'The Music Lovers' - by Ken Russell (Released)

Author: Jonno
Date: 17-Jul-2006, 9:55 AM

Author: Jonno
Time: 17-Jul-2006 9:55 AM (Edited)
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I realise this might be a little outside the realm of this forum’s particular taste, but here goes anyway:

I’ve been hunting high and low for a viewable copy of The Music Lovers, the 1971 Tchaikovsky biopic. So far I have only found reference to a US laserdisc and a rental VHS, both of which sell for silly prices on Amazon/Ebay.

No-one appears to have released any kind of fan release either, going by my searches (is this even the sort of film that has fans…? ) so I just thought I’d check here to see if anyone has it buried in their library, and might be prepared to resurrect it for a combined preservation effort? It would certainly seem that there’s a healthy demand for it (£40 for a VHS? Jeesh…)

Thanks for any input.

Author: pupil
Time: 17-Jul-2006 12:26 PM
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Hell yes, Ken Russell is amazing, I would love to see a "The Music Lovers" preservation. I'm still checking regularly the iMDB boards for any news of "The Devils" finally making it to DVD, as has been promised for years now! A HQ preservation of "The Devils" as well would make me very happy

www.bardothodol.net

Author: That Clever Shark
Time: 18-Jul-2006 8:15 AM
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I was positive that The Devils got a DVD release over here (the UK), but I've just checked Amazon and can't find anything. I remember they showed the 'complete' (i.e. uncensored) version on Channel 4 a few years ago and they also had this documentary with reminiscences from the actors. It's definitely got a following over here though, so I suspect that a proper DVD will only be a matter of time.

As far as The Music Lovers is concerned, I'm way impressed that anyone else has actually seen it! I think it's probably Russell's most successful music biopic (Mahler was tolerable, Lisztomania was not). I assume that MGM still own the rights to this film and just haven't gotten around to releasing it yet.

I am continually amazed by the films which have managed to fall through the cracks in the transition from video to DVD.

Author: Jonno
Time: 26-Jul-2006 1:24 PM
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Well, I managed to order a VHS copy on Marketplace for a not-entirely-offensive price, so once I've checked the quality I'll set about a transfer of some sort.

Doubt it's worth torrenting, but if anyone fancies a copy I can get some posted!