Ken Russell — Playwright (22)

Movie

Dance of the Seven Veils (1970)
Dance of the Seven Veils WikiData IMDb TMDB
Russell's composer biopics were usually labours of love. However, this was the opposite: Russell regarded the music of Richard Strauss 'bombastic, sham and hollow', and despised the composer for claiming to be apolitical while cosying up to the Nazi regime. Strauss is depicted in a variety of grotesquely caricatured situations: attacked by nuns after adopting Nietzsche's philosophy, duels with jealous husbands, literally batters his critics into submission with his music, and glorifies the women in his life and fantasies.

Movie

In Search of the English Folk Song (1997)
In Search of the English Folk Song IMDb TMDB
Filmmaker Ken Russell poses the question: "What is a true English folk song, if there is such a thing?" After recieving an indifferent response from his dog, Russell journeys around the English countryside seeking for an answer. He encounters and interviews such famous artists as Donovan, Fairport Convention, Osibisa, Eliza Carthy, So What, Edward II and The Albion Band, among others.

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A House in Bayswater (1960)
A House in Bayswater WikiData IMDb TMDB
A personal and nostalgic film about an apartment building in Bayswater, where Russell once lived, and about the residents who inhabited it. The building is demolished to make way for an unattractive and bland office.

Movie

A British Picture: Portrait of an Enfant Terrible (1989)
A British Picture: Portrait of an Enfant Terrible IMDb TMDB
Moving with astonishing assurance through time and space, Russell recreates his life in a series of unconventional interconnected episodes – his thirties childhood in Southampton; his first sexual experience (watching Disney’s Pinocchio); his schooldays at the Nautical College, Pangbourne; early careers in the Merchant Marine and the Royal Air Force; dancing days at the Shepherds Bush Ballet Club; and of course his career as a filmmaker, beginning with an extraordinary interview with Huw Weldon for a job on Monitor.

Movie

Amelia and the Angel (1958)
Amelia and the Angel WikiData IMDb TMDB
A young girl (Amelia) is distressed and feeling guilty about losing the wings she was to wear in her school play. Then she notices an angel and follows the angel into a dark building. Upstairs in the attic, bathed in heavenly light, is an artist's model - the ANGEL. The painter ascends a ladder until he is out of shot - supposedly to heaven-and reappears to restore Amelia's joy with a pair of wings.

Movie

"Omnibus" Song of Summer: Frederick Delius (1968)
"Omnibus" Song of Summer: Frederick Delius WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
other title: 夏日之歌:弗雷德里克·戴留斯 / Song of Summer
Based on Eric Fenby's 1936 memoir 'Delius as I knew him', it traces the last years of Frederick Delius, and Fenby's dedication in giving up five years of his life to helping the blind, paralysed composer set down the unfinished scores he could hear in his head. Perhaps the finest of the series of biographical films that Ken Russell made for the BBC in the Sixties, Song of Summer is an immensely moving story of sacrifice, idealism and musical genius.

Movie

The Insatiable Mrs. Kirsch (1995)
The Insatiable Mrs. Kirsch WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
other title: 凯瑟尔夫人的欲望 / 恶魔的教育之凯瑟尔夫人的欲望 …
A writer taking a rest in a country hotel is obsessed with a strange woman in the same hotel. The woman seems to observe him in provocative ways, but he does not dare to approach her. One day he follows her to her room and listens to strange “erotic” sounds from inside, and begins to have erotic thoughts.

Movie

Salome's Last Dance (1988)
Salome's Last Dance WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
肯·罗素 actor: 格兰达·杰克逊 / 斯特拉特福德·约翰斯 …
other title: 莎乐美最后之舞 / 살로메 …
Late on Guy Fawkes Day, 1892, Oscar Wilde arrives at a high-class brothel where a surprise awaits: a staging of his play "Salome," with parts played by prostitutes, Wilde's host, his lover Bosey, and Lady Alice. The movie moves between the play and Wilde's night. In the play, Herod begs his pubescent step-daughter Salome to dance for him, promising her anything she desires. Her mother, Herodias, objects. Salome is stung by John the Baptist's rejection of her affections. The prophet's scolding celibacy puts him between the expressed desire of age and youth. Wilde dallies with a young man as he watches the show, provoking Bosey's jealousy. Two surprises await us.

Movie

Elgar (1962)
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other title: 作曲家埃尔加 / Monitor: Elgar …
An astonishing documentary of the life of classical composer Sir Edward Elgar. This partly dramatised account is remarkable for its sensitive portrayal of the rise of a young musician from an underprivileged background to international fame.

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Aria (1987)
Aria WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
★ 6.8 8 ratings
罗伯特·奥特曼 / 布鲁斯·贝尔斯福德 … actor: 泰莉莎·拉塞尔 / 巴克·亨利 …
other title: 华丽的咏叹 / Ária …
Ten short pieces directed by ten different directors, including Ken Russell, Jean-Luc Godard, Robert Altman, Bruce Beresford, and Nicolas Roeg. Each short uses an aria as soundtrack/sound, and is an interpretation of the particular aria.

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The Rainbow (1989)
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肯·罗素 actor: 赛米·戴维斯 / 保罗·麦甘恩 …
other title: 彩虹 / Der Regenbogen …
Defying the moral constraints of Victorian England and her parents, a young woman engages in unbridled promiscuity with two partners before setting out to capture the fuller sensuality of life itself. Based on the 1915 novel by D.H. Lawrence.

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Lisztomania (1975)
Lisztomania WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
★ 5.8 5 ratings
肯·罗素 actor: 罗杰·达尔特雷 / 保罗·尼古拉斯 …
other title: 李斯特狂 / 리즈 …
Ken Russell's Most Unusual Film It is hard to believe that Ken Russell was able to get this one "green-lighted" for release by a major American distributer as it is quite simply one of the strangest films to ever grace a screen! Russell, ever the visionary, takes the not so off-target view that Franz Liszt the pop star of his day and then offers viewers a comic book version of the composer's life and relationship with several infamous women and, most importantly, Richard Wagner. This film must be seen to be believed! And is a definite must-see for all Russell fans. It will also be appreciated by Roger Daltrey fans as this one captures Daltrey in his prime! Interesting musical work by Rick Wakeman and great set designs. It would be so cool to see this on DVD with director commentary! ...Maybe some day.

Movie

Valentino (1977)
Valentino WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
肯·罗素 actor: 鲁道夫·努里耶夫 / 莱斯莉·卡伦 …
other title: 范伦铁诺 / 大情人华伦天奴 …
The untimely death of silent screen star Rudolph Valentino prompts the many women in his past to reminisce about his troubled rise to superstardom.