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Even die-hard fans of Ken Russell's florid style will have a hard time with this one. "Savage Messiah" came at the height of Russell's most creative and prolific period, making it all the more disappointing. The dialog is nothing but non-stop posturing, pontificating and proselytizing. The endless platitudes are as noisy and relentless as the steady din of the artist's subterranean lair. Missing too, are the visual flights of fancy that add color and texture to Russell's films. Only a slight hint of excitement appears in the gaudy Vortex sequences and in Helen Mirren's extended nude scene. Shirley Russell's dependably sharp eye for costume is limited here to drab and dull. Performances are so overstated that the characters never truly come to life, rather, they remain caricatures of non-conformist, artistic types. The film lacks the opposing subtle undercurrent present in Russell's more excessive exercises. Henri Gaudier Brzeska's life story is ripe for a Russell interpretation, but it's oddly mishandled here.
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