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Ken
Russell made a series of very low budget films. They
demonstrate the depth of his imagery and vision, and also
the desperation of making money by sensation. At times
the best and the worst are side by side, as in Gothic.
This period includes a short film, Aria, which is a
classic.
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Gothis from 1986. Ken Russell was attracted to the
Shelley and Byron story of incest and debauchery. It
starts with tourists paying to look through telescopes to
the Byron residence across the water. Just as Russell did
with Liszt, Shelley and Byron are treated as pop stars
with adoring groupies.
Under the effect of drugs, nightmares start to
take over as each character searches for an illusory
gratification. Natasha however does not need drugs to
confront her nightmares.
The poster was banned in London, despite being
based on a classical painting.
 
The film is enjoyable and the first half is
vintage Russell but it does deteriorate a bit towards the
end. Ken Russell says "I'd fallen into the
trap which has been the undoing of many a... pop-video
director- punchy, roller-coaster cutting, short sequences
and non-stop action... well nigh unbearable over a
hundred minutes or so".
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| people |
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Gabriel Byrne
as Lord Byron and Julian Sands as Percy Bysshe
Shelley. Natasha Richardson, daughter of The
Devil's Vanessa Redgrave, plays Mary Shelley. |
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Music by Thomas Dolby
(not Russell's choice).
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| best image |
The girl
sleeping as the shadow moves by.
| The fish drowning in a bowl
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| best scene
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The girl
in the room surrounded by the doors. |
| themes |
The moving
doll sequence is very similar to Fellini in Casanova. The dead baby in the water.
The knight in armour is
similar to the Tina Turner hypodermic knight in Tommy.
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The scene on
the roof in the lightning is similar to Roger
Daltry on the roof in Tommy. |
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Snakes on
skulls, phallic symbols, leeches abound. Left
from Gothic, right from Tommy. |
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| films |
Other films released in the same year include Children of a
Lesser God, Aliens and Platoon. |
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