Film Director Ken Russell Dies at 84
Controversial British film director Ken Russell died at the age of 84 this past Sunday after a series of strokes.
Russell has earned a reputation for his original work and even had some mainstream success with films such as Women in Love, in 1969.
This motion picture was based off of the book by D.H. Lawrence and was nominated for several Academy Awards including best actress for Glenda Jackson, best writer for Larry Kramer and best director nomination for Russell himself.
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The film included one of the most famous scenes of its time that consisted of a nude wrestling match between two characters played by actors Oliver Reed and Alan Bates.
Reed reported at the time that Russell was “starting to go crazy,” according to the AP.
“Before that he was a sane, likeable TV director,” Reed told the AP. “Now he’s an insane, likeable film director.”
Later on in Russell’s film career critics were largely unimpressed with his work. Alexander Walker of The London Evening Standard called his some of his work “the porno-biography which is not quite pornography but is far from being biography."
Pauline Kael of The New Yorker reported that Russell’s films “cheapen everything they touch.”
Once when Russell was asked why he wanted to shock people, he replied, "I want to make people extraordinary. Because the more people realize they're extraordinary, the better they are. Really, I want everyone to freak out," according to eNotes.
Russell’s films were also known for their musical quality. Further into his career he directed some operas and once made a music video for Elton John’s song “Nikita.”
No funeral announcements have been made public. Russell has reportedly passed peacefully.
“My father died peacefully. He died with a smile on his face,” Russell’s son Alex Verney-Elliott said to the AP.
