The Ken Russell Collection: The Great Passions (DVD + Blu-ray)

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THE KEN RUSSELL COLLECTION: THE GREAT PASSIONS (Dual Format Edition) Three films by Ken Russell A Dual Format Edition collection bringing together the career defining work of Ken Russell at the BBC. Russell's work during the sixties for award-winning arts documentary series Monitor and Omnibus were critically-accled and often seen as a high point in his filmmaking. The collection opens with Always on Sunday (1965) a dramatized examination of the painter Henri Rousseau. The combination of Russell reuniting with Melvyn Bragg and Oliver Reed and Russell's infectious love of the film's subject results in a film which is illuminating in every frame. Isadora: The Biggest Dancer in the World (1966), a study of the outrageous American dancer, Isadora Duncan, starring Vivian Pickles as the dancer whose obsession with the importance of art and complete disdain for decorum chimes perfectly with Russell's own sensibility. Last of the TV dramas is Dante's Inferno (1967) which tells of the complex relationship between the 19th century artist and poet, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and his model Elizabeth Siddal. The films in this collection have been remastered to High Definition, and are presented on Blu-ray for the very first time. Special features * Presented in both High Definition and Standard Definition * Michael Bradsell Interview (2015, 18 mins): the film editor talks about working with Ken Russell * Late Night Line Up: Russell at Work (Ian Keill, 1966, 31 mins): documentary during the making of Isadora * Brian Hoyle audio commentary for Always on Sunday * Paul Sutton audio commentary for Isadora * Brian Hoyle audio commentary for Dante's Inferno * The Paul Sutton Tapes: alternative audio track to Isadora: comprising interviews which Paul Sutton conducted with the cast and crew between 2008 and 2012 * Illustrated booklet featuring new essays by John Wyver, Kevin Jackson, Christophe Van Eecke, Brian Hoyle, Paul Sutton and Michael Brooke, and full credits UK | 1965-1967 | black and white | English with optional hard-of-hearing subtitles | 198 minutes | original aspect ratio 1.33:1 1 x BD50: 1080, 50i, LPCM 2.0 audio (48kHz/16-bit) | 2 x DVD9: PAL, 25fps, Dolby Digital 2.0 audio (320kbps)