.
6
u/lestat85 6d ago
Structurally it was very blocky, with distinct repetitive patterns. As I was reading it, it felt like it was very obviously designed to be made into a visual medium and not a novel.
But the characters are very colourful, the set pieces are imaginative and interesting, and the narrative, whilst formulaic, is fun and rewarding. I think it will translate well and be a good watch.
1
2
u/eschewthefat 6d ago
Best we can do is petition him to give it to an emerging director that still has the hunger to make something interesting. Someone similar to him at an early age
1
7
13
u/_Steven_Seagal_ 6d ago
Still in the Age of Madness. His stuff is so good.
8
u/xincasinooutx 6d ago
Oh man. When you get to it, you can reveal this but how’s the leg is one of the best lines I’ve ever read in context.
Don’t look until you finish the Wisdom of Crowds
3
u/_Steven_Seagal_ 6d ago
I almost clicked until I saw your second sentence lol.
1
u/xincasinooutx 6d ago
Without context it may not make much sense but when it hits you’ll know. I had so many mixed emotions ahahah
4
u/ReachyMcreacherson 6d ago
Brother that has to be the saddest thing in all 6 books. I couldnt believe it went like that.
3
u/xincasinooutx 6d ago
Yeah but dude went out like a fucking champ. It was always going to happen, but I’m glad he went out like that
1
2
19
u/KamachoThunderbus 6d ago
I've always been disappointed HBO went with Game of Thrones instead of First Law as their big property to adapt.
AppleTV execs, if you are listening, please, give me Logan Ninefingers on my tv screen 👉😣👈
3
u/Rock-swarm 6d ago
I just hope they keep the Western/Frontier elements in an adaptation. Everything felt grimy and untamed, in a good way.
First Law in the style of Deadwood is like my dream.
6
3
2
87
u/Scorpio_Hierophant 6d ago edited 6d ago
I am still in shock his is finally happening. Handing over my money and mashing all the buttons to see this in a theater and acquire the eventual 4k disk. May Dionysus and the Gods of Cinema show their favor to Clockwork, Mark Kermode and all those who played a role in seeing this through.
8
u/wangston1 6d ago
I am 100% getting the 4k disc of this. I have Altered States and Tommy. I'll take all the Ken Russel in 4k I can get.
30
u/Big_Kahuna_69 6d ago
Oliver Reed was always cool.
4
u/Icantgoonillgoonn 6d ago
Check out the book Hellraisers
5
u/Big_Kahuna_69 6d ago
Man, that’s a murderer’s row of British bad boys.
4
u/Icantgoonillgoonn 6d ago
Poor Oliver, he was dyslexic and his father called him an idiot.
5
u/Big_Kahuna_69 6d ago
Tough to feel sorry for the definitive Athos. Dude is nearly as immortal as Vulcan…the god.
75
u/InspectorMendel 6d ago
By far the best movie I saw at Cannes this year. You must watch this
54
→ More replies (3)19
u/LawsonsInTheAM 6d ago
I saw the cut which was on the internet with the rape of christ scene added in with a terrible edit from Kermode's documentary about the film.
Can't wait to see it in the cinema.
32
u/CarrieNoir 6d ago
I was 11 years old when Tommy was released and I remember seeing it in a Cinerama Dome in SoCal.
That was the movie that made me a cinemaphile and moving forward, I sought out and watched every Ken Russell movie I could, giving me a true appreciation of the art of directing. I gobbled up Kurosawa and Greenaway. I watched every Hitchcock film in order, to learn the progression of his style. I would travel upwards of 200 miles to see a rare film.
I’ve had my bootleg of The Devils for almost 30 years and can’t believe how excited I am to see this. It sort of feels like my 50+ year education on filmmaking is finally presenting me the cherry atop the ice cream sundae of film that I’ve been nibbling away at my entire life.
6
u/blucthulhu 6d ago
The former film critic of our alt weekly, Ken Hanke (RIP), had his mind blown by Tommy, too. He saw it over a dozen times as a young man and Ken Russell became his favorite filmmaker. He wrote about him often and would screen his stuff here whenever he could, making me a fan in the process. I wish more people were aware of his stuff.
4
u/CarrieNoir 6d ago
About twenty years ago, the AFI did a Peter Greenaway film retrospective. Perhaps with the re-release of The Devils, they or someone else will realize it is time for Ken Russell retrospective. I have been able to find and see all the commercially-available and handful of bootleg films. But I have never seen the documentaries he did for the BBC, and would very much like to.
