John Woodvine who played Louis Trincant in The Devils has passed away.

Woodvine has over 180 film and television credits including a leading role in An American Werewolf in London and an extensive career in theatre for the Royal Shakespeare Company and the English Shakespeare Company.  I saw him on stage playing three plays in a day, Falstaff in Henry IV parts 1 and 2 and Henry V playing the Chorus.  He was magnificent.

Altered States issued on 4K UHD and Blu-Ray by Criterion in UK and USA editions.

"The ultimate cinematic head trip of the 1980s, British renegade Ken Russell’s first Hollywood film—adapted by the legendary screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky from his own novel—is part hallucinogenic freak-out, part gonzo creature feature, part transcendent love story, all played at a fever pitch. When researcher Eddie Jessup (William Hurt) begins using himself as a test subject for his mind-expanding psychological experiments, it sends him on an increasingly dangerous, substance-fueled odyssey from humankind’s primordial past to the outer limits of consciousness. It’s all visualized by Russell in a psychedelic supernova of out-there imagery that encompasses everything from the pagan to the cosmic sublime, culminating in a brain-wave-blasting battle between the mind and the heart".

The features include

• New 4K digital restoration, with 2.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• Alternate 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• New audio commentary featuring film historian Samm
• Archival interviews with director Ken Russell and actor William Hurt
• New interview with special-visual-effects designer Bran
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

For more on Altered States click here
https://iainfisher.com/russell/ken-russell-film-altered-states.html

To buy on Amazon UK click here
https://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0FJYJJ9ZK/savagmessiakenru
To buy on Amazon USA click here
https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0FHSC1TK8/savagemessiah

Arkadin Cinema in St Louis present The Lair of the White Worm on 23 October 2025.

"Unfairly dismissed as an aging auteur’s bid at serious horror, THE LAIR OF THE WHITE WORM is Ken Russell’s typically extravagant exercise in camp absurdism. Drenched in phallic imagery, folkloric terror, and a masculine battle of wills between, of all people, Hugh Grant and Peter Capaldi, Russell’s sublimely silly tale of a gigantic white serpent monster who feeds on the flesh of virgins. Posh nobleman James D’Ampton (Grant) dismisses these tales until archaeology student Angus Flint (Capaldi) unearths a massive reptilian skull. Could lubricious local temptress Lady Sylvia Marsh (Amanda Donohoe) be involved?"

The screening includes a pre-show "Come out early for 30 minutes of slimy slithery terror with our Creepy Crawlies Pre-Show featuring the ickiest worms, snakes, slugs, and bugs in cinematic history".

For the Arkadin Cinema click here
https://arkadincinema.com/
For more on The Lair of the White Worm click here
https://iainfisher.com/russell/ken-russell-film-lair-white-worm.html

me too rosie. me too

Music Box Theatre present Altered States on 19 September 2025.

"In an attempt to experience higher mental and physical states, psychology professor Edward Jessup (William Hurt) combines sensory deprivation and psychotropic drugs to try to unlock higher states of consciousness. But as Edward is more successful with his experiments, he starts to lose grip with reality and alters his state of mind.  This daring Hollywood film from Ken Russell (The Devils, The Music Lovers) attacks the viewer with lo-fi effects, immersive sound, and a relentless story that combine to overwhelm the viewer's senses".

For the Music Box Theatre click here
https://musicboxtheatre.com/
For more on Altered States click here
https://www.iainfisher.com/russell/ken-russell-film-altered-states.html