Ken Russell in other people's films
Mr. Nice, 2010
Ken Russell acts in Bernard Rose's Mr. Big, but unfortunately his scene was cut from the film.
It is available on the DVD as one of the extras. Rhys Ifans stars. As well as three sublime films Paperhouse,
Candyman and Ivansxtc, Rose also directed Immortal Beloved on Beethoven, which could have been a Ken Russell film.
Brothers of the Head 2006
Siamese twins as punk rockers. Directed by Keith Fulton and
Louis Pepe (who previously did the documentary Lost in La Mancha about Terry
Gilliam) and starring Harry and Luke Treadaway. This is a filming of the
Brian Aldiss novel. Ken plays appears with segments of his own attempt to
film the book, Two Way Romeo. The film starts promisingly with an image
Ken Russell would be proud of- a fire engine driving by, but it is on fire.
However the film declines rapidly- the
pseudo-documentary format isn't convincing. In the DVD extras Ken says
that he paid £50,000 for the rights to the novel, but didn't realise that Brian
Aldiss had based his novel on living people. So after Ken started filming
Two Way Romeo, he was faced with a lawsuit from the real-life people, and Ken
had to stop filming. Brothers of the Head features scenes from Two Way
Romeo.
The Moving Finger, part of an Agatha Christie Miss Maple
television series from 2006.
"A
spate of poison pen letters wreaks havoc on an English village. Once a
place of trust, now all inhabitants are full of accusations. Who could be
writing the letters and why?" (Agatha Christie official website, click
here).
Miss Marple (Geraldine McEwan) is always alert.
The suicide note is a clue, but no-one seems to realise it is clearly part
of a longer note.
Ken appears as the Reverend Caleb Dane Calthrop and gives a suitable
performance.
At a celebration he entertains by reading Horace's Rectius Vives in
Latin...
...guests are enthralled.
The typewriter used to address the envelopes is found.
Someone is in danger.
The two lovers, Jerry Burton (James D'Arcy) and Megan Hunter
(Talulah Riley) eventually find each other.
The director was Tom Shankland, the editor was Tim Murrell and the
director of photography was Cinders Forshaw. The title comes from
Edward FitzGerald's translation (1859) of The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam: "The Moving Finger writes; and, having
writ, / Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit / Shall lure it back to
cancel half a Line. / Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it"
All images from the television episode.
Edmund Dane 2005
Ken has provides the voice-over for a short film,
Edmund Dane. The film is directed by Jenn Elliott and features Alan
Gordon, Audrey Ann Meyers, Badria Abdul-Raouf and Thelma Miller.
Colour me Kubrick 2004
Victoria Russell, working on the film, got a cameo role for her
father. The film is a true life story of a man who pretended to be Stanley Kubrick.
The trailer for Color Me Kubrick. Ken is at the end of the trailer.
Click on the image to view it. Thanks to Michael for the information.
Thanks to Vicky Russell for the photos which are by Nick Wall and are copyright © Nick Wall
2004.
Waking the Dead, the BBC television crime series with two episodes each an hour long
per story. A British police cold cases team investigate crimes which
have been dropped for lack of evidence.
In the double episode Final Cut from 2003 a body is found in a
house, but
the body has been mummified.
More bodies are found and also signs of a ritual.
Ken Russell has a guest role playing Gerry
Raistrick, a director involved in murder.
He becomes a suspect.
But when it gets too tough, Ken dies in a cinema watching Battleship
Potemkin. It seems a good cinema as other films include Solaris and
Sunset Boulevard.
The story is over-complex with improbable events such as one of the
detective having previously lived in the crime house and possibly knowing
the real killer, but he is allowed to continue as an investigator on the
case.
The director of the television series was
Betsan Morris Evans, the writer was Stephen Davis, editor Pamela Power and
cinematography by Andrei Austin and Mike Spragg.
All images from the television episodes.
"... Ken Russell
has a spicy part as a busy Brit spook Soviet code expert, who walks off
with supporting actor honors"
(Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews, 9 Feb 2007, click
here).
The Russia House with Sean Connery as Barley Blair, a publisher, and
Michelle Pfeiffer as Katya with a manuscript which draws Blair into espionage.
Other actors include Roy Scheider, James Fox and Klaus Maria Brandauer.
Barley Blair of course falls for Katya.
"It takes a lot of patience to watch 'The Russia
House,' but it takes even more patience to be a character in the movie. To
judge by this film, the life of a Cold War spy consists of sitting for
endless hours in soundproof rooms with people you do not particularly
like, waiting for something to happen. Sort of like being a movie critic"
(Roger Ebert, 21 Dec 1990 from his website click
here).
The film benefits from location shooting in the then Soviet Union.
Ken Russell plays Walter, one of the many
British and American Intelligence officers investigating Sean Connery.
"The supporting cast includes Roy Scheider,
James Fox, J. T. Walsh and Ken Russell (the director), all acting like
actors trying very hard to find the interesting aspects of characters who
have none. They appear as intelligence and military men of various
temperaments. The only one who stands out is Mr. Russell. With his
unpressed white hair and his beetling way of walking, he behaves in the
busy, gadfly fashion one would expect of the man who made 'The Music
Lovers', 'Tommy' and 'Salome's Last Dance.'" (Vincent Canby, 19 Dec 1990,
New York Times).
