Lovesusti
The Worst Film Ever
Janae Milner
Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.
Billy Ollie
Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable
ags123
Even die-hard fans of Ken Russell's florid style will have a hard time with this one. "Savage Messiah" came at the height of Russell's most creative and prolific period, making it all the more disappointing. The dialog is nothing but non-stop posturing, pontificating and proselytizing. The endless platitudes are as noisy and relentless as the steady din of the artist's subterranean lair. Missing too, are the visual flights of fancy that add color and texture to Russell's films. Only a slight hint of excitement appears in the gaudy Vortex sequences and in Helen Mirren's extended nude scene. Shirley Russell's dependably sharp eye for costume is limited here to drab and dull. Performances are so overstated that the characters never truly come to life, rather, they remain caricatures of non-conformist, artistic types. The film lacks the opposing subtle undercurrent present in Russell's more excessive exercises. Henri Gaudier Brzeska's life story is ripe for a Russell interpretation, but it's oddly mishandled here.
agustincriollo
Hello everybody;I remember watching this film when I was 12 years old in a late night show on a local channel and it blew my mind. Since then I have never found a copy even on VHS (I am sure it is not yet released on DVD). If someone knows where can I buy a copy (used, doesn't matter) I will greatly appreciate the information.About the movie I can say (Sorry for the blah blah but I need to fill the ten lines in order to post this), what I remember the most is the intensity of the performances and the beautifully crafted direction of photography. Russell is a superb director that knows exactly where to look for the right film crew.This is one of the best films I have ever seen and had an ever lasting impact in me as a person and as an artist. Henry Gaudier's story is compelling and dramatic. Although his life as an artist was short and turbulent his work (mostly sculptures and a few sketches) endure.thanks
Robert Philpot
First I have to admit that I was directed by Ken Russell in this movie. He told me to "get out of the bloody shot" when I was watching the filming at Horsted Keynes station between shots while working as an extra! The movie itself has several excellent parts, many of them well and clearly shown on Helen Mirren's body as she descends the stairs all woman totally disablie! The most moving part (by far) is the last 10 minutes where we see the work of Gaudier-Brzeska after being told of his demise. Back to Russell as a director he was friendly, indeed charming to the cast and even we extras, but scathing to the crew when things went wrong. In one case almost throwing the camera operator off set when he switched off the camera before the director shouted "cut". Suppose Russell had a point, it wasn't for the man with the switch to decide when the scene was over! The sound man received a round of applause - led by Shirly Russell when he performed some sort of audio miracle. Certainly not the best Russell movie,but far from his worst either. Good film that I would have never ever watched had I not been an extra. Glad that I did.
dphelan-1
I remember seeing this in theaters in the early seventies ( it never seems to be on television nor is it available on DVD). The two scenes I remember best were Dorothy Ttin savagely cutting up vegetables and Helen Mirren's Gosh Boyle descending the staircase nude in all her youthful and voluptuous glory. What a memorable moment. The rest of the film seemed to be about this modern sculptor/welder/whatever who had the typical artistic characteristics of ego and insensitivity. I remember that Helen Mirren's character was not exactly admirable but she was so stunning in that staircase scene that I did not care. Mirren has since ( and before in Age of Consent) done some great nude or semi-nude scenes but this is the one she will be remembered for.
