The Devils (1971) (Ken Russell) Discussion Thread

[Handyman Joe]

This is the most excited I've been about a DVD release since A Clockwork Orange finally went legit. All the hoo ha about the cut scenes tends to overshadow the myriad other pleasures, especially Derek Jarmans set designs, and the amazing cast including 2 of my culty favs Murray Melvin and Michael Gothard as well as the mighty Oliver Reed and a surreal cameo by old George Roper himself, Brian Murphy! And the documentary, and the commentary with the late lamented Mr Russell - how can this not be worth 12 quid of anyones money?!!

[Stephen@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by nekromantik

I am a little wary of paying £12 for a DVD however.

My expression says it all.

[Michael Brooke]

I've just read the booklet for the first time and, as expected, the Craig Lapper piece is the goldmine here. It's seven pages long (six and a half of full text), and it fully lives up to advance billing, since it constitutes by far the most detailed account of the censorship of The Devils that I've ever read.

He doesn't just describe each cut in detail, but also who requested its removal - the film was formally submitted to the BBFC on 9 February 1971 (Russell having already had informal talks with the BBFC's John Trevelyan), but on 12 February they received a letter from Warner Bros detailing ten mandatory changes that Russell was obliged to make on pain of the film not being distributed at all. Interestingly, Trevelyan didn't take all of these on board - Lapper highlights the differences of opinion as follows:

The extent to which the BBFC's objections coincide with those of the studio is quite striking, although there are some local differences. In particular, the BBFC objected to shots of Grandier burning and the woman dying during the plague sequence, whereas the studio appears not to have had a problem with these. By contrast, the studio asks for reductions in the scene in which the nuns have sex with one another, which does not appear to have troubled the BBFC.

Anyway, it's superb stuff - all sources are dated where possible, allowing a very detailed chronological timeline of a process that ultimately lasted until 19 May. It also reveals at the end that the significantly toned-down US cut gradually became the dominant one around the world - for instance, all but one of the domestic video releases that it's had legally have been of the US cut, the exception (till now) being the 1997 UK VHS release, which was cropped to 16:9, but which is otherwise the same version as the one on this DVD.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Sounds like a great read, Michael. I look forward to seeing the real thing when the DVD is pushed through my letterbox!

[The Limey]

Originally Posted by Michael Brooke

DVD Beaver has the first framegrabs.

It looks very good, indeed. Sadly it also underscores just how great this would have looked on Blu-ray though....

[The Limey]

Originally Posted by Michael Brooke

I really wouldn't hold your breath. Warners' attitude towards Revolution seems to be pretty ambivalent (which is presumably why they were happy for the BFI to handle it), but there's no doubt that they actively loathe The Devils at a corporate level.

Obviously, never say never - a decade ago conventional wisdom had it that the "rape of Christ" footage had been destroyed - but I certainly wouldn't place any bets on it happening. The mere fact that it's taken a full fifteen years since the introduction of the medium for it even to come out on DVD in a decent version (I certainly don't count the mangled non-anamorphic Spanish release!) is pretty revealing in itself.

Yes when subjected to scrutiny Warner's dislike of this film becomes increasingly ludicrous. Still if the DVD release is a hit then that will only increase the pressure for a BD release. I don't think that it is unrealistic to assume that the majority of people buying the DVD would readily double dip if the opportunity was there at a later date.

[trouserpress]

Got mine!

[nekromantik]

Im getting tempted in buying this!

[hallo37]

Originally Posted by The Limey

Yes when subjected to scrutiny Warner's dislike of this film becomes increasingly ludicrous. Still if the DVD release is a hit then that will only increase the pressure for a BD release. I don't think that it is unrealistic to assume that the majority of people buying the DVD would readily double dip if the opportunity was there at a later date.

I think Warner's would have liked this film to disappear completely, I personally can't wait to actually get this, at last!

[Stephen@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by trouserpress

Got mine!

What!!!! When?, Where?, why?, how?