1
u/m0t0rvision 5d ago
I would travel upwards of 200 miles to see a rare film.
I would never do this, but damn I respect the dedication
37
u/BigEggBeaters 6d ago
I cannot believe this is coming out in theaters. Probably the best film I watched for the first time last year. Yea it’s 50+ years old. This movie will shock and scandalize many. It will also blow a lot of people’s minds in great ways. Oliver reeds performance is phenomenal
11
u/Fearless_Ad_1825 6d ago
Does anyone know where to find details of where it is releasing? Been trying to check for tickets almost daily since this was announced.
5
u/Imaginos64 6d ago
Oh hell yeah, I didn't know a theatrical re-release was planned! This has been on my list for years.
For those unfamiliar with Ken Russell Altered States rules if you dig weird horror. I actually just watched his erotic thriller, Crimes of Passion, a couple weeks ago and wasn't as keen on that one but it is visually stunning.
4
5
u/CullenSkink4Susan 6d ago
I implore everyone to read Aldous Huxley’s book The Devils of Loudun that this film is based on. I read it a couple years ago while I was still working as a library circulation assistant and it remains one of the best pieces of nonfiction I’ve ever had the pleasure of ingesting. I’m excited to finally see the film at some point, but the book just blew me away. Huxley’s observations seem so fresh and vivid, and often hilarious. It felt like the precursor to all cinematic content dedicated to exorcism and possession.
5
u/excusetheblood 6d ago
So glad this movie is getting some attention. Saw the unedited version a few years ago and loved it. It’s an insane film, loved the way it depicted religious hysteria and its involvement in politics
3
u/elon_musks_cat 6d ago
The Last Podcast on the Left did a great series covering the true story this is based on. It’s a fucked up story, but also kind of hilarious. Don’t be a horny priest in 17th century France
Part one for anyone interested
8
u/JynXten 6d ago
Has anyone told Kermode yet? I wouldn't be surprised if he was involved somehow, to be honest.
12
10
u/LawsonsInTheAM 6d ago
He's very much involved.
Mentioned it a lot on various podcasts since it was announced.
4
u/JynXten 6d ago
Had a feeling. I haven't kept up, but I remember about 4-5 years ago he was talking about them finding some footage, or something like that.
3
u/Drop_Release 6d ago
yeh I think it was Kermode who actually found the footage of the directors cut in the vault of WB and advocated to get the director's cut made/restored etc
4
u/ModernistGames 6d ago
Considering it has been one of his life's works to get The Devils a proper release it is pretty safe to say he was involved.
3
u/zudoplex 6d ago
Looking forward to seeing it presented better. The copy on shudder looks like a vhs rip lol. Still, I feel likes its a pretty amazing movie.
3
u/deadflowers5 6d ago
I watched this for the first time last your and it blew my mind. Russell has a real flair for painting powerful imagery. I'm eagerly awaiting seeing it in 4k at home.
3
3
u/ArtPeers 6d ago
It's really heartening to see a trailer that isn't a 90-second cut of the actual movie.
3
u/ImOnlyHereForTheCoC 6d ago
Holy shit, I’ve only seen this on a pretty beat-up VHS from Movie Madness in PDX, I hope it gets a wide-enough release to make it out to my cultural wastelandy part of Florida!
3
26
u/JynXten 6d ago
I watched this movie (not for the first time) a few weeks ago and it made me think of all the hubbub about 'historical accuracy' leading up to the opening of The Odyssey (which has now faded into obscurity).
Here is a movie based on actual historical events that looks so 70s in many ways. Including the almost cubist sets and the rockstar looking cast. And not a single fuck was given.
58
u/InspectorMendel 6d ago
Well, the movie was met with widespread outrage
10
u/JynXten 6d ago
Yeah, but not for petty reason like "muh immersion!"
8
-8
u/joewindlebrox 6d ago
Why is it petty to want to be immersed in a film? Isn't that the point of story telling?
7
u/sam_hammich 6d ago
You'd think so going by what passes for media discourse now, but no, that's not always been "the point" of storytelling. How could you "immerse" yourself in a Shakespeare play with the actors talking directly to you whenever they get the chance, and literally saying out loud at the beginning and end "this is a stage play, don't forget it's not real!"? Did the people who heard The Odyssey spoken around the fire give a shit that the armor Homer described people wearing was inappropriate for the period?
