Directing
Ken Russell
EN, FR cinema · 107 credits
Born
3 July 1927
Died
27 November 2011 (aged 84)
Birthplace
Southampton, Hampshire, England, UK
Also known as Alfred Russell · Alf Russell
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. Among his best known works are the Oscar-winning romantic drama Women in Love (1969), the notoriously controversial psychological horror 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
PuzzleFace
as god
Mad Dad
Mad Dad
as Self (archive footage)
Twiggy
as (archival footage)
The Who: One Band's Explosive Story
as Self (archive footage)
Kitsune
Thanks
Ken Russell: A Bit of a Devil
as Self (archive footage)
Mr. Nice
as Russell Miegs
Boudica Bites Back
2009
Boudica Bites Back
as Roman Senator, Director, Screenplay
A Kitten for Hitler
as Santa, Director, Writer
10 Best Elgar
as Self (archive footage)
Trapped Ashes
as Dr. Lucy (segment "The Girl with Golden Breasts"), Director
Brothers of the Head
as Himself
Charlotte Brontë Enters the Big Brother House
2006
Charlotte Brontë Enters the Big Brother House
Producer, Director, Director of Photography, Writer, Choreographer
Colour Me Kubrick
as The Man In Nightgown
Revenge of the Elephant Man
2004
Revenge of the Elephant Man
Actor, Producer, Director, Writer
Celebrity Naked Ambition
as Self - Contributor
The Fall of the Louse of Usher
as Dr. Calahari, Director, Producer, Cinematography, Editor, Writer, Director of Photography
Elgar: Fantasy on a Composer on a Bicycle
as Narrator (voice), Director, Producer, Writer
Lion's Mouth
2000
Lion's Mouth
as Ken, Director, Screenplay
Dogboys
Producer, Director
In Search of the English Folk Song
as Self, Director, Writer
Tales of Erotica
as Mr. Kirsch (segment 'The Insatiable Mrs. Kirsch') (uncredited), Director, Writer
Mindbender
Director, Writer
The Insatiable Mrs. Kirsch
as Mr. Kirsch, Director, Writer
Alice in Russialand
Actor, Director, Writer
Treasure Island
Director, Teleplay
The Secret Life of Arnold Bax
as Sir Arnold Bax, Writer, Director
Whore
as Waiter (uncredited), Director, Screenplay, Camera Operator
Road to Mandalay
1991
Road to Mandalay
as Self, Director, Writer
Prisoner of Honor
Director
The Russia House
as Walter
The Strange Affliction of Anton Bruckner
1990
The Strange Affliction of Anton Bruckner
Director, Writer
A British Picture: Portrait of an Enfant Terrible
Actor, Director, Writer
The Rainbow
Screenplay, Director, Producer
Il Mefistofele
Director
Salome's Last Dance
as Cappadocian, Director, Screenplay
Ken Russell's ABC of British Music
as Himself, Writer, Director
The Lair of the White Worm
as Police Radio (voice) (uncredited), Director, Screenplay, Producer
Gothic
as Tourist, Director
Aria
Director, Writer
Faust
Director
Vaughan Williams: A Symphonic Portrait
as Self, Director, Producer, Writer
Crimes of Passion
Director
The Planets
Director
Altered States
Director
Valentino
as Rex Ingram (uncredited), Director, Screenplay
Tommy
as Cripple (uncredited), Director, Screenplay, Producer
Lisztomania
Director, Screenplay
Mahler
Director, Writer
Savage Messiah
as Passenger getting off train in station (uncredited), Director, Producer
The Devils
Director, Screenplay, Producer
The Boy Friend
Director, Screenplay, Producer
The Music Lovers
Director, Producer
Dance of the Seven Veils
Director, Writer
Women in Love
Director
Song of Summer
as Priest, Director, Writer
Billion Dollar Brain
Director
Dante's Inferno
Director
Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World
as Captain Patterson, Director, Writer
Don’t Shoot the Composer
as Himself, Director, Producer
The Debussy Film
Director, Scenario Writer
Always on Sunday
Director, Scenario Writer, Producer
French Dressing
Director
The Diary of a Nobody
Director, Writer
Bela Bartók
Director, Screenplay
Elgar
Director, Writer
Pop Goes the Easel
Director
The Preservation Man
Director
The Lonely Shore
Director
London Moods
Director
Antonio Gaudí
Director
Prokofiev
Director
A House in Bayswater
Director, Writer
The Light Fantastic
Director
Gordon Jacob
Director
Amelia and the Angel
Director, Story, Cinematography, Writer
Lourdes
1958
Lourdes
Director
Peepshow
1956
Peepshow
Director