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The original trailer.

(NB: I suspect this was framed at 1.85:1 to ensure compatibility with other trailers on the same reel. It does not reflect the aspect ratio of the BFI's DVD!)

MichaelB wrote:I hope that includes the send-off where Kermode thanks him for making one of the ten best films of all time and Russell says "Yeah! Lair of the White Worm!", and brought the house down. It was easily the best Q&A wrapping-up I've ever heard.

That is a great line. Is this Q&A not up on the BFI Live site?

Edit: No, it isn't. The only Russell Q&A there is on the Aria film.

BFI Live was created long after the 2004 Q&A - I don't think they've published many retrospective interviews.

Not least because there are rights issues - if the participants didn't sign a release form upfront (routine now, but not then), they (or their estates) need to be tracked down later.

MichaelB wrote:BFI Live was created long after the 2004 Q&A - I don't think they've published many retrospective interviews.

That would explain it. BFI Live is a fine site; just a pity some of the Q&As are on the short side.

Bafta's Guru website is similar if you're looking for more interviews.

broadwayrock wrote:Bafta's Guru website is similar if you're looking for more interviews.

It appears to be more mainstream than BFI, which is to be expected, but I'll give it a try.

Mondo Digital has just published the first online review:

That brings us to the two-disc 2012 special edition on DVD from the BFI, which is about as close to satisfaction as fans can get for now. Ideally Warner would wake up and give the world a Blu-Ray that reinstates the banned Rape of Christ and bone scenes (which, to reiterate, have never been included in any official print of the film and can only be found spliced into poor quality bootlegs), but until that blessed day comes (hopefully in all of our lifetimes), this release is a real gift to Russellphiles. First of all, this is a major first as it's the only time the much, much longer British cut (111 minutes, or 107 minutes here in PAL) has ever been available on DVD, and it's the only time in the world it's ever been released in scope. The nasty highlights most viewers outside the UK never got to see (the extended leg torture, the filthy nun and candle shot, etc.) are all here and intact in glorious widescreen at last. This is a major upgrade in every respect for the film, and the image quality is excellent, about as good as standard def will allow.

It shouldn't even have to be said, but slightly NSFW.

While I'm still baffled that Warner wouldn't allow a Blu (after all, the content of the film wouldn't change...), this looks like the first new DVD I'll buy since 2006.

I can absolutely - and gladly - vouch for the fact that the producer of this release really pulled out every possible stop to make it as impressive as he conceivably could bearing in mind the two big drawbacks over which he had no control.

It was a genuine labour of love, and early reviews suggests that this is coming across loud and clear.

Calvin wrote:I'm still baffled that Warner wouldn't allow a Blu (after all, the content of the film wouldn't change...).

My assumption is that WB recognizes that a film getting a DVD-only release in this day and age reflects on the film's perceived stature, i.e. the message from Warners is that the release of The Devils (as well as, um, everything in the Warner Archive) is a non-event. So remember, if you follow this line of reasoning yourself and don't buy DVDs anymore, the terrorists win!

It really looks as if the BFI have really hit this release right out of the park.

While a Blu-Ray release with the Rape of Christ would be ideal, I think that considering the circumstances with WB this release is far more than satisfactory. For a while, almost everyone thought the film would never even be released! Those screencaps posted over at DVDBeaver look awesome, and the special features appear to be quite extensive.

I think that at some point, WB will allow a Blu-Ray upgrade after good sales and positive interest, though I don't expect that to be for quite some time, probably many years. Unfortunately, I don't think we will ever see the 2004 Reconstruction.

I first saw The Devils for the first time this past summer, and it has now become one of my favorite films. It's sure going to be a looong wait until the end of this month :)

The Digital Fix:

A magnificent transfer on a par with the best of Criterion or Mondo Vision releases. There is very minor wear and tear like small hairs but the image is superbly film-like throughout with natural edges, excellent grading in the contrast and a beautiful balance in the colouring. The sound is similarly brilliant, recorded at wapping bitrates with superb fidelity, clarity and definition that brings alive the Maxwell Davies score and enables the vocal elements of the performances to live like never before.

Excellent! More amped now than five cups of coffee could get me.

Gosh that photo does look good.

Especially considering that just five months ago it would look like a practical joke.

Nice manicure job too.

I've just read the booklet for the first time and, as expected, the Craig Lapper piece is the goldmine here. It's seven pages long (six and a half of full text), and it fully lives up to advance billing, since it constitutes by far the most detailed account of the censorship of The Devils that I've ever read.

He doesn't just describe each cut in detail, but also who requested its removal - the film was formally submitted to the BBFC on 9 February 1971 (Russell having already had informal talks with the BBFC's John Trevelyan), but on 12 February they received a letter from Warner Bros detailing ten mandatory changes that Russell was obliged to make on pain of the film not being distributed at all. Interestingly, Trevelyan didn't take all of these on board - Lapper highlights the differences of opinion as follows:

The extent to which the BBFC's objections coincide with those of the studio is quite striking, although there are some local differences. In particular, the BBFC objected to shots of Grandier burning and the woman dying during the plague sequence, whereas the studio appears not to have had a problem with these. By contrast, the studio asks for reductions in the scene in which the nuns have sex with one another, which does not appear to have troubled the BBFC.

Anyway, it's superb stuff - all sources are dated where possible, allowing a very detailed chronological timeline of a process that ultimately lasted until 19 May. It also reveals at the end that the significantly toned-down US cut gradually became the dominant one around the world - for instance, all but one of the domestic video releases that it's had legally have been of the US cut, the exception (till now) being the 1997 UK VHS release, which was cropped to 16:9, but which is otherwise the same version as the one on this DVD.

MichaelB wrote:...the exception (till now) being the 1997 UK VHS release, which was cropped to 16:9, but which is otherwise the same version as the one on this DVD.

This was the UK VHS version Michael is taking about, aptly brought out as part of Warner's "Maverick Directors" series:


A little off topic: it may be surprising to learn that this wasn't the most controversial release in that series - Warners accidentally released a completely unedited version of Abel Ferrara's Angel of Vengeance (aka Ms 45) and then quickly replaced it with the BBFC edited version when they realised their mistake. Although some copies were still in circulation, resulting in quite the collector's item!

I still have mine - and I'm keeping it, because the R1 DVD was the cut R-rated version!

Second Run were chasing it once upon a time, but I think they hit a brick wall.

MichaelB wrote:I still have mine - and I'm keeping it, because the R1 DVD was the cut R-rated version!
Second Run were chasing it once upon a time, but I think they hit a brick wall.

If we're still talking about Ms. 45 there's a good English-friendly French DVD... uncut I believe...

Back to The Devils, there's some good stuff on the film in Derek Jarman's 1991 memoir Dancing Ledge, much more so than Russell's own autobiography Altered States/A British Picture where Russell barely mentions the film...

Wes Moynihan wrote:If we're still talking about Ms. 45 there's a good English-friendly French DVD... uncut I believe...

Indeed, I bought this from Amazon.fr on its 2008 release and can confirm its uncut. I believe it's called L'ange de La Vengeance.

colinr0380 wrote: This was the UK VHS version Michael is taking about, aptly brought out as part of Warner's "Maverick Directors" series.

Now my UK VHS isn't part of the Maverick series, but is a basic Warners release. It does have the same photo, but on the typical grey background of normal Warners releases.