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Savage Messiah: Ken Russell => Savage Messiah: Ken Russell => Topic started by: BoyScoutKevin on December 14, 2015, 09:36:30 PM

Title: Talking About Movies
Post by: BoyScoutKevin on December 14, 2015, 09:36:30 PM
Talking About Movies

1. Women in Love
2. Savage Messiah
3. The Boy Friend
4. Lair of the White Worm

Women in Love
1. Clip seen. Gudrun Brangwan (Glenda Jackson) dancing amid the cows in the meadow.
a. The film that made Ken Russell's reputation in America. It also helped in making the reputation of Alan Bates, Glenda Jackson, and Oliver Reed.
b. This film coming out only 6 years (1969) after the works of D. H. Lawrence were no longer banned in America as being obscene (1963.)

Savage Messiah
1. Clip seen. The 1st encounter of Sophie Brzeska (Dorothy Tutin) and Henri Gaudier (Scott Antony) in the library.
a. This film shows that Russell was ahead of his time as a filmmaker.
b. Notice how the camera was always focusing the audience's attention at what was happening on the screen. Interesting.

To be continued . . .

Next time: "The Boy Friend" and "Lair of the White Worm"
Title: Re: Talking About Movies
Post by: Iain Fisher on December 14, 2015, 09:52:11 PM
"Clip seen. Gudrun Brangwan (Glenda Jackson) dancing amid the cows in the meadow."

One of my favourite scenes, short but beautiful and funny
Title: Re: Talking About Movies
Post by: BoyScoutKevin on December 22, 2015, 11:29:47 PM
Continuing with . . .

The Boy Friend
1. Clip seen. Polly Browne (Twiggy) and Tommy (Tommy Tune) dancing on the record.
a. Russell's tribute to Busby Berkeley.
b. The exceptional costumes were designed by his wife at that time Shirley Russell.

Lair of the White Worm
1. Clip seen. Lady Sylvia Marsh's (Amanda Donohoe's) 1st visit in the film to Mercy Farm.
a. The film is considered to be excessive by some, but no film by Russell matches Ken's sensibilities as well as this one does.

Hardly the best scene from any of the 4 films, but . . .

no nudity
no profanity
no sex
no violence

in any of the scenes and that's hard to find in any of Russell's films.

Concluded

Next time: 20 films. 20 questions.