I Just Watched...

[TikiSoo]

Last night we watched Ken Russell's GOTHIC. I was searching streaming for Theresa Russell in WHORE also directed by Ken Russell. Mr Tiki saw the thumbnail and said, "Oh I saw Gothic in the theater & LOVED it!"

OK, well the premise of the story seemed kind of cool, the famous weekend Mary & Percy Shelly stayed at Lord Byron's estate, resulting in the writing of FRANKENSTEIN. Only an hour and a half long, I figured it was worth seeing, although I'm always dubious of Ken Russell films. They are offbeat, impressionistic and rife with shocking imagery - often sexual/violent.

As Masha said about recently watching a John Waters movie, "I believe that is all the explanation necessary." Same for this Ken Russell film.
I've always felt Russell's films benefit from multiple viewing because they are often confusing to those who prefer a more spoon-fed or linear type story and this is no exception.

Like Kubrick -but far less successful- Russell likes to just present seemingly fragmented scenes & dialogue for the viewer to formulate the story. His generous use of symbolism often successfully evokes the desired emotions helping to round out the story.
It seems either his scripts or maybe editing are what fail in his movies.

It certainly isn't "production" this movie looks GREAT. The costumes & hair weresn't historical, but it doesn't matter. The lighting and the sets were familiar but retained an "otherworldly" feel, almost as if the viewer is "dreaming" - again- Kubrick is the Master of this.
I was distracted however, by the set choice of randomly covering walls with crimson fabric. I don't know if it was to block windows from ruining the photography or cover the estate's modern upgrades or a symbolic visual element but it didn't work.

When the movie was over he looked at me & said "I wasted 3 hours of my life seeing it. Twice. I can't believe I ever liked that."

I suspect it was mostly the Gothic atmosphere of the story, nudity & open sexual play reached the 16-17 year old emotionally, while a few decades later prefers more of a "story" haha. And that's what I like about dreamlike stream-of-conscious style movies. They manipulate you with the emphasis on imagerey rather than dialogue-just like the movie's poster:

[Swithin]

Last night we watched Ken Russell's GOTHIC. I was searching streaming for Theresa Russell in WHORE also directed by Ken Russell. Mr Tiki saw the thumbnail and said, "Oh I saw Gothic in the theater & LOVED it!"

OK, well the premise of the story seemed kind of cool, the famous weekend Mary & Percy Shelly stayed at Lord Byron's estate, resulting in the writing of FRANKENSTEIN. Only an hour and a half long, I figured it was worth seeing, although I'm always dubious of Ken Russell films. They are offbeat, impressionistic and rife with shocking imagery - often sexual/violent.

As Masha said about recently watching a John Waters movie, "I believe that is all the explanation necessary." Same for this Ken Russell film.
I've always felt Russell's films benefit from multiple viewing because they are often confusing to those who prefer a more spoon-fed or linear type story and this is no exception.

Like Kubrick -but far less successful- Russell likes to just present seemingly fragmented scenes & dialogue for the viewer to formulate the story. His generous use of symbolism often successfully evokes the desired emotions helping to round out the story.
It seems either his scripts or maybe editing are what fail in his movies.

It certainly isn't "production" this movie looks GREAT. The costumes & hair weresn't historical, but it doesn't matter. The lighting and the sets were familiar but retained an "otherworldly" feel, almost as if the viewer is "dreaming" - again- Kubrick is the Master of this.
I was distracted however, by the set choice of randomly covering walls with crimson fabric. I don't know if it was to block windows from ruining the photography or cover the estate's modern upgrades or a symbolic visual element but it didn't work.

When the movie was over he looked at me & said "I wasted 3 hours of my life seeing it. Twice. I can't believe I ever liked that."

