reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP (10/28/84)
Ken Russell has always liked to outrage. He's been at it
for years. One might think that he would have run out of ways to
offend people by now, but he's still going strong. He was only
mildly controversial in his last film, "Altered States" (the best
he could do was a little light drug and sex stuff, but he did
manage to make waves by annoying the screenwriter, Paddy Chayef-
sky, so much that Chayefsky removed his name from the film).
Russell is back in the old "Women in Love" and "The Devils" form.
He's got them walking out of "Crimes of Passion" outraged, just
the way he likes it.
Russell manages this feat by a combination of explicit sexu-
al scenes and what may be the most foul language ever heard on
the screen. The latter is made even more shocking by the way
it's used, intermixed with Bible spoutings. Russell throws in a
little Grand Guignol, since he isn't really comfortable making a
film without it, and voila! Something to offend almost every-
body.
"Crimes of Passion" is about love and sex, and particularly
about those who have problems with them. Well, that's most of
us, but Russell isn't interested in slight confusions and little
hurts. We're talking *real* problems here. The central charac-
ter, played by Kathleen Turner, is a glacially repressed fashion
designer by day, and a hooker by night. Anthony Perkins, playing
a crazed street preacher, is uncertain whether he wants to save
Turner, screw her, or kill her. Maybe all three. By contrast,
John Laughlin's character is well off. He's just stuck in a mar-
riage without true love and has fallen for Turner, who can only
relate to men as tricks.
The plot concerns Laughlin's encounter with Turner, initiat-
ed when he takes a night job as a private eye, spying on her to
see if she's selling industrial secrets. He discovers that she
is doing something far more unlikely. The straightlaced designer
who freezes when she talks to men becomes China Blue, a street-
walker, by night. China Blue will perform any man's fantasy, for
a price, and is always in control. Laughlin is in the process of
discovering that his wife doesn't really enjoy sex with him, or
for that matter, anything else they do together. He finds out
that what he really wants is Turner. But does he want China Blue
or the full woman, who is so schizophrenically split? Can he
bring the halves together?
Meanwhile, Anthony Perkins waits in the wings, playing a
deranged, self-proclaimed preacher. His sermons are the height
of weirdness, as fire and brimstone unexpectedly gives way to
sexual fantasy expressed in the most explicit terms. These
speeches are one of the most fascinating things about the film,
and Perkins delivers them brilliantly. Of course, we know from
the moment we first lay eyes on him that this preacher is crazy.
After all, he's being played by Anthony Perkins, and screen con-
vention states that street preachers are always crazy.
Eventually, the strange story begins to take some conven-
tional turns, which is rather a pity. In the end, there are no
great surprises. Barry Sandler's inability to find a suit-
able ending is disappointing, but the dialog he has written is
excellent throughout and the situations have a strong central in-
terest. Ken Russell's direction is also fine, particularly in
his handling of the actors. Perkins' casting removed any chance
of true suspense, but he plays the role so well that one can't
fault that. Laughlin is good as a self described Boy Scout who
suddenly finds himself taking a trip into the bizarre. The real
acting honors go to Kathleen Turner, though. She takes incredible
chances, and does things that many actresses would be unwilling
to do. Her character, while always interesting, is more pitiable
than admirable, and Turner does not try to portray her as just a
good girl gone wrong. She has major problems, and great confu-
sions. This role confirms Turner as one of the most important
actresses in Hollywood.
"Crimes of Passion" is also well supported by its cinemato-
grapher, who gives the film an appropriately sleazy look in
places, yet manages to show the beauty in even cheap, neon-lit
hotel rooms. Any cinematographer who can avoid the pitfall of
making inappropriately pretty pictures deserves praise. Making
pictures which are simultaneously garish and beautiful is an ac-
complishment. I fear I do not have his name available, but who-
ever he is, he did a good job. Not so Rick Wakeman, who com-
posed, or rather plagiarized, the score. The soundtrack is an
electronic trashing of Dvorak's New World Symphony, with three or
four of its themes beaten relentlessly into the ground. Dvorak isn't
credited, which, under the circumstances, is the way he would
have wanted it. Wakeman is lucky that he already has a reputa-
tion. If this were his first score, he would never get a chance
to compose another.
"Crimes of Passion" is definitely for adults only, R rating
or no. Russell fought many battles and made many cuts to prevent
an X rating, but what remains is still far more erotic than al-
most any other Hollywood film ever made. I think that the film
got its rating just because the MPAA rating board was tired of
fighting. I detected at least one place where an obscenity had
been looped out, but, considering what was left, cleaning the
film up this way was like putting out a fire with an eyedropper.
Those offended by explicit sexual scenes, or by explicit sexual
talk, or especially by the juxtaposition of both with religion,
would do well to avoid this film. "Crimes of Passion" is defin-
itely not for all tastes, and I expect that many will disagree
with my assessment, but I liked it. It has some, though perhaps
not enough, courage, and the filmmakers are willing to address
issues that many people wouldn't even talk about in private. The
execution doesn't match the intentions, but, considering how am-
bitious the intentions were, that may have been too much to ask.
--
Peter Reiher
reiher@ucla-cs.arpa
{...ihnp4,ucbvax,sdcrdcf}!ucla-cs!reiher