Ken Russell with Sean Connery. It is
Russell's only significant acting role outside his
own films.
There is an in-joke as Ken Russell playing
Walter asks about Roy Scheider's character "What about
Russell?"
The director was Fred Schepisi, with director of photography Ian
Baker and editor Peter Honess. The screenplay was by playwright
Tom Stoppard adapting the novel by John le Carré.
All images from the film.
Walk with the Damned
1962
The imdb (Internet Movie Database) mentions a role as a hood in
the 1962 film Walk with the Damned- click
here. The director is James H. Russell- no relation- his only film as
a director. Other sites give the date as 1961.
Any information is welcome.
Being himself - documentaries
Celebrity Big Brother, the reality
television series from 2007.
A group of people are locked in a house and filmed non-stop every day. Ken
Russell
appeared with Jermaine Jackson of the Jackson Five, singer Leo Sayer,
Jo O'Meara of S Club 7, Donny Tourette of the band Towers of London, Bollywood
actress Shilpa Shetty (who became the winner), journalist Carole Malone (who was on Celebrity Fit Club),
Ian H. Watkins of the band Steps, Cleo Rocos (of Kenny Everett fame), Dirk
Benedict the television actor (The A Team and Galactica) and former Miss England
Danielle Lloyd.
Ken was entertaining with his stories of filming, but soon
walked out. He was sensible, as the show soon degenerated into very public
racism.
All images from the television series.
Turning Points 2000
A series of shorts where people talk of the
turning point in their life. Ken's is when his first film for the BBC was
accepted. There is an interview and excerpts from Amelia and the Angel.
It is very good, with Ken talking of his life as a very young child then as a
young adult- typically the period between is skipped. Directed by Michael
Le Moignan and Dean Arnett of Fly By Night Film Company for the BBC
Felicity Kendal: A Passage from India 2001
A tribute to Felicity Kendal, whose was Dorothy Wordsworth in the two
Clouds of Glory films. She was also in Valentino. As well as
Russell, the documentary includes Melvyn Bragg and Ishmail Merchant. The
director was Angela O´Leary.
Carry on Darkly 1998
A documentary about the main actors of the British "Carry on..."
series of comedy films. Ken worked with one of their stars, Barbara
Windsor, on The Boyfriend. Directed by Paul Gallagher.
Great Composers
1997
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Ken appears in the segment on Mahler directed by Kriss Russman.
"He lived in this world of amazing sounds that no-one had ever heard
before and anything- whatever it was, a child crying or a bird singing-
would set him off". Russell wears a Dogboys hat. The imagery
of the film shows various influences from Ken's Mahler film. |
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A History of British Art
1996
Andrew Graham-Dixon's six part assessment of British art for the BBC.
I-Camcorder, an educational series for Channel 4 in 1995. Russell gives advice about filming a
wedding. The director is Vic Finch and Robert Llewellyn of Red Dwarf gives the commentary, 1995.
Note the car registration.
The programme is just under 90 minutes and covers all aspects of camcorders.
Ken is in the section filming a wedding.
Ken gives tips on using the camcorder, and is one
of the two cameramen filming the wedding.
Children just before the wedding.
Ken directing and giving advice: "If you have a long shot you should never cut the feet off"
The happy newly-wed.
All images from the television episode.
Empire of the Censors, a documentary from 1995 on the influences
of the film censor on film and television. Two parts, directed by Saskia
Baron for the BBC.
The documentary states around 10% of films in the UK were
cut. The first film to be banned was The Cheese Mites (above), a
short documentary about bacteria in cheese from 1903.
Censorship focused on religion and nudity, then horror and
then political issues.
Interviews with lots of
directors, including Ken Russell "The censor has a different perception, it's
what turns him on that he's trying to change". Women in Love with
the nude wrestling scene made it through the censor with minor changes,
but The Devils was more difficult. Critic Alexander Walker says of
Russell the "abnormal interest the director took in pain and sadism" (he
is equally dismissive of Sam Peckinpah's Straw Dogs). Russell says
of The Devils "religion was the theme of the film, it was the exploitation
of religion".
Ken's letter to the censor detailing cuts he has made and
hopes there will be little further censorship "at best there can only be a
couple of shots in question".
Other director
include Polanski- Repulsion passed because it was artistic and not likely
to be seen by large numbers of people, whereas Rosemary's Baby was treated
harsher. Bertolucci talks of Last Tango in Paris.
All images from the film.
Music for the Movies: Georges Delerue
1994
The film composer Georges Delerue. Interviews with directors
including Ken "Dialogue, forget it, its music and pictures and god bless you
Georges Delerue for giving us directors a helping hand." 60 minutes.
Directed by Jean-Louis Comolli.
Citizen Kane: A Critical Analysis from 1991. A 30 minute assessment of Orson Welles' epic Citizen Kane. Film critic
Robert McKee, Raymond Carney and Ken Russell discuss the film.
The Kids are Alright
1979
A documentary about The Who with film footage and interviews.
The reissue in 2004 is exceptionally good with enhanced film and sound and a lot
of extras. Ken has a short, not too interesting, appearance.
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