I suspect it was mostly the Gothic atmosphere of the story, nudity & open sexual play reached the 16-17 year old emotionally, while a few decades later prefers more of a "story" haha. And that's what I like about dreamlike stream-of-conscious style movies. They manipulate you with the emphasis on imagerey rather than dialogue-just like the movie's poster:

I saw Gothic when I came out and was really disappointed. The subject is fascinating, and in fact serves in part as the opening of Bride of Frankenstein (1935), but the execution is poor. There is still a great film to be made about that meeting on Lake Geneva. Not only did Frankenstein have its origin there, but the vampire genre grew out of that meeting as well, with Dr. Polidori's The Vampyre.

Matthew Gregory Lewis also visited Lord Byron in the Villa Diodati. Lewis had previously written The Monk, an earlier example of the Gothic genre, which had begun with Horace Walpole's The Castle of Otranto. Walpole was the first to use the term "Gothic" to describe the incipient genre.

Two years after making Gothic, Ken Russell filmed a really satisfying horror movie: The Lair of the White Worm, which successfully combines horror, humour, and great style.

[Lorna]

I watched the Ray Bradbury-penned "Special Delivery" episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents last night.

All I will say is that I pray nobody has made mushroom stuffing for their turkey today.

do you remember THE RAY BRADBURY THEATER that ran on NBC in the 1980's? It was one of the very last shows of its kind for network TV.

THIS IS BASED OFF A COMIC STORY BRADBURY WROTE FOR EITHER "THE VAULT OF HORROR" OR TALES FROM THE CRYPT AND IT'S EXCELLENT:

[Lorna]

Last night we watched Ken Russell's GOTHIC.

When the movie was over [my friend] looked at me & said "I wasted 3 hours of my life seeing it. Twice. I can't believe I ever liked that."

I saw Gothic when I came out and was really disappointed. The subject is fascinating, and in fact serves in part as the opening of Bride of Frankenstein (1935), but the execution is poor. There is still a great film to be made about that meeting on Lake Geneva. Not only did Frankenstein have its origin there, but the vampire genre grew out of that meeting as well, with Dr. Polidori's The Vampyre.

Two years after making Gothic, Ken Russell filmed a really satisfying horror movie: The Lair of the White Worm, which successfully combines horror, humour, and great style.

1. THAT QUOTE IS HILARIOUS
2. I think the general concensus today is that LORD BYRON wrote THE VAMPYRE, which is a fun little short story, I listen to it on AUDIOBOOK all the time and always WISH that HAMMER had done a filme version of it.
3. LAIR OF THE WHITE WORM is such TACKY FUN isn't? [I dare any of you to find two more apt words than"TACKY FUN" to sum-up the OEUVRE of KEN RUSSELL]

wonderful review of GOTHIC. I also REALLY wanted to like it when I saw it first a few years ago, but...eeesh.

I PUT IT TO YOU THAT THIS STORY DESERVES A LEGIT REMAKE.

[Lorna]

EDIT- I ALSO APOLOGIZE FOR EDITING AND MISATTRIBUTING QUOTES, I AM STILL FINDING MY WAY AND TRYING NOT TO QUOTE PEOPLE WITH LENGTHY POSTS IN ENTIRETY (thus "cluttering" thE THREAD OR overloading the server)

LHF

[TikiSoo]

2. I think the general concensus today is that LORD BYRON wrote THE VAMPYRE, which is a fun little short story, I listen to it on AUDIOBOOK all the time and always WISH that HAMMER had done a filme version of it.
3. LAIR OF THE WHITE WORM is such TACKY FUN isn't? [I dare any of you to find two more apt words than"TACKY FUN" to sum-up the OEUVRE of KEN RUSSELL]

I PUT IT TO YOU THAT THIS STORY DESERVES A LEGIT REMAKE.

I agree with the idea of Byron penning the Vampire.

I didn't care for Lair of White Worm, but then again only saw it once.
Tacky fun? Hell yes when considering TOMMY.

Well I liked this version even though Ken Russell (& Lorna) fave Oliver Reed wasn't in it. It's just an impressionistic, frantic version of an old story. C'mon, we all know everyone involved were tripping. I don't think telling it as a straight liner story would be as much fun.