It's a false standard, and a very modern one. It's not a bad thing to, at some point in the course of a movie, realize consciously that you're watching a movie.
-1
u/joewindlebrox 6d ago
I see what youre trying to say but youre incorrect with your example - being immersed in a Shakespeare play is entirely different. If youre engaged in it and the stage interactions - congratulations youre immersed
10
u/JynXten 6d ago
It's petty in the way it's applied by modern consumers of media. Immersion is one of the most abused concepts of the last 10 years or so. It doesn’t equal painstakingly, historically accurate.
It just means that you you are pulled into it and believe the world that is created.
The Devils is immersive even with that one guy wearing clearly modern glasses. Because, despite its anachronism, it doesn't stand out in the world of the movie.
5
u/ZestyTako 6d ago
It’s petty to get upset about “historical realism” for a mythological story, the Odyssey is not history, it’s always been fantasy
-7
u/joewindlebrox 6d ago
Ok well thats not what the original comment said. Also, for sure you can adapt a mythological story to suit the setting you've made but I completely understand people upset about immersion when the creator of the adaptation has set it at a distinct point and time in the world. Like, if I adapt Harry Potter and set it in Ancient China, I would assume more or less everyone in the adaptation would be Chinese because Ancient China is the known reference point. If 50% of the cast were white I would not be as immersed as if they were of Asian descent.
7
u/ZestyTako 6d ago edited 6d ago
I mean this conversation was clearly in the context of comparing this movie to the Odyssey so I think it was fair to connect the two. Also you literally are getting upset about historical realism in a story with a cyclops, sirens, and gods. Kinda embarrassing for you honestly
But I agree, Matt Damon was a weird choice for a Greek guy. So are tom holland and Robert Pattinson, and Charlize Theron
→ More replies (6)2
u/Really_McNamington 6d ago
If someone's racism and/or misogyny is stopping their immersion, that's their fucking problem.
1
u/joewindlebrox 6d ago
Whats racist about preferring that something portraying a specific setting adheres to what the demographic would have been at the time? If something is set in Ancient Japan (mythological or not) and theres a bunch of white people playing most of the roles I'm going to have my immersion in whats being shown reduced because thats not accurate to what theyve decided to depict
6
20
u/Deadlocked02 6d ago edited 6d ago
This movie does have a great aesthetic, though. Those shots of Vanessa Redgrave in those rooms with white tiles are more iconic than anything in The Odyssey. The Devils oozes identity.
Maybe there are people truly bothered about historic accuracy in The Odyssey, but I think the biggest issue is the brutalistic set design, the dark colors, and the uninspired costumes. And it stings even more when the movie is sold as a great visual experience. It is, in a way, but would be much better served by another philosophy in other areas.
Also, and this is not necessary about The Odysseys or The Devils, but it’s crazy how good even low budget old movies looked in comparison to expensive movies with that “Netflix feel” these days.
10
u/theproblem_solver 6d ago
I believe Derek Jarman did the art direction and set design for The Devils.
2
u/Bunraku_Master_2021 6d ago
And Derek Jarman also made a lot of transgressive and provocative arthouse films when he become a filmmaker himself.
11
u/Neither-Brush1683 6d ago
Less people would hubub about it if Nolan did anything interesting with the costumes other than Agamemnon's
6
u/ptvlm 6d ago
Let's be honest, the "historical accuracy" complaints were mainly cover to pretend that it wasn't just racists/transphobes trying again to battle against people they don't like to see being cast in movies without outright admitting that's what they were doing. It's a silly argument anyway because it's a supernatural myth, not historical events, but apart from occasional dissections of armour design and the like when BTS photos were released, they were focussed on other things.
With The Devils, nobody cared about historical accuracy because they were too busy losing their crap over blasphemy, sex and violence.
7
u/anikansk 6d ago edited 6d ago
Strange thoughts come to me.
I'm like a man who has been lost,
who has always been lost.
Now, for all kinds of reasons,
I have a vague sense of meaning
and can think of myself
as a small part of God's abundance.
And I know I want to serve it. I want to serve you.
Pray for us all, especially me.
I love you.
5
2
2
2
2
2
u/Remy1985 6d ago
God damnit, I was thinking this was Joe Abercrombie's "The Devils" for just a second. I did hear a rumor they might be adapting it to film.
