Seen at a screening of The Devils.
I went to the theater without a ticket and found that there were only 3 or 4 seats left out of 46 or so. How nice to see a Ken Russell flick that's 50 some-odd years old nearly selling out late in a 2 week run. The audience proved to me a mix of old and young, which was also good to see.
I'd never seen The Devils in its bowdlerized version and so this director's cut was all new for me.
It's 163something and the French city of Loudun has lost its governor which leaves the local priest, Father Grandier, in charge. Grandier may be the sexiest priest in all of France as he is bedding the lay ladies left and right. Plus the abbess of the local convent, Sister Jeanne des Anges, is barely able to contain the lust in her heart that she has for him. But he is at loggerheads with Cardinal Richelieu who wants to tear the city's walls down and bring it to heel along with all of the other cities that have a modicum of independence.
When Baron Jean de Laubardemont comes to town with his 17th century demolition equipment, Grandier is left with no choice but to have his archers threaten the baron and his men. Loudun's walls are saved. For now.
Grandier marries one Madeleine De Brou in secret but their conjugal alliance becomes known to Sister Jeanne who turns insanely jealous. Throw a "witchfinder" into this tense situation and you get an orgiastic "exorcism" at the church while Grandier is away. Upon his return he is tried and - quelle surprise - is found guilty of witchcraft.
For his part, Grandier is introduced to us as a philanderer having impregnated a young Loudunian lady. He doesn't seem to care and abandons the mother of his child. But he has his come to Jesus moment, I suppose you could say, after marrying De Brou. During the scene where Sister Jeanne's flock are thrown into heat and defile the church in a frenzied fit of debauchery, scenes of Grandier out by a lake blessing bread and having a private moment of devotion are intercut with it.
Upon his return he is accused of all manner of transgressions by Sister Jeanne and others whose strings are pulled by the witchfinder and the baron. Grandier admits his failings but denies their scandalous accusations until his fiery end.
All of this is done with Russell's typical hyper-stylized visual aplomb. The city is largely made of white brick while the church has an ebony interior. There's some really nice use of short lenses so many scenes present 2 or more faces at once to the viewer. I was impressed with all of the camera movement and the staging as well. Cinematographer David Watkin not only followed characters but also allowed them to step into the frame or to a new position within it. There were a few really nice crane shots as well. Just a lot of variety in the shots, sometimes natural looking, sometimes ostentatious just as Ken Russell likes it. Vanessa Redgrave is great as Sister Jeanne. She's obsessed and seemingly always on the brink of madness.
And then there's Mr. Beefcake himself, Oliver Reed. He's rakish and chews some fine scenery (although the true chewer here is Michael Gothard as the witchfinder, Father Pierre Barre, who looks like he came straight from the set of Easy Rider), has some tender moments with Madeleine, and then lets loose with righteous anger.
I adored The Devils. It is a wonderful mix of beauty, visual perversity, and, if not an anti-papist message, then a clear warning about the admixture of religion and secular power.
Onto the trailers! And, man, they really stuck it to us. 10 of them.
Doctor Who returns to theaters! Good lord, it's been 20+ years since the show came out of hibernation. This is a great story from the NuWho era.