[Lorna]

I EDITED SELECTIONS OF YOUR POST AND MY REPLIES ARE IN RED- LHF

I admit to thinking very highly of Paris, Texas when I first saw it probably 8 years ago

LHF- You wanna know THE MYSTERIOUS AND ENIGMATIC UNSEEN CHARACTER of PARIS, TEXAS that I personally would have LOVED TO HAVE SEEN INCLUDED for even FIVE MINUTES of screen time? The guy who decorated those PEEP SHOW BOOTHS. I mean, they were DESIGNED AND DECORATED WITH SUCH THOUGHTFULLY CURATED ACCESSORIES. Whoever it was- and I think it probably was THE OWNER'S GAY BROTHER- but I'm open to it being someone else, but I digress- WHOEVER IT WAS that was doing the ART DIRECTION for each of those themed booths had SOME SERIOUS SKILLS and I hope they also worked in regional theater. Guess they just showed up at all the local design warehouses with ROLLS OF QUARTERS once a month....


1977's Suspiria? The threatening music is fascinating and the odd colored sets are intriguing, but the story is preposterous and very slender and the gore is overstated.

LHF: dude, THE BARBED WIRE PIT THOUGH!!!!!!!!!!! C'mon now, you gotta admit- THAT is EFFED UP.

Halloween felt vastly overrated,

LHF: I presume you mean the 1978 version? (let's not talk about the most recent series...) it's funny you mention that because I rented the 78 version twice on amazon this past October and- while i previously would've agreed with you- SOMETHING CLICKED ON THIS VIEWING and I FINALLY see why it's a [really] great movie. you gotta kinda think of it in social/historical and also raw filmmaking terms.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was appalling,

LHF: (NEEDLE STANDS STILL) "NO LIES DETECTED!!"

The Halloween lineup on TCM this year left things to be desired,

LHF: I think I'm the one who brought it up, but man IT ATE. It's weird but the first week of NOVEMBER and they showed a bunch of stuff like THE WOLF MAN and CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON.

but I got another chance to hear the line "Darlanne, you didn't have to pull it so hard" left in Eyes of Laura Mars as a majorly entertaining goof

LHF: I live for that scene. god how i wish IRVIN KIRSHNER could've found roles for those two as CATFIGHTING REBEL GROUPIES or BITCHY SPACE BAR COCKTAIL WAITRESSES in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK....

Sorry to disagree with your niece, Lorna, but the film version of Into the Woods was a crushing disappointment to me.

IT'S OKAY, SHE WAS 8 OR SO AT THE TIME AND HAD NOT SEEN (oops, caps lock) the 1987(?) BROADWAY performance recordING with BERNADETTE PETERS and co. *(which btw is on Y0UTUBE)

Jason Robards was a very good actor, and he is sublime in Long Day's Journey Into Night. He rarely gave a poor performance at any point in his career,

LHD: IT'S WILD THOUGH, The only screen perfomance I've seen HIS FATHER (JASON SR.) give is TERRIBLE (it's in ISLE OF THE DEAD for VAL LEWTON]
All this makes me wanna check out SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES.

Yes, Decision Before Dawn only scored one Oscar nod besides it's BP nomination, and it was in a tiny category. Only Four Weddings and a Funeral and Selma repeated the trick since then.

LHF: I DID NOT KNOW THAT? I thought it'd be more than just SELMA. Thank you, see, this is the kind of stuff I've missed so dearly over the last 11 months.

