Ken Russell on Blu-ray

[lesco]

After a long drought on the Blu-ray front it appears that Ken is finally getting some love, with a handful of titles already announced so far this year. Still a fair number M.I.A. though.

So far we've gotten, or had announced (in chronological order)

Billion Dollar Brain (KINO)
Women in Love (BFI + CRITERION)
The Boy Friend (WARNER ARCHIVE)
Mahler (PARAMOUNT, JAPAN)
Tommy (SONY)
Valentino (KINO)
Altered States (WARNER BROS)
Crimes of Passion (ARROW)
Gothic (LIONSGATE)
Lair of the White Worm (LIONSGATE)
The Rainbow (PULP VIDEO, ITALY)
VVhore (IMPRINT, AUSTRALIA + KINO)

and the TV work:
Ken Russell Collection: The Great Composers (BFI)
Ken Russell Collection: The Great Passions (BFI)
Holst: Ken Russell's View of The Planets (ARTHAUS MUSIK)
A British Picture (included on CRITERION 'Women in Love' disc)

Still a ways to go though.

[lesco]

Specs for Women in Love just in



- New 2K restoration by the BFI National Archive
- Original theatrical trailer
- Audio commentary with director Ken Russell
- Audio commentary with writer and producer Larry Kramer
- Second Best (Stephen Dartnell, 1972, 25 mins): rare, unreleased short film starring Alan Bates based on the short story by D H Lawrence
- The Guardian Lecture: Glenda Jackson interviewed at the National Film Theatre (1982, 90 mins, audio only)
- The Pacemakers 14: Glenda Jackson (1974, 14 mins): profile and interview with Glenda Jackson which includes post-production work on Women in Love
- Stills and Collections gallery
- Fully illustrated booklet with credits and newly commissioned essays

[lesco]

Feature Films Not Available On Blu:

French Dessing (it finally got a DVD release via Network just over a year ago)
The Music Lovers (lots of rumours, nothing more)
The Devils (Warners is keeping this sewn up)
Savage Messiah (Warner Archive DVD)
Lisztomania
Salome's Last Dance

[Dubstar]

^ and 1991's "w" word for prostitute which this site censors

[LawnFurniture]

What is the exact reason Warner Bros refuses to release The Devils?

[Dubstar]

Originally Posted by LawnFurniture

What is the exact reason Warner Bros refuses to release The Devils?

It's been noted that even though Warners backed the movie financially and they agreed with the removal of notorious "Rape of Christ" scene the full restoration would go against corporate policy and reveal the self censoring of their own product and that in their minds Russell went above and beyond what was acceptable -essentially they are embarrassed by this film and want no other studio to have it and make money off its controversy.

[lesco]

Originally Posted by Dubstar

^ and 1991's "w" word for prostitute which this site censors

What the hell? I didn't even notice that. I've done it again with alternative typography.

[lemoncurry?]

Pardon me, but "Mahler" is available as a Japanese Blu-ray. PQ is great. Fantastic film as well!

[ionsi]

Originally Posted by lesco

Feature Films Not Available On Blu:


Mahler (DVD has the Janus logo...so...Criterion? Too much to wish for? Russell has had a phantom page for quite a while now with nothing to show for it)

I personally am very satisfied with the Japan-Release of 'Mahler' (Paramount-High-Definiton).
It's my favourite of Ken Russell (besides 'The Devils' and 'The Music Lovers').

It's got very pleasing picture quality, clear audio. I personally even like the 'reduced' cover-art.
And it's quite cheap at $ 13.14 (excluding shipping).

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/PBH-300144

Description (Link below) is not correct - Aspect-Ratio is actually 1.66:1.
Audio is English Linear PCM 2.0, optional japanese subtitles.

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Mahler-Blu-ray/44165/

[IanB1964]

There's this as well:

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Holst...lu-ray/151134/

I don't own it, but I'm assuming it's one of the films that Melvyn Bragg commissioned for The South Bank Show. I haven't seen it since it was broadcast in 1983, but it was a fifty minute film of Gustav Holst's The Planets set to found footage, edited by Mr. Bragg and Ken's son Xavier.

A few years ago, Network, or someone similar, had a pre-order up on Amazon UK for a boxed set of Ken's docs for The South Bank Show, but it never appeared, because of copyright wrangles, I assume. Here's one of them, The Strange Affliction of Anton Bruckner, a mini successor to Mahler.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jy8-...ature=youtu.be

[VoodooSamurai]

The Rainbow is out as well: https://www.amazon.com/Rainbow-Blu-R.../dp/B016V3B0AS

Lady Chatterly is a great ken russell mini series you didnt list, hopefully all these come out.

[lesco]

How the hell did I miss Mahler?? I checked Amazon.jp some time ago and they only had the DVDs. I'm off to order it right now!

As for The Rainbow - well, I'd trust an "exclusive-only-on-Spanish-Blu-ray" as far as I could throw one (which, come to think of it, might be a fair distance) so I'll reserve judgement until I read a reputable review of it. I've read reports of DVDs that are simply transferred on to a Blu-ray disc, they're not HD or remastered at all (Mosquito Coast, anyone...?)

[lesco]

Another Russell Blu on the way: Lionsgate is releasing Lair of the White Worm January 2017. A short wait, at least!

[lesco]

Sony is releasing the 1987 film Aria on March 28 (2017). Happy to update my DVD! I saw this in a cinema on first release and Ken Russell's sequence was particularly memorable.
Also includes sequences by Altman, Roeg, Godard and others, if you're not aware of it. Ideal fare for people who are both cinema and music lovers.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by LawnFurniture

What is the exact reason Warner Bros refuses to release The Devils?

They DID release the restoration, for about a week, in iTunes. I snagged a digital copy before it was removed.

http://mediafunhouse.blogspot.com/20...ls-now-on.html

[lesco]

The Boy Friend just announced for February. This is actually my most sought-after Russell on Blu (yes, even ahead of The Devils)

[dallywhitty]

Wh0re is in dire need of a Blu-ray release. It's wonderful.

***** (1991) - Opening Scene - YouTube

[Rockercub]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

Wh0re is in dire need of a Blu-ray release. It's wonderful.

I picked up the German DVD, by the way, and I'm pretty sure the audio was just the tiniest bit out of sync. My bootleg DVD looked a bit off too though, so maybe it's a source issue. Anyways, it looked pretty good for a DVD, but I had to stop it halfway through and do a remux to fix the audio. I haven't had a chance to get back to it. After all that effort though, I expect a blu-ray announcement within the week.

[lesco]

I saw VVhore in a cinema when first released and remember that it had a kind of hard, flat look to the cinematography, so I'd be interested to see how a lot of the location night shoots would benefit from HD.

[ionsi]

Originally Posted by Rockercub

I picked up the German DVD, by the way, and I'm pretty sure the audio was just the tiniest bit out of sync. My bootleg DVD looked a bit off too though, so maybe it's a source issue. Anyways, it looked pretty good for a DVD, but I had to stop it halfway through and do a remux to fix the audio. I haven't had a chance to get back to it. After all that effort though, I expect a blu-ray announcement within the week.

Unfortunately the german release is - just as the former german DVD was - cut (a few seconds of the pimps murder have been deleted).