Melon Farmers Blog

Watching UK Censors

Lina Romay…Star of The Bare Breasted Caged Women Behind Bars dies aged 57

Read more Movie News at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from en.wikipedia.org

lina romayThe beautiful Lina Romay died today from cancer aged 57.

She was born Rosa Maria Almirall Martinez in Barcelona in Barcelona, Spain on 23 June 1954. She often appeared in films directed by her long-time companion Jesus Franco.

Lina Romay began appearing in Jesus Franco’s films from the time they met in 1971, and she has since appeared in over 100 feature films, most of them directed by Franco. The majority of their films together were in the adult porn genre, but she has also starred in many horror, comedy and action/adventure films as well. Among the most famous of her cult horror movies are The Bare Breasted Countess (aka Female Vampire), Jack the Ripper, Exorcisms and Black Masses and Barbed Wire Dolls. Lina Romay has admitted to being an exhibitionist in interviews and many of her x-rated films involved oral sex and lesbianism.

A few of her films from horror related genres:

  • Tender Flesh (1997)
  • Shatter Dead (1994)
  • Faceless (1988)
  • The Treasure of the White Goddess (1983)
  • Revenge in the House of Usher (1982)
  • Mansion Of The Living Dead (1982)
  • Macumba Sexual (1981)
  • Mondo Cannibale (1981)
  • Man Hunter (1980)
  • Greta The Mad Butcher (1977)
  • Jack the Ripper (1976)
  • Doriana Grey (1976)
  • Night of the Skull (1976) aka Night of the Killers
  • Women Behind Bars (1975)
  • Caged Women (1975)
  • Barbed Wire Dolls (1975)
  • Exorcism (1975) aka Exorcisms and Black Masses
  • The Bare Breasted Countess / aka Female Vampire (1973)
  •  Daughter of Dracula (1972)
  • The Erotic Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1972)

25 February, 2012 Posted by | Obituary | | Leave a Comment

Wrestling with the BBFC…Film director Ken Russell dies aged 84

Read more UK News at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from bbc.co.uk
See also article from sbbfc.co.uk

Devils Special DVD Oliver ReedBritish film director Ken Russell, who was Oscar-nominated for his 1969 film Women In Love, has died at the age of 84. His son, Alex, said he died peacefully in his sleep in a hospital on Sunday.

During his career, he became known for his controversial films including Women In Love, which featured Oliver Reed and Alan Bates wrestling nude. He also directed the infamous religious drama The Devils and The Who’s rock opera, Tommy, in 1975.

Russell frequently crossed swords with the film censors at the BBFC who took issue with Billion Dollar Brain, Women in Love, The Devils, and Crimes of Passion.

The Devils

Perhaps a suitable Melon Farming tribute is a summary of Russell’s strength of character in pushing through his outrageous vision for The Devils. He was up against the BBFC, his own distributors and the British establishment.

The Devils was first seen by the BBFC in an unfinished rough cut on 27 January 1971. At around the same time, this rough cut was also shown to senior executives from Warner Brothers, the film’s distributor. Both the BBFC and Warners expressed strong reservations about the strong religious and sexual context of the film, which seemed likely to provoke significant controversy. Warners and the BBFC therefore drew up separate lists of the cuts they would require before the film could be distributed in the UK. Warners were content with their own plus the additional cuts requested by the BBFC and a full list of required changes was forwarded to the director.

The cuts were intended to reduce:

  • (i) the explicitness and duration of certain sexual elements, including an orgy of nuns
  • (ii) elements of violence and gore during an interrogation scene and the final burning of the character played by Oliver Reed
  • (iii) scenes that mixed sexual activity and religion in a potentially inflammatory fashion.

A modified – but still technically unfinished – version of the film was seen again by the BBFC on 8 April 1971, incorporating many (but not all) of the cuts requested by both the BBFC and by Warners. Ken Russell had toned down or removed what had been regarded as the most difficult scenes, including the entire Rape of Christ sequence in which a group of nuns cavort on a crucifix, whilst hoping that the significant reductions he had already made would perhaps allow certain other shots to remain. The BBFC requested further reductions in four sequences. Russell responded by complying fully with three of the cuts but insisted that the fourth additional cut could not be made properly because it would create continuity problems.

On 18 May 1971 the BBFC awarded an X certificate to the cut version of the film. Because of the scale of the changes made to the film (including the deletion of one entire scene) it is difficult to calculate accurately how much was removed from the film between January and May 1971. However, it is safe to say that several minutes were removed.

The resultant version suffered cuts as follows:

  • A scene showing nuns assaulting an effigy of the cross was deleted (approximately 30s)
  • An enema scene loses some details
  • The crushing of Grandier’s legs loses details.
  • Grandier’s tongue torture loses details
  • Shots of a priest being assaulted by nuns after the King’s visit are missing
  • Jeanne masturbating with a chard bone was cut
  • Whippings scenes throughout were removed

A Timely Tribute to Ken Russell. The BFI re-release of his Masterpiece, The Devils

See article from criterionforum.org

After much arm-twisting the BFI has indeed persuaded Warner Bros to let them handle The Devils, and a packed two-disc lovingly-curated special edition will be out next March.

I’ll get the bad news out of the way right now: as already spotted, it’s DVD only, and it’s the 1971 British theatrical cut, not the 2004 restoration. Since BFI DVD Publishing is demonstrably run by Blu-ray evangelists and has a policy of sourcing the longest available version of the films they put out, you probably don’t need to live at 221B Baker Street to work out the reasons for this.

But that really does appear to be all the bad news. I’ve seen the full specs, and it looks like an absolute blinder of a release – and hopefully all will be revealed in a matter of days.

UK 2012 BFI R2 DVD at UK Amazon for release on 19th march 2012

29 November, 2011 Posted by | Obituary | | Leave a Comment

David Hess…Noted for censor baiting performances in The Last House on the Left and The House on the Edge of the Park

Read more Video Nasties News at MelonFarmers.co.uk

Based on article from en.wikipedia.org

House Edge Park David HessThe US music maker and actor, David Hess, has died aged 69.

Interleaved in a long career in the music industry were a few film acting performances that have secured him a place in the Melon farming Hall of Memory.

His first major appearance was as the ultra thug Krug in Wes Craven’s landmark 1972 film, The Last House of the Left. Hess also composed the score.

Hess also played another notable thug in Ruggero Deodato’s 1980 film, The House on the Edge of the Park.

He also appeared in later films by the same directors. He played a villain in Wes Craven’s 1982 Swamp Thing, and appeared in the 1987 slasher, Body Count, for Ruggero Deodato.

9 October, 2011 Posted by | Obituary | , | Leave a Comment

   

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