[CinemaInternational]

Following Masha's lead, I took a look myself at Cecil B. Demented (2000), a John Waters saga that I always thought I would get around to and just did so now. It's very loud, with a lot of screaming, yelling, running around, and features an incessant hard rock/thrash musical score. Frantic would be a good word for it as the whole thing feels like a foul-mouthed high-energy cartoon comic strip dealing as it does with a group of guerilla terrorists/underground moviemakers who kidnap a petulant diva, who comes to embrace their worldview and their violent revenge against the mainstream. It does have some very funny moments, usually involving Melanie Griffith, right on point as the disagreeable, squealing starlet, and some typically insane Waters set pieces such as angry women pelting the terrorists with movie candy, the scene leading up to the kidnapping involving a very funny Mink Stole cameo, the ambushing of a luncheon for the Maryland Film Comission, the guerillas using porno fans as a barricade from the police at an X-rated theatre, and the violent finale where they finish making their movie before going haywire with sexual activity of all types, heterosexual, homosexual, and solo, right as the police close in. [It certainly looks as though this finale was filmed at the same drive-in that Waters used so memorably in Polyester, that Dougie/Melvin and I were talking about the other day] . Also,there are plenty of hilarious in-jokes at the expense of that stagnation that started to settle in over Hollywood films in the late 90s. However, most of the terrorists outside of ringleader Stephen Dorff and adult film star Alicia Witt are very thinly drawn (although I was amused by some kid named Eric Bailey as the odd kid out of the group), and, although she obviously loved working with Waters, it feels very questionable for Patty Hearst to appear in a movie that feels like a cinema-based dark comedy delirium of her real life ordeal. Still, I am glad I saw it, because I did laugh sometimes and that is much needed right now.

In addition, I have been taking looks at some silent films that are in the public domain now.... Mother Machree (1927) only exists in a small fragment of the whole thing, but what little is left still showcases early examples of the directorial flair that John Ford would make his own in his long career....The Lonely Street (1925) was the last film Greta Garbo made before coming to America. It's made with technical flair, but the story felt a bit disjointed upon and Greta because far more striking at MGM....The Vanishing American(1925) is a visually stunning early western and quite adept at detailing the plight of the American Indian, long before Broken Arrow or Dances with Wolves.... The silent version of Stella Dallas (1925) is just as touching as the better known talkie version with Barbara Stanwyck, and makes for a very moving viewing.

Also checked in on the channel a little on Thanksgiving night with rewatches of Spencer's Mountain (1963), which later inspired The Waltons (although upon going to TV, it was moved from Wyoming to Virginia, and dropped the vixenish character who was always trying to seduce the eldest son) and the original Cheaper by the Dozen, with typically splendid work from Clifton and Myrna, and its hilarious sequence involving Mildred Natwick as a nonplussed birth control advocate who knocked on the wrong door. [Sidenote: It felt very bizarre for Ben M. to start his intro for the film by talking about the commercially successful but critically hated 2003 film which borrowed the name and number of children, but otherwise had nothing to do with this version. ]

[Lorna]

Following Masha's lead, I took a look myself at Cecil B. Demented (2000),
it feels very questionable for Patty Hearst to appear in a movie that feels like a cinema-based dark comedy delirium of her real life ordeal. Still, I am glad I saw it, because I did laugh sometimes and that is much needed right now.

DID SHE WEAR WHITE SHOES THOUGH???????

[CinemaInternational]

I EDITED SELECTIONS OF YOUR POST AND MY REPLIES ARE IN RED- LHF

I admit to thinking very highly of Paris, Texas when I first saw it probably 8 years ago

LHF- You wanna know THE MYSTERIOUS AND ENIGMATIC UNSEEN CHARACTER of PARIS, TEXAS that I personally would have LOVED TO HAVE SEEN INCLUDED for even FIVE MINUTES of screen time? The guy who decorated those PEEP SHOW BOOTHS. I mean, they were DESIGNED AND DECORATED WITH SUCH THOUGHTFULLY CURATED ACCESSORIES. Whoever it was- and I think it probably was THE OWNER'S GAY BROTHER- but I'm open to it being someone else, but I digress- WHOEVER IT WAS that was doing the ART DIRECTION for each of those themed booths had SOME SERIOUS SKILLS and I hope they also worked in regional theater. Guess they just showed up at all the local design warehouses with ROLLS OF QUARTERS once a month....


1977's Suspiria? The threatening music is fascinating and the odd colored sets are intriguing, but the story is preposterous and very slender and the gore is overstated.

LHF: dude, THE BARBED WIRE PIT THOUGH!!!!!!!!!!! C'mon now, you gotta admit- THAT is EFFED UP.

Halloween felt vastly overrated,

LHF: I presume you mean the 1978 version? (let's not talk about the most recent series...) it's funny you mention that because I rented the 78 version twice on amazon this past October and- while i previously would've agreed with you- SOMETHING CLICKED ON THIS VIEWING and I FINALLY see why it's a [really] great movie. you gotta kinda think of it in social/historical and also raw filmmaking terms.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was appalling,

LHF: (NEEDLE STANDS STILL) "NO LIES DETECTED!!"

The Halloween lineup on TCM this year left things to be desired,

LHF: I think I'm the one who brought it up, but man IT ATE. It's weird but the first week of NOVEMBER and they showed a bunch of stuff like THE WOLF MAN and CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON.

but I got another chance to hear the line "Darlanne, you didn't have to pull it so hard" left in Eyes of Laura Mars as a majorly entertaining goof

LHF: I live for that scene. god how i wish IRVIN KIRSHNER could've found roles for those two as CATFIGHTING REBEL GROUPIES or BITCHY SPACE BAR COCKTAIL WAITRESSES in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK....

Sorry to disagree with your niece, Lorna, but the film version of Into the Woods was a crushing disappointment to me.

IT'S OKAY, SHE WAS 8 OR SO AT THE TIME AND HAD NOT SEEN (oops, caps lock) the 1987(?) BROADWAY performance recordING with BERNADETTE PETERS and co. *(which btw is on Y0UTUBE)

Jason Robards was a very good actor, and he is sublime in Long Day's Journey Into Night. He rarely gave a poor performance at any point in his career,

LHD: IT'S WILD THOUGH, The only screen perfomance I've seen HIS FATHER (JASON SR.) give is TERRIBLE (it's in ISLE OF THE DEAD for VAL LEWTON]
All this makes me wanna check out SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES.

Yes, Decision Before Dawn only scored one Oscar nod besides it's BP nomination, and it was in a tiny category. Only Four Weddings and a Funeral and Selma repeated the trick since then.

LHF: I DID NOT KNOW THAT? I thought it'd be more than just SELMA. Thank you, see, this is the kind of stuff I've missed so dearly over the last 11 months.

I'm sorry that I have to correct myself.... There was another one BP and one other nod film: Women Talking this past year. (Otherwise known as grim subject matter, marvellous acting and good writing, but really lousy desaturated photography) The Oscars have kind of lost me the last few years ever since some of those films they nominated in 2020.


Something Wicked This Way Comes. I really loved that movie, but Bradsbury fans mumbled a bit about it. It's very atmospheric, and I felt one of the most daring films to come out of Disney. Director Jack Clayton didn't make many other films but what he left was fascinating: Room at the Top, The Innocents, The Pumpkin Eater, Our Mother's House, The Great Gatsby, and The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne.

[CinemaInternational]

Following Masha's lead, I took a look myself at Cecil B. Demented (2000),
it feels very questionable for Patty Hearst to appear in a movie that feels like a cinema-based dark comedy delirium of her real life ordeal. Still, I am glad I saw it, because I did laugh sometimes and that is much needed right now.

DID SHE WEAR WHITE SHOES THOUGH???????

This film didn't provide any shots of her feet, so I don't know, but given how firmly Waters keeps his tounge in cheek, he might have put her in them again as a nod back to Serial Mom (she was wearing I think, a lighter colored outfit in one of her two or three short scenes)

[CinemaInternational]

Last night we watched Ken Russell's GOTHIC. I was searching streaming for Theresa Russell in WHORE also directed by Ken Russell. Mr Tiki saw the thumbnail and said, "Oh I saw Gothic in the theater & LOVED it!"

OK, well the premise of the story seemed kind of cool, the famous weekend Mary & Percy Shelly stayed at Lord Byron's estate, resulting in the writing of FRANKENSTEIN. Only an hour and a half long, I figured it was worth seeing, although I'm always dubious of Ken Russell films. They are offbeat, impressionistic and rife with shocking imagery - often sexual/violent.

As Masha said about recently watching a John Waters movie, "I believe that is all the explanation necessary." Same for this Ken Russell film.
I've always felt Russell's films benefit from multiple viewing because they are often confusing to those who prefer a more spoon-fed or linear type story and this is no exception.

Like Kubrick -but far less successful- Russell likes to just present seemingly fragmented scenes & dialogue for the viewer to formulate the story. His generous use of symbolism often successfully evokes the desired emotions helping to round out the story.
It seems either his scripts or maybe editing are what fail in his movies.

It certainly isn't "production" this movie looks GREAT. The costumes & hair weresn't historical, but it doesn't matter. The lighting and the sets were familiar but retained an "otherworldly" feel, almost as if the viewer is "dreaming" - again- Kubrick is the Master of this.
I was distracted however, by the set choice of randomly covering walls with crimson fabric. I don't know if it was to block windows from ruining the photography or cover the estate's modern upgrades or a symbolic visual element but it didn't work.

When the movie was over he looked at me & said "I wasted 3 hours of my life seeing it. Twice. I can't believe I ever liked that."

I suspect it was mostly the Gothic atmosphere of the story, nudity & open sexual play reached the 16-17 year old emotionally, while a few decades later prefers more of a "story" haha. And that's what I like about dreamlike stream-of-conscious style movies. They manipulate you with the emphasis on imagerey rather than dialogue-just like the movie's poster:

Ken Russell was in his era the king of excess, and even in the let-it-all-it-hang-out 70s, it rubbed some people the wrong way. Pauline Kael, who liked many violent and sexual films, despised his films and him. I have taken looks at many of his films, mostly out of sheer curiosity, and many come with good elements, but the sledgehammer approach is a bit much. He always seemed to be trying to offend (I didn't appreciate the use of religiously blasphemous imagry in Mahler, which is otherwise OK, and The Lair of the White Worm, which I otherwise thought to be a hoot. I know better than to watch The Devils.) I would say The Boy Friend, Savage Messiah, and Lair of the White Worm were his most satisfying, while Tommy and Crimes of Passion were his worst (the latter is so overheated its virtually unwatchable, in spite of game work from Kathleen Turner as a lady of the night and Annie Potts as an emotionally frigid wife). The Rainbow (even in spite of full nudity) is his most subdued, relatively speaking.

Gothic, meanwhile, here does indeed look great, but all the booming sounds cannot disguise that the overall treatment is very spindly. Still, while only being mixed on it, I don't feel any animosity to it, so there is that.

[Lorna]

PART ONE OF TWO:

my fascination with 1960s JAPANESE CINEMA, specifically SAMURAI EPICS SET DURING THE 16TH CENTURY (a time of GREAT CHAOS AND UNREST IT WOULD SEEM) continues unabated.

there are varying reasons why STORIES SET DURING THIS VOLATILE TIME PERIOD pique me interest- among them are the facts that I love BLACK AND WHITE CINEMATOGRAPHY and THE SOUND OF RUSTLING BAMBOO...but I think my current affaire d'couer with TALES of FEUDAL JAPAN is because I see a DEFINITE parallel to the world we live in today- where in spite of great cultural achievements and advancements, unfettered capitalism has cemented evil men in power while everyone else is deadassed broke and there's a 1/10 chance you'll be killed leaving your house (odds may vary in your state.)

on that note though, I watched THE SWORD OF DOOM (1962)- which I liked very much up until the ending...which is one of those endings that isn't so much an ending as it is a stopping...but, it's lovely to look at and, WEIRD AS THIS MAY SOUND, there was something about it that brought MIDDLEMARCH and the world of GEORGE ELIOT to mind- it was the first SAMURAI film I had seen that took a multifacated look at the lives and motivations of many different actors within a piece that is framed around a RELENTLESSLY EVIL DEAD-EYED SOCIOPATHIC KILLING MACHINE who is played by...

