Bullets 'n' Babes

the edition of Hell on Earth is a modified version from the one broadcast by Channel 4 back in 2002. Because the "rape of Christ" footage couldn't be licensed under any circumstances, that section of the documentary has been removed

bradavon wrote:It's been so long since I've seen it, isn't the "Rape of Christ" footage in the British Theatrical Cut?

bradavon wrote:I didn't know it was Kermode who found the extra/missing/rape of christ footage.

bradavon wrote:They even recorded a commentary.

The basic situation as I understand it is that after literally years of arm-twisting on the BFI's part, Warner Bros finally said "Oh go on then" - but they weren't prepared to license the 2004 version, or indeed the use of the "rape of Christ" scene anywhere else on the DVD (which is why it's had to be removed from the Hell on Earth documentary too, though in compensation additional material has been added). And they were only prepared to supply an SD Digibeta master of the 1971 cinema cut, which ruled out a Blu-ray too - and in any case I don't think they were prepared to sign over the Blu-ray rights.

Even if they had said yes to the 2004 version and an HD release, a Blu-ray might have been problematic since that version has only ever existed on SD Digibeta - the source for all the cinema screenings that it's had. When I saw it at the NFT's biggest screen, it looked pretty great (surprisingly so, given the SD source), but there were telltale video jaggies around sharp edges - of which there were quite a few, thanks to Derek Jarman's angular designs.

It's probably worth emphasising, given the way the word "incomplete" and even "butchered" have been doing the rounds of other forums in reaction to the BFI announcement, that the 1971 British cinema cut was in fact the definitive version between 1971 and 2004 - it's vastly superior to the Warner-mangled and Russell-disowned US version, for instance, even though PAL speedup distorts the differences.

In fact, the full version of the film as Russell originally envisaged it is almost certainly impossible to recreate now, since the final stages of editing were carried out in consultation with both the BBFC (surprisingly sympathetic, but realistic about what was showable at the time) and Warner Bros (hugely unsympathetic, especially in the US). Although everyone was astonished when the "rape of Christ" scene plus two other offcuts turned up out of the blue a decade or so ago, it seems that the other deleted material really has been destroyed - or at least that's the most realistic assumption.

bradavon wrote:The Devils US Cut in it's entirety (I didn't think YouTube allowed video more than 20mins long): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIV_tamelMQ

gasteropod wrote:That's the cut that should be avoided and Ken Russell disowned, why link us such an abomination?

gasteropod wrote:That's the cut that should be avoided and Ken Russell disowned, why link us such an abomination?

Markgway wrote:Mark Kermode is gonna shit a brick.