| Brave New Worlds: A
Tribute to Ken Russell
More Ken Russell at the Egyptian Theatre!
Co-presented by the British Academy of Film
and Television Arts /Los Angeles
Director Ken Russell has long been one of England's most
iconoclastic, provocative and visually (and aurally) stunning directors. He first made a
name for himself at the BBC, where he inaugurated a series of unconventional biopics of
composers - a form he would continue to explore on the big screen. His breakthrough came
in 1969 with the feature film adaptation of D.H. Lawrence's WOMEN IN LOVE, a
taboo-shattering classic that garnered Russell an Oscar nomination. From that point on he
embarked on one audacious masterpiece after another, including a rock opera with The Who (TOMMY),
a science fiction head trip (ALTERED STATES) and more unorthodox treatments of
composers' lives (LISZTOMANIA, MAHLER).
Join us at the Cinematheque for these films, as well as the beloved
yet controversial horror film THE DEVILS, on the big screen as they were meant to
be experienced!
We are thrilled to welcome BAFTA and Academy
Award-nominated Ken Russell to the Aero and Egyptian Theatres! Be ready for an
unforgettable weekend!
Friday, August 20 – 7:30 PM
Double Feature: THE DEVILS, 1971, Warner Bros., 108 min. Director Ken
Russell’s adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s The Devils of Loudun remains one
of the most disturbingly memorable films from the early 1970s. In 17th century France,
Cardinal Richelieu’s minions use the womanizing of activist priest Urban Grandier
(Oliver Reed) as an excuse to investigate his "diabolic possession" of the local
nuns, including the demented, hunchbacked Mother Superior Sister Jeanne (an unforgettable
Vanessa Redgrave). Trailer
ALTERED STATES, 1980, Warner
Bros., 102 min. Director Ken Russell’s hallucinatory version of the Jekyll & Hyde
story stars William Hurt as a Harvard professor who explores sensory deprivation in an
effort to travel back in time. "A kind of inner-space odyssey that’s
terrifying in its view of primal human nature… a mesmerizing visual experience."
– Ron Pennington, Hollywood Reporter. Discussion between films with director Ken Russell and actor Charles Haid
(ALTERED STATES, "Hill Street Blues," moderated by Mick Garris. Trailer | Buy
Tickets
Sunday, August 22 – 7:30 PM
Double Feature:
New Print! THE MUSIC LOVERS, 1970, MGM Repertory, 123 min. Dir. Ken
Russell. Ken Russell applies his typically outrageous and original sensibility to the
story of 19th century composer Tchaikovsky (Richard Chamberlain) who feels compelled to
marry a woman (Glenda Jackson) whom he eventually abandons as he stuggles with his
homosexual desires. Eschewing the usual biopic conventions, Russell follows the life of
the great composer through expressionistic flashbacks, nightmares and fantasy sequences.
The turbulance of the train in the scene where Tchaikovsky and his wife attempt to
consummate their marriage was shot over and over until the actors were spent recollected
Richard Chamberlain in a recent visit to the Cinematheque. MAHLER
will not be shown as previously announced due to print unavailability. The 1812 Overture according to Ken Russell.
Discussion between films with director Ken Russell and the
star of THE MUSIC LOVERS, Richard Chamberlain. Trailer
WOMEN IN LOVE, 1969, MGM
Repertory, 131 min. Director Ken Russell exploded on the international scene with
this surprise crossover hit! In the 1920s British Midlands, Alan Bates is Rupert, a
free-spirited intellectual writer who becomes enamored of feisty schoolteacher Ursula
(Jennie Linden). Bates’ best friend, rich coal-mining heir Gerald (Oliver Reed) is in
love with Ursula’s sculptress sister, Gudrun (Glenda Jackson, Best Actress Oscar
winner). But only one of these couples is able to keep from spiraling into
self-destruction. Buy
Tickets |
