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Ken Russell, one of my favorite directors, is such a excessive filmmaker that some of his movies fall victim to his own style (Gothic [1986]). OR they take on such an aura of their own bizarreness that they become a masterful spectacle to behold (The Devils [1971]). Lisztomania falls into the latter category, and it proves to be one of his most enjoyable films. As can be said about most of Russell's films, it is not clear whether or not he was sane while making it. But the basic premise, that Franz Lizt (Roger Daltrey) was the "rock star" of his time, is an original and interesting idea. Many have complained of Roger Daltrey's acting, but in a movie this campy (and having recently viewed Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith), his performance is not only adequate, but actually quite good.This is one of those movies that has everything. Classical music, rock-and-roll, fantasy, hallucinations, vampires, Frankenstein, nudity, sex, rape, castration, a giant penis, and Ringo Starr as the pope. Some of these scenes are actually quite breathtaking. Liszt's arrival at the queen's palace recall's Ivan the Terrible and the fantasy sequences are equally good. The best scene in the movie is a long, drawn out fantasy interlude that is essentially an homage to Charlie Chaplin's "The Gold Rush". It is a clear sign of Russell's love for the medium of film in general.As with most of Russell's movies, the sudden changes in tone can often be unsettling. The film goes from a musical to a vampire flick, and from lurid pornography to comedy in the drop of a hat. Many of the special effects (such as the spaceship at the end) are intentionally hokey, and the rock music is unbelievably dated, but this actually makes it a more enjoyable experience. The movie is safely sealed in its own time capsule (there is no doubt in my mind that a film like this would never get made today, at least not on the same kind of budget). Ken Russell was one of the most celebrated art-house directors when Lisztomania came out. The movie proved to be critic-proof, but it probably could not be described as "successful". Sadly, after the failure of Valentino (1977), Russell started a slow descent into obscurity. Altered States (1980) proved to be a success, but he refused to do any more science-fiction thereafter. Most of his 80's films were increasingly excessive, but none of them reached the enjoyably loony levels of Lisztomania.
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