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Plot. In 17th-century France, Cardinal Richelieu is influencing Louis XIII in an attempt to gain further power. He convinces Louis that the fortifications of cities throughout France should be demolished to prevent Protestants from rising up.
The Devils: Directed by Ken Russell. With Vanessa Redgrave, Oliver Reed, Dudley Sutton, Max Adrian. In 17th-century France, Father Urbain Grandier's protection of the city of Loudun from the corrupt Cardinal Richelieu is undermined by a sexually repressed nun's accusation of witchcraft.
- (19K)
- Biography, Drama, History
- Ken Russell
- 1971-07-16
The Devils is a 1971 British American thriller movie directed by Ken Russell and stars Vanessa Redgrave, Oliver Reed, Brian Murphy, Dudley Sutton, Max Adrian, Georgina Hale, Kenneth Colley.
The Devils is a 1971 biographical horror film by English enfant terrible, Ken Russell. It tells the semi-true story of Urbain Grandier (Oliver Reed), a priest living in 17th-century France who is forced to defend his town of Loudon from the Roman Catholic church, whose leaders want it torn down.
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In 17th-century France, Cardinal Richelieu is influencing Louis XIII in an attempt to gain further power. He convinces Louis that the fortifications of cities throughout France should be demolished to prevent Protestants from rising up. Louis agrees, but forbids Richelieu from carrying out demolitions in the town of Loudun, having made a promise to...
Oliver Reed as Father Urbain GrandierDudley Sutton as the Baron de LaubardemontMax Adrian as IbertDevelopment
After the success of Russell's Women in Love (1969) in the United States, its distributor, United Artists, suggested that Russell adapt Aldous Huxley's The Devils of Loudun (1952), a non-fiction book concerning the alleged 17th-century possessions in Loudun, France. Russell wrote the screenplay based on Huxley's novel, as well as John Whiting's 1961 play The Devils, which itself was based on Huxley's work. Russell said "when I first read the story, I was knocked out by it — it was just so sho...
Casting
Oliver Reed, who had worked with Russell previously on Women in Love, was cast as Urbain Grandier, the philandering doomed priest. Richard Johnson, who had portrayed Grandier in a stage production of The Devils, had originally been attached to the project in 1969, but eventually dropped out of the production. Reed agreed to do the film for a percentage of the profits. Gemma Jones was cast as Madeleine de Brou, Grandier's mistress. Sister Jeanne des Anges was originally to be played by Glenda...
Filming
Filming began 17 August 1970 in London at Pinewood Studios. The film's sets of Loudun—which were depicted as a modernistic white-tiled city— were devised by Jarman, who spent a total of three months designing them. In conceiving the look of the city, Russell was influenced by the cityscape in Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1927). The interiors of many of the buildings, specifically the convent, were crafted with plaster and made to appear as masonry; the plaster designs were then nailed to plywood...
Home media
The Devils has had a complicated release history in home media formats, with various cuts being made available in different formats. Warner Home Video released a clamshell VHS of the film in the United States in 1983, labeled as featuring a 105-minute cut of the film; however, this is a misprint, as this edition actually runs 103 minutes, due to time compression. Warner reissued a VHS edition in 1995, with a corrected label of a 103-minute running time. A VHS was issued in the United Kingdom...
Critics
The Devils received significant critical backlash upon its release due to its "outrageous," "overheated," and "pornographic" nature. The film was publicly condemned by the Vatican, who, though acknowledging that it contained some artistic merit, asked that its screenings at the Venice Film Festival be cancelled. Judith Crist called the film a "grand fiesta for sadists and perverts", while Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film a rare zero-star rating. Pauline Kael wrote of the fil...
Box office
The film was one of the most popular movies in 1972 at the British box office. The film grossed approximately $8–9 million in Europe, and an additional $2 million in the United States, making for a worldwide total gross of around $11 million.
Censorship
The explicit sexual and violent content, paired with its commentary on religious institutions, resulted in the film suffering significant censorship. Commenting on the film's controversial nature, Reed stated: "We never set out to make a pretty Christian film. Charlton Heston made enough of those... The film is about twisted people." The British Board of Film Censors found the film's combination of religious themes and violent sexual imagery a serious challenge, particularly as the Board was...
The Devils has been cited as one of the most controversial films of all time by such critics as Richard Crouse, among others. FilmSite included it in their list of the 100 most controversial films ever made, and in 2015, Time Out magazine ranked it 47 on their list of the "50 Most Controversial Movies in History." Film historian Joel W. Finler desc...
The Devils at WikipediaThe Devils at the Internet Movie DatabaseThe Devils at Rotten Tomatoes1971 USA, United Kingdom. Directed by. Ken Russell. Produced by. Robert H. Solo, Ken Russell. Written by. Ken Russell. Featuring. Vanessa Redgrave, Oliver Reed, Dudley Sutton.
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In 17th-century France, Father Grandier (Oliver Reed) is a priest whose unorthodox views on sex and religion influence a passionate following of nuns, including the sexually obsessed Sister...
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