Flipside 023: Nightbirds

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antnield
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Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#1 Post by antnield » Thu Nov 10, 2011 3:36 pm

Nightbirds

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While living rough on the streets of London’s East End, a young man, Dink (Milligan regular Berwick Kaler - Coronation Street, Red Riding), encounters the beautiful and mysterious Dee (Julie Shaw - The Big Switch). Concerned for Dink’s welfare, she invites him to stay with her and get off the streets. The two soon develop a curious relationship which oscillates, often without warning, between sexual intimacy and raging jealousy. As tenderness gives way to cruelty, they become consumed by darkness and their relationship spirals out of control.

Extras
- Presented in both High Definition and Standard Definition.
- Newly mastered from the only surviving print element, under the supervision of filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn.
- The Body Beneath (Andy Milligan, 1970, 77 minutes): Milligan’s second British-shot feature is a ghoulish horror in which a young woman comes to visit her distant relative the Reverend Algernon Ford, only to discover that she is descended from a long line of vampires.
- Extensive illustrated booklet with newly-commissioned essays by Milligan biographer Jimmy McDonough, film expert Stephen Thrower and filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn; original stills and promotional artwork.

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Duncan Hopper
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Re: Nightbirds

#2 Post by Duncan Hopper » Thu Nov 10, 2011 3:44 pm

antnield wrote:Andy Milligan's London-filmed feature of 1970 get inducted into the Flipside on February 20th.
Wow, now that is a surprise, first Norman J. Warren now Andy Milligan. Flipside are really going down some interesting avenues.

And the BFI putting out an Andy Milligan film on Blu, who'd have guessed that a few years ago?

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Mr. Deltoid
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Re: Nightbirds

#3 Post by Mr. Deltoid » Thu Nov 10, 2011 6:54 pm

Didn't expect this at all! According to the IMDb:
The release version of this film is considered lost; however, a 16mm work print was in the hands of Milligan biographer Jimmy McDonough at the time of the publication of his Milligan biography.

I'm not familiar with Milligan's films, but I have heard of the various myths surrounding the man and he sounds a fascinating character. Looking forward to this!

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colinr0380
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Re: Nightbirds

#4 Post by colinr0380 » Thu Nov 10, 2011 8:25 pm

Don't forget that Flipside released those two films by Pete Walker as well!

Thomas Dukenfield
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Re: Nightbirds

#5 Post by Thomas Dukenfield » Wed Nov 16, 2011 3:38 pm

Mr. Deltoid wrote:Didn't expect this at all! According to the IMDb:
The release version of this film is considered lost; however, a 16mm work print was in the hands of Milligan biographer Jimmy McDonough at the time of the publication of his Milligan biography.
I'm not familiar with Milligan's films, but I have heard of the various myths surrounding the man and he sounds a fascinating character. Looking forward to this!
The 16mm print is technically an answer print and not a work print (which would make it less "rough" than the work print was), and supposedly McDonough sold it to Nicolas Winding Refn (through Ebay!), who is supposedly providing the print for this release.

The movie itself played for one showing in NY and a few showings in London in 1970 and, apart from those screenings and any personal screenings using the answer print owned by Milligan/McDonough/Refn, I don't think it has ever been seen (at least from the info I've gathered). I've seen a trailer for it on one of the Something Weird discs, and it's a modish variation on The Collector.

McDonough's bio of Milligan "The Ghastly One" is a really compelling read. His films tend to be either Genet/Warhol influenced or schlocky horror (usually period horror). His horror films are among the most villified by genre fans, as he is often tagged as a "sub-Ed Wood", or something to that effect, but his dramatic stuff is pretty interesting. This release will probably get him some recognition as something other than a no-budget horror schlockmeister.

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colinr0380
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Re: Nightbirds

#6 Post by colinr0380 » Sun Nov 20, 2011 11:49 am

I have not had a chance to see any of his films yet, but there is a very amusing defence of Milligan's films by Stephen Thrower on the introduction to the trailer for The Ghastly Ones on the Video Nasties: The Definitive Guide set, in which he describes the average Milligan film as being full of extremely bitter talk throughout and featuring rather free mise en scene, to say the least! He also briefly touches on Milligan having worked on a theatrical adaptation of Genet's play The Maids.

Thomas Dukenfield
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Re: Nightbirds

#7 Post by Thomas Dukenfield » Sun Nov 20, 2011 2:32 pm

colinr0380 wrote:he describes the average Milligan film as being full of extremely bitter talk throughout and featuring rather free mise en scene
That's a fitting description.

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MichaelB
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Re: Nightbirds

#8 Post by MichaelB » Sun Nov 20, 2011 3:40 pm

Thomas Dukenfield wrote:McDonough's bio of Milligan "The Ghastly One" is a really compelling read.
...and chunks of it can be read on Amazon - though sadly nothing about Nightbirds.

