Women in Love (1970)

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

i must have seen a different film!!

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Can you imagine the effect this movie had in 1969? I is still ahead of the times. Merit, in great part, of Larry Kramer who adapted DH Lawrence's work in a way nobody else could have. Scrumptious, subversive, extraordinary. Director Ken Russell with some startling titles to his name - his BBC production of Isadora Duncan with a sublime Vivien Pickles in the title role, for instance - reaches here some kind of mountain top. Glenda Jackson became a household name, Alan Bates confirmed what we all knew, that he was one of the greatest actors that ever lived. I devoured the film with utter pleasure 48 years after its first released. Literature and cinema in an insanely beautiful alliance.

Ken Russell always was a unique director with a style unlike any other. He was also a very controversial one with some great films but also ones where his excesses tended to get in the way too much(Lisztomania being a primary example). Women in Love is an example of Russell in restrained mode, like he showed in his documentaries on Elgar and Delius, and as of now I consider it his best. It is a beautifully filmed film and looks striking throughout, not opulent but there is a real eye for details and evocativeness here. Russell doesn't allow any of his excesses to get in the way, on the most part his directing is very restrained- especially compared to Lisztomania and his Strauss biography Dance of the Seven Veils, to a lesser extent also The Devils which still managed to be a great film and one of his most fascinating- with some slightly over-exaggerated moments which actually were in keeping with the writing. Women in Love is exceptionally well written, the story is quite stark but because of the complex characters and so-many-different emotions it is always involving and it certainly kept me glued me to the screen. The nude male wrestling scene is the most talked about scene and for good reason, a very daring scene for the time and a fine example of what is so good about the story. The script is talky but incredibly intelligent and thought-provoking, the detail to characterisation and their emotions is one of Women in Love's high points. Furthermore, it is very respectful to the original source material(if condensed) and is one of Russell's most coherent films. Because of Russell's restraint in his directing, he gives his actors a real leeway to act. The best in the cast are Glenda Jackson and Oliver Reed. Jackson is a revelation in one of her most difficult roles(perhaps even the most difficult role of hers), managing to be formidable and heartfelt. After seeing Women in Love, I've changed my mind about saying Oliver Reed's best performance was in the Devils, he's brilliant there but as of now he has never been better before or since Women in Love. Alan Bates has a commanding screen presence and Jennie Linden, while not quite on the same level as the other three, is very touching. Overall, outstanding and Russell's best film out of an understandably controversial filmography. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Where to begin. Not with the story which is clearly by D.H Lawrence so it is about the adaption to screen by Ken Russell.You are either a THL fan of not. I had THL thrust down my throat at upper sixth form level English by a very zealous feminist teacher who sat in a mini-skirt on my desk, so my attitudes to DHL are somewhat confused but overall, I think he explored original ideas in society but was just a boring writer. We did Sons and Lovers for University Scholarship and would have been bored stupid had it not been for Miss P. and her staggeringly suggestive interpretation of the rose petal/river scene.I went to Woman in Love (the movie)only because I was going out with an English literature major and I was far more interested in her than the movie and was prepared to be indulgent. Wrong. With WIL, Russell turned my perceptions around. He sticks mostly to the original novel but manages to infuse it with originality and his own version of shock/horror. The naked wrestling scene for example. That was groundbreaking at the time. Alan Bates fig opening scene is just as controversial. All of the characters are flawed in their own way but the acting is superb, the scene setting wondrous, and the photography brilliant.I believe this movie could be re-released today, uncut, and be a bigger success than it was in 1970.Glenda Jackson got an Oscar for this but I thought Alan Bates and Oliver Reed were the better; I really enjoyed both of their portrayals which are quite exceptional. Jenny Linden of course, is just beautiful.The lady is long gone but I have a Directors Cut DVD in my library and I watched it recently on the anniversary of my first viewing of it (sounds stupid but I got a bit nostalgic). Hence this review.Like The Devils of Loudon, I do understand why we do not see this movie on popular television, because it requires a level of competency in literature and history, and an appreciation of acting capability and technical execution. There is no Pride and Prejudice here. Thank God I didn't have to study that dross at school. Even Miss P wouldn't have helped.Highly recommended.

I do not usually like Ken Russell films but this one is excellent.There are many good scenes but the one I always recall is when Gerald Crich (Oliver Reed)is stood in the graveyard just after his father's funeral and digs his hand into the soil squeezing the earth into his fist and then making his way to see Gudrun (Glenda Jackson). This part of the film creates an eerily strange atmosphere helped by an excellent soundtrack. I was very impressed with all the actors but particularly by Oliver Reed who in the early part of the film is very Oliver Reed like, but later becomes a very vulnerable character. Well done Ken Russell you made a great picture to be proud of.