Tatsuya Nakadai



or JAPANESE LIAM NEESON if you will....[note: I'm not a LIAM NEESON fan, but it is my understanding that his name his become SYNONOMOUS WITH UNSTOPPABLE CINEMATIC BAD ASSERY, especially of the CHARLES BRONSON REVENGE-related variety, which brings us to the next film I watched,

HARAKIRI (1962) in which Tatsuya Nakadai- who before played a DEAD-EYED SOCIOPATH- now plays a KIND-HEARTED RONIN (A SAMURAI left without a master or home or income) who avenges the horrible death of his son-in-law in a story that is too complicated to explain, but REALLY ENGROSSING NONETHELESS.

DICKENS would have had A BALL if he had known HALF of what went down in JAPAN in the 16the century!!!!

[Lorna]

PART TWO REVIEW HARA KIRI (1962):

and this is THE SAME DAMN ACTOR IN THE SAME DAMN YEAR!!!!!!!!!:

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



IN A ROLE IN WHICH he absolutely BREAKS YOUR HEART with the DEPTHS OF HIS GRIEF AND SADNESS, it is a riveting, multi-faceted performance, I actually rewatched a lot of HARAKIRI this morning (I rented it on amazon) and knowing how it ends, it was hard at times not to be INCREDIBLY MOVED by how GOOD HE IS in the role.

He was an ABSOLUTE CHAMELEON of an actor and DEEPLY gifted- a visit to his imdb page BLEW MY MIND because he was in SO MANY FILMS I HAD SEEN but I would have NEVER thought the same person played the part- he looked SO DIFFERENT in EVERY WAY down to to his posture and movement, I did not realize that he played the title role in KAGEMUSHA and was the fresh faced cop in HIGH AND LOW as well.

HE ALSO MOONWALKS IN ONE SCENE. I SWEAR TO GOD.

ANYHOW, SORRY, I RAMBLED OFF THE FARM WITH THIS ONE, but for anyone looking for a fun film where one guy KICKS THE ASSSSES/ABSOLUTELY MURDERS A LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE IN A VISUALLY ENGROSSING EXTENDED CLIMAX, then either THE SWORD OF DOOM or HARA KIRI are for you, although of the two, the latter gets my decided recommendation to see first.

[Masha]

Salome's Last Dance (1988)

A playwright goes to a brothel and is given a surprise performance of his recently banned play with his friends and prostitutes playing the parts.

This movie encompasses three major timeframes: 1) the biblical story of Salome, 2) the Victorian world of Oscar Wilde and 3) today's audience which has been exposed to: The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975).

This is a Ken Russell movie. Dichotomies abound. Excess is personified. It is wondrously beautiful and disgustingly ugly. The actors are consummate professionals portraying rank amateurs. The transparency of the special effects reinforces the realism of an ad hoc production.

The performance by Imogen Millais-Scott as Salome was ethereal. Bits of artless hamming flowed into captivating soliloquies. Her passion was intense while her heart was ice. She has a commanding presence while remaining completely aloof.

She was so perfectly wonderful in all regards that I had to investigate why she did not become a major star. I will not reveal her personal situation at the time of filming because it would prejudice any viewer's appreciation for her presentation. All I can say is that it is a tragedy that she was in only three movies.

I am quite sure that this is a love-it-or-hate-it movie. Embracing the idea that you are watching an in-story amateur production and judging it by that standard might be a bit of a stretch for some people. Expecting a typical Wilde play or not understanding Russell's style might taint it for others.

My personal recommendation is to watch this movie and then watch it again in a year if it seemed to not be to your taste the first time.

8.4/10

The availability of this movie appears to change virtually week by week. It will at times be available for viewing for free with commercials on one or two streaming sites, it will at times be available only on subscription services, it will at times be available only as pay-per-view and there are times when it will completely disappear for a month or more. We used the digital credits from Amazon deliveries to purchase it so that we will have it available at all times.