Ever see Lair of the White Worm?

From: "Rev. Ivan Stang" <stang@subgeniusNOSPUM.com>

Date: Mon, Mar 29, 2004 10:58 AM

In article <xNM9c.41207$PY.33713@newssvr26.news.prodigy.com>, HdMrs.
Salacia the Overseer <SeventhSqueal@illiterate&inbredyahoo.com> wrote:

> "KRONOS" <null@void.com> wrote in message news:m2n060pcs6.fsf@void.com...
> > On 28 Mar 2004, brthrn@dangermedia.org wrote:
> > > Hugh Grant is in it.
> > >
> > > You'll like it!
> >
> > Very good and weird
>
> That one isn't my favorite Ken Russel film.
>
> I LOVE Salome's Last Dance, though. The girl lead is wonderful, I'm thinking
> that she was a dancer or theatrical performer more than an actress because
> according to imdb that's her only film. Gothic is OK.
>
> That film has a great mix of visual candy, poetry and perversion. It just
> seduces me into a stupor when I watch it.
>

I consider Ken Russell to be Ed Wood on a bigger budget and less
poisonous rotgut. I have enjoyed some of his movies; when I was younger
I enjoyed some of them because I thought they were "good." The older I
got, the more insipid they all began to look. Now I can see why Paddy
Chayefsky had his name removed from the credits of "Altered States."
It's so hilariously inept it verges on being an unintentional comedy.
"Tommy" of course is the perfect example of an unintentional comedy.
I've seen a whole lot of Russell films and each time I came away
thinking, "Coke? Booze? Both? Or is he simply stuck forever in freshman
film class, trying to be arty but using a 12-year-old boy's brain to do
it?"

No offense to the many Ken Russell fans out there, but I really do
believe him to be mildly to severely retarded, and anyone who can watch
one of his overblown dinner-theater melodramas with a straight face
must also be missing a few frames from their release-print, if you
catch my meaning.

The nun-raping in many of his movies is all wonderful, don't get me
wrong. It's the pretentious fucking Art with a Misspelled Capital A
dialog that wrecks them for me. It's all very portentious and Important
when you're 25, but when you're 50 it comes off as stilted, forced as
hell, and just plain stupid.

Maybe I'm just jealous, though. I wish I could be so stupid, AND still
have lots of $ at my disposal. All I'm missing is the money, probably.


PRABOB

----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "HdMrs. Salacia the Overseer" <SeventhSqueal@illiterate&inbredyahoo.com>
> I consider Ken Russell to be Ed Wood on a bigger budget and less
> poisonous rotgut. I have enjoyed some of his movies; when I was younger
> I enjoyed some of them because I thought they were "good." The older I
> got, the more insipid they all began to look. Now I can see why Paddy
> Chayefsky had his name removed from the credits of "Altered States."
> It's so hilariously inept it verges on being an unintentional comedy.

I only just saw this one a few months ago on commercial TV. I was too young
when it first came out. It's definitely dated and very 70's and parts are
very hokey. Since I'm a Wade Davis fan, I think the seed of the idea is
good, and someone should remake it. But change the parts where Mr. Hyde
breaks out of the isolation tank.

> "Tommy" of course is the perfect example of an unintentional comedy.
> I've seen a whole lot of Russell films and each time I came away
> thinking, "Coke? Booze? Both? Or is he simply stuck forever in freshman
> film class, trying to be arty but using a 12-year-old boy's brain to do
> it?"

Yes, most of them are mindless badfilms with lots of curlicues, artifice and
spectacle. Great party background films. Plus the vision of a giant worm
monster flailing around after a girl is always good for a laugh.

The structure, wit and eloquence provided by Oscar Wilde's play makes Salome
very good. 9/10

> No offense to the many Ken Russell fans out there, but I really do
> believe him to be mildly to severely retarded, and anyone who can watch
> one of his overblown dinner-theater melodramas with a straight face
> must also be missing a few frames from their release-print, if you
> catch my meaning.

Tee hee

>
> The nun-raping in many of his movies is all wonderful, don't get me
> wrong.

Nun raping? I don't remember any nun raping. Is that Lair of the White Worm?

It's the pretentious fucking Art with a Misspelled Capital A
> dialog that wrecks them for me. It's all very portentious and Important
> when you're 25, but when you're 50 it comes off as stilted, forced as
> hell, and just plain stupid.
>
> Maybe I'm just jealous, though. I wish I could be so stupid, AND still
> have lots of $ at my disposal. All I'm missing is the money, probably.

This is meant as a compliment. Based on what I've seen of your film work,
you have a streak of 12 year old in you too, that comes out in your movies.
True your 12 year old style is into sci fi and B movie babes instead of
fancy dress up gothic and, unlike Russell, your work never makes the mistake
of taking itself too seriously. Your work is more spontaneous (if that word
can be used for a film) and not self-conscious. Russell's films *are* self
conscious. But you know what, I play my Stangfilm tapes and Arise for people
in the background during parties, just the same as the Russell tapes.
Because they're fun.

I hope you have a chance to make another movie someday. You're very good.

~Salacia

----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Sister Decadence <decadence@subgenius.NOSPAM.com>

On Mon, 29 Mar 2004 16:17:48 GMT, "HdMrs. Salacia the Overseer"
<SeventhSqueal@illiterate&inbredyahoo.com> wrote:

>
>Yes, most of them are mindless badfilms with lots of curlicues, artifice and
>spectacle. Great party background films. Plus the vision of a giant worm
>monster flailing around after a girl is always good for a laugh.