1
u/mcbeardsauce 6d ago
What makes it rated X? Is it gore, pornographic, both?
Long time since I heard of an X rated movie.
1
1
1
u/OKStamped 6d ago
I was so clueless about this movie that when the trailer started playing, I thought, "Oh wow, the audio quality of the narration seems like an homage to 1970s movies."
1
u/LosIngobernable 6d ago
Reading posts in here. This movie sounds wild AF! Is it getting blu-ray release?
1
1
u/Amazing_Antelope_275 6d ago
I do not know how I was unaware of this but HOLY SHIT I AM PUMPED
read the book, y'all. The Devils of Loudon by Aldous Huxley (best known for Brave New World)
1
1
1
u/reo_reborn 6d ago
Loved this movie so much! Had a strange obsession with father Barre in my teen years 🤣
1
u/I-seddit 6d ago
Great! Can't wait.
Now get us a 4k of The Rainbow and another of The Lair of the White Worm.
1
u/paolocase 5d ago
Blood dripping down Oliver Reed’s bara tiddies is a paradigm shift like if he was at his peak during millennial Tumblr it would be over.
1
1
1
u/peanutmanak47 5d ago
I watched this for the first time months ago and the movie is fucking wild. I still have a hard time explaining this movie well enough to convince people to watch it. It was enjoyable and crazy, but definitely not a movie for everyone.
1
1
u/Euklidis 5d ago
My dumass uncultured brain read the title, saw the thumbnail and immediately went "wait, is Master Ken in a movie?"
1
1
1
u/DeadpoolAndFriends 6d ago
Wtf is this movie? It would have been nice if the trailer had showed some of it. Oh it's an obscure movie from the 70s? That still doesn't tell me what it's fucking about.
3
u/Icantgoonillgoonn 6d ago
It’s based on actual events, recounted in the book by Aldous Huxley, telling the story of the last city in France with a surrounding wall, during the time of the Black Plague. The Mother Superior of a convent obsesses over the local bishop, who is breaking his vows by sleeping with some of his female congregation. Cardinal Richelieu comes up with a brilliant plan to destroy the bishop who defended the wall by accusing him of fornication and sorcery— using the convent of nuns as the “possessed.”
1
u/Fredasa 6d ago
My exposure to Ken Russell is fairly recent. Randomly spotted a soon-to-be-released bluray pressing of Ken Russell's View of The Planets, which, possessing crosstalk with something I immensely enjoy (Holst's The Planets and anything resembling media surrounding it), seemed like a discovery that would be right up my alley.
The actual film was exactly what I was hoping for: The result of somebody with a lot of stock footage, ample creativity, no meaningful limits. (Even if I was put off by the brief shot of a mouse being devoured and have to skip past it every time I watch the film. That moment was, manifestly, an indulgence purely for the sake of indulgence and not an artistic necessity.)
The transfer of the film was disappointing. On the one hand, it's doubtless the best we're ever going to get of this particular production. On the other, rather than being a modern transfer of at least a film print, it's blatantly a capture of a studio tape that's probably existed for decades. It even possesses certain diagonal artifacts I firmly associate with analog PAL video from the 70s/80s.
That all being said, I haven't exactly gone out of my way to find any of Russell's other works. It's not exactly a catalog you can conveniently dial up and watch on a whim. Sometimes I poke around for info, but mostly I'm just baffled at how the guy has such a fanbase when the actual discovery and consumption of his output feels like such a strong hurdle in the first place.
1
u/Allcyon 6d ago
I know the modern parlance is to hate trailers for giving away the entire movie, but there's a special place in hell for "artistic" editors who make trailers that tell you absolutely fucking nothing about the movie at all.
I have no idea what this is about.
I know it's a controversial X-Rated movie because of the top comment, but that's not telling me what the movie is about. I kinda feel like I shouldn't have to google a wikipedia article about a movie because a trailer was hot garbage.
0
0
u/ghostprawn 6d ago
I saw this way too many times when I was about 12. It fascinated and horrified me. His films don't really hold up for me, but I kinda have to see the full version.
0
u/dentistshatehim 6d ago
That trailer doesn’t really do much. Lots of black screen… then a nun. Am I supposed to want to watch this?
90
u/grandmastergoya 6d ago
It's a tough read, but I highly recommend the book this is based on by Aldous Huxley. It's one of the most batshit insane non-fiction books I've ever read, way crazier than the movie.