Known For
Directing
Born
Jul 03, 1927
Died
Nov 27, 2011
Place of Birth
Southampton, Hampshire, England, UK
Credits
119 titles
Ken Russell
Biography
Henry Kenneth Alfred "Ken" Russell (3 July 1927 – 27 November 2011) was an English film director. He is known for his pioneering work in television and film, and for his controversial style. He has been criticized as being over-obsessed with sexuality and the church. His subject matter is often about famous composers, or based on other works of art which he adapts loosely. Russell began directing for the BBC, where he did creative adaptations of composers' lives which were unusual for the time. He also directed many feature films independently and for studios. He is best known for his Oscar-winning romantic drama Women in Love (1969), the notoriously controversial The Devils (1971), the rock musical Tommy (1975), and the science fiction film Altered States (1980). One noted admirer, British film critic Mark Kermode, attempting to sum up the director's achievement, called Russell; "somebody who proved that British cinema didn't have to be about kitchen-sink realism – it could be every bit as flamboyant as Fellini. He now makes very strange experimental films like Lion's Mouth and Revenge of the Elephant Man, and they are as edgy and out there as the work he made in the 1970s."
Known For
Filmography
Twiggy
(archival footage)
The Who: One Band's Explosive Story
Self (archive footage)
Kitsune
Thanks
Director of Devils
Self
Ken Russell: A Bit of a Devil
Self (archive footage)
The Devils Original on-set footage
Mr. Nice
Russell Miegs
The Aristofrogs
Boudica Bites Back
Roman Senator
A Kitten for Hitler
Santa
10 Best Elgar
Self (archive footage)
Watch the Birdie
Director
The Real Blue Nuns
Self
Trapped Ashes
Dr. Lucy (segment "The Girl with Golden Breasts")
Brothers of the Head
Himself
Charlotte Brontë Enters the Big Brother House
Producer
Colour Me Kubrick
The Man In Nightgown
The Miners' Picnic by Ken Russell
Director
Agatha Christie's Marple
Rev Caleb Dane Calthrop
Revenge of the Elephant Man
100 Greatest Sexy Moments
Self
Celebrity Naked Ambition
Self - Contributor
Hell on Earth: The Desecration & Resurrection of The Devils
Self
Elgar: Fantasy of a Composer on a Bicycle
Narrator (voice)
The Fall of the Louse of Usher
Dr. Calahari
Waking the Dead
Gerry Raistrick
Celebrity Big Brother
Self
The Real Oliver Reed
Self
Lion's Mouth
Ken
Dogboys
Producer
In Search of the English Folk Song
Self
Vem Var Dracula
Self
Mindbender
Director
Tales of Erotica
Mr. Kirsch (segment 'The Insatiable Mrs. Kirsch') (uncredited)
Treasure Island
Director
Empire of the Censors
Self
Music for the Movies: Georges Delerue
Self
The Insatiable Mrs. Kirsch
Mr. Kirsch
Alice in Russialand
Frank Stubbs Promotes
Self
Lady Chatterley
Sir Michael Reid
The Secret Life of Arnold Bax
Sir Arnold Bax
The Mystery of Dr Martinu
Writer
Prisoner of Honor
Director
Whore
Waiter (uncredited)
Road to Mandalay
Self
The Russia House
Walter
The Strange Affliction of Anton Bruckner
Director
Women and Men: Stories of Seduction
Director
Plunder