February 24th, 2008
Black Narcissus on BBC radio
Starting tomorrow (Monday 25th), tune into Women’s Hour Drama on BBC Radio 4 to hear the radio version of Black Narcissus. I’ve never read the novel, but Powell and Pressburger’s film version is hugely affecting. It’s a psychological, eerie film about an order of nuns in the Himalayas being thwarted by desire, lack of air and their own imaginations.
TCM has been showing some of the duo’s work in the last couple of weeks including A Matter of Life and Death and The Red Shoes, which along with Black Narcissus were made one after the other from 1946 to 1948. Michael Powell is also well known for the controversial film Peeping Tom.
Part one of Black Narcissus starts tomorrow at 10.45am, with a repeat at 7.45pm. It will then run each day at the same time until Friday February 29th. There’s also listen back facility over on the Women’s Hour website if you miss it.
February 24th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
I absolutely love Black Narcissus (the film). Saw it for the first time when I was but a young fella and it completely blew me away. Deeply creepy and saturated with unnerving (but beautiful) colour.
Must hunt it down and watch it again.
February 24th, 2008 at 8:10 pm
I adore Black Narcissus. Read the book a long long time ago but the film is much more sinister. All the undercurrent of lesbianism and synchronised periods, the use of red is so well done.
February 25th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
Fustar, who’d have thought nuns could be that creepy? It’s such a disturbing film.
Aine, I’m very curious about the book as I wonder how it relates to the film. I listened to part one this morning and thought it worked surprisingly well on radio. Did either of you catch it?
February 25th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
The Red Shoes was made in colour in 1947 and follows a small ballet group as it tours continental Europe. The shoes in the title are a pair of ballet slippers that compel the ballerina to dance herself to death. There is a story within a story in this film which was shot beautifully despite budgetary and technical shortcomings. I showed the video some years ago to a class of adult students who enjoyed it very much.
February 25th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Ah, don’t get me started on Powell and Pressburger! Caught the wonderful Life and Death of Colonel Blimp at the QFT last month as part of a Deborah Kerr season (they also showed Black Narcissus but I’ve seen it several times): the dear Colonel was on a print so old it stuck and melted in the gate - which to begin with I thought was a postmodern special effect…
As well as the biggies you so rightly highlight, Sinéad, I’d recommend their beautiful 1944 film A Canterbury Tale, one of my favourites of theirs, if you don’t know it already. They really were exceptionally prolific and gifted. It’s a shame they split up as neither reached remotely the same heights alone (Peeping Tom effectively ended Powell’s career, and he was reduced to producing duff comedy in Australia like They’re a Weird Mob,); or maybe it’s not, as I gather their later paired stuff, like Tales of Hoffmann and The Scarlet Pimpernel, were over-indulgent and are now swept under the carpet even by fans.
February 25th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Life and Death of Colonel Blimp is indeed superb and very underrated. Kerr is superb in it.
I really enjoy Tales of Hoffmann but it’s not for everyone.
Black Narcissus is superb, I saw a double bill of it and Bergman’s “The Silence” recently. Creeped out beyond belief.