*heh* It's the only one of his films I can still watch without
feeling as Stang does. Why? Maybe it's the "flailing worm" thing.
Could be that COOL "worm song" the band sings in the pub. Does anyone
know where I can find that thing? (Irish-Celticy song about the
"Donton Worm". (Or something that sounds like "Donton", the town
they're in.)

>
>The structure, wit and eloquence provided by Oscar Wilde's play makes Salome
>very good. 9/10

I did like the movie version of this too, very in-your-face kind of
eerieness.

My Pics:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sisdecadence
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sisdecadence2
My WebCam:
http://www.walkingdead.net/~sisd/siscam.html
^^^^^Insert shameless self-promotion here. ^^^^^

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: Re: Ever see Lair of the White Worm?
From: "Rev. Ivan Stang" <stang@subgeniusNOSPUM.com>

In article <7e3ec2d7.0403291140.31e5f3ba@posting.google.com>, MRvDC
<brthrn@dangermedia.org> wrote:

>
> I'm guessing you're not a Peter Greenaway fan, either.

I have a cherry store-bought VHS copy of Prospero's Books and have
watched it three or four times with my attention gland turned up all
the way. During the giant long dolly shot as the old dude and his
retinue pass room after room after room filled with frollicking nypmphs
and sets like paintings, I remember wondering, "Funding, even for pure
art films, may yet come, with the promise to investors of *enough*
titty and butts to be seen on the set."

--
4th Stangian Orthodox MegaFisTemple Lodge of the Wrath of Dobbs Yeti,
Resurrected (Rev. Ivan Stang, prop.)

PRABOB

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: Re: Ever see Lair of the White Worm?
From: Joe Cosby <joecosby@SPAMBLOCKmindspring.com>

>and sets like paintings, I remember wondering, "Funding, even for pure
>art films, may yet come, with the promise to investors of *enough*
>titty and butts to be seen on the set."

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102722/business

It grossed 1.75 million according to the IMDB.

I've been reading the IMDB "Box office and business" pages a lot
lately. I used to rail and moan about how Hollywood wouldn't fund
half-way decent movies and would crank out bucketloads of forgettable
mindless drivel instead, but I am starting to get a different
perspective on it.

All of the good movies lose money. I don't know what kind of budget
Prospero's Books had (some of those sets looked pretty expensive) but
1.75 mill isn't a huge amount in movie terms.

My beloved David Lynch movies pretty much all lose money. Everybody
loves them, or claims they do. Tens of thousands of people vote on
the IMDB and his movies all rate highly by the actual viewers.

But they lose money, and Finding Nemo rakes in the cash.

I must have gone through several dozen movies that were among my
favorites, and they were all the same. High ratings, lost millions.
A lot of them were in the top 100 rated movies on the IMDB. I don't
remember all of the big money-losers, IIRC Donnie Darko, The Mothman
Prophecies, I don't remember all of them.

The thing is, Hollywood -does- make these films. And they do so
pretty much knowing that they will lose a million or ten million
dollars. They're charity jobs. A few of them can get made every year
but you can only afford to throw away 10 million in profits so many
times.

The problem isn't a mindless hollywood system that corrupts all truth
and beauty. The problem is the movie-viewing public that only WANT
something mindless and numbing once a week or once a month. They
PREFER something stupid enough that they won't have to explain it to
the kids. The problem is US, but not US, because we paid 30 bucks to
be members of a different species, but all of US who didn't.

IMO if I wanted to make a movie, I would figure on budgeting it at
less than 100,000 bucks. If it seemed really interesting I think
Hollywood would fund it. And at 100,000 it could be one of their
little art/charity projects and they wouldn't be throwing all that
much into the art/charity money sinkhole.

--
Joe Cosby
http://users.zhonka.net/joecosby/
Why is it that the more fuel efficient a car becomes the more DORKY
it has to look? It reminds me of the paradoxical nature of The Future,
where on the one hand, we get all sorts of neat stuff like personal
robots to do our bidding, and rocket packs to fly around with, but on
the other hand we ALSO have to wear goofy looking spandex leotards.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: Re: Ever see Lair of the White Worm?
From: Cardinal Vertigo <jhobbs@myrealbox.com>

Congratulations, you win the Insightful Post of the Day award.

Contact me for details on how to claim your prize.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Rev. Ivan Stang" <stang@subgeniusNOSPUM.com>

>
> I don't agree with you but I think it's funny. The way you said it.
> Prospero's Books. Idunno. I totally tune out on it. I listened to the
> entire movie one night while at the computer. But I don't seem to have
> the attention span to actually sit down and watch it. Programmed.
>

I cannot imagine why or even HOW a person could ONLY LISTEN to a movie
that's made to be seen with all THREE eyes, but, hey.

It's like what Ken Russell might have done if he had more than just
financial backing, like for instance a brain.

--
4th Stangian Orthodox MegaFisTemple Lodge of the Wrath of Dobbs Yeti,
Resurrected (Rev. Ivan Stang, prop.)

PRABOB

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: Re: Ever see Lair of the White Worm?
From: nenslo <nenslo@yahoox.com>

"HdMrs. Salacia the Overseer" wrote:
>
>
> Prospero's Books made me nod off. In that state between consciousness and
> sleep I was only listening.
>
> I didn't nod off during The Cook, the Thief, his Wife and her Lover. Nope.
> First I was too busy watching the Gaultier fashions and wanting to be Helen
> Mirren. Later I was so traumatized by the scene of the beautiful choir boy
> being tortured I had hideous flashbacks for days. That was the one movie in
> my life I wish I never sat through. Well, that and Trent Reznor's snuff
> film. *vomit*

"I like movies that make me feel happy afterward, not sick and angry."
- me.


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