Thomas Dukenfield
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Re: Nightbirds

#9 Post by Thomas Dukenfield » Sun Nov 20, 2011 5:06 pm

MichaelB wrote:
Thomas Dukenfield wrote:McDonough's bio of Milligan "The Ghastly One" is a really compelling read.
...and chunks of it can be read on Amazon - though sadly nothing about Nightbirds.
I have the book so I can quote it if you want. :D

Portions of the book are excerpts from Milligan's diary, and I remember that at one point he says that he rewatched Nightbirds (maybe sometime in the 80's) and he disliked it and thought it was "juvenile" or something to that extent. Also, a distributor is quoted as calling the movie "too arty" as to why it was pulled from theaters.

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Grand Wazoo
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Re: Nightbirds

#10 Post by Grand Wazoo » Sun Nov 20, 2011 5:22 pm

Having recently begun reading this book I wanted to heep more praise upon it. Energetically written and as engrossing as I'd hoped after having read Mcdonough's fantastic Russ Meyer biography.

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antnield
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Re: Nightbirds

#11 Post by antnield » Mon Nov 21, 2011 4:02 pm

While living rough on the streets of London’s East End, a young man, Dink (Milligan regular Berwick Kaler – Coronation Street, Red Riding), encounters the beautiful and mysterious Dee (Julie Shaw – The Big Switch). Concerned for Dink’s welfare, she invites him to stay with her and get off the streets.
The two soon develop a curious relationship which oscillates, often without warning, between sexual intimacy and raging jealousy. As tenderness gives way to cruelty, they become consumed by darkness and their relationship spirals out of control.

Extra features:

- Presented both in High Definition and Standard Definition
- Newly mastered from the only surviving print element, under the supervision of filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn
- The Body Beneath (Andy Milligan, 1970, 77 mins): Milligan’s second British-shot feature is a ghoulish horror in which a young woman comes to visit her distant relative, the Reverand Algernon Ford, only to discover that she is descended from a long line of vampires
- Extensive illustrated booklet with newly-commissioned essays by Milligan biographer Jimmy McDonough, film expert Stephen Thrower and filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn; original stills and promotional artwork.
Image

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Cronenfly
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Re: Nightbirds

#12 Post by Cronenfly » Sun Dec 18, 2011 4:33 pm

Delayed until May 21.

Bürgermeister
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Re: Nightbirds

#13 Post by Bürgermeister » Fri Jan 20, 2012 1:46 pm

Is there any trailers for this? I had a quick look on youtube and couldn't find anything.

Thomas Dukenfield
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Re: Nightbirds

#14 Post by Thomas Dukenfield » Fri Jan 20, 2012 4:02 pm

Bürgermeister wrote:Is there any trailers for this? I had a quick look on youtube and couldn't find anything.
I don't think an original official trailer exists, but there was a long "trailer" on one of the Something Weird discs that I think was made out of a collection of outtakes or something. I may have it somewhere. If I happen upon it, I'll throw it up on Youtube.

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colinr0380
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Re: Nightbirds

#15 Post by colinr0380 » Fri Jan 20, 2012 7:13 pm

In the meantime here's the trailer for the other Milligan film that will be on this set, The Body Beneath

Thomas Dukenfield
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Re: Nightbirds

#16 Post by Thomas Dukenfield » Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:16 pm

Here is the Something Weird trailer for Nightbirds. My DVD was scratched so I had to try a couple of different ways to finally be able to rip it from the disc. I also had to edit out about 20 seconds of nudity from the trailer. Supposedly, the trailer was constructed from footage that was cut from the only print of the film, so none of this footage may actually be in the movie. Even so, it'll give you an idea of what to expect.

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MichaelB
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Re: Nightbirds

#17 Post by MichaelB » Wed Feb 22, 2012 10:16 am

Confirmed as region-free.

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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#18 Post by MichaelB » Thu Apr 19, 2012 5:39 am

Full specs announced:
Nicolas Winding Refn & BFI Flipside present
Nightbirds
A film by Andy Milligan


The BFI and Nicolas Winding Refn (celebrated director of Drive) have joined forces to bring Nightbirds (1970) – the ‘lost’ film by New York underground filmmaker Andy Milligan (1929-1991) – to DVD and Blu-ray. Previously seen by no more than a handful of people in a print shorn of five minutes’ worth of footage, the film was shot on location in the Spitalfields area of East London in 1968 and never given a significant release anywhere in the world.

Newly mastered from the original 16mm camera element under Nicolas Winding Refn’s supervision, Nightbirds is finally being released on 28 May in a Dual Format Edition on the BFI’s acclaimed Flipside label. This much anticipated release also contains Milligan’s British-shot horror feature The Body Beneath (1970), original trailers, an audio commentary and an extensive booklet.

While living rough on the streets of London’s East End, a young man, Dink (Milligan regular Berwick Kaler – Coronation Street, Red Riding), encounters the beautiful and mysterious Dee (Julie Shaw – The Big Switch). Concerned for Dink’s welfare, she invites him to stay with her. The two soon develop a curious relationship which oscillates, often without warning, between sexual intimacy and raging jealousy. As tenderness gives way to cruelty, they become consumed by darkness and their relationship spirals out of control.

Milligan aficionados have long considered Nightbirds to be a lost film, and the preparation involved in this release has been subject to a number of problems and adventures involving tracking down rare and unique film materials. Fascinated by Milligan’s work since he was young, Nicolas Winding Refn has spent years buying up any Milligan-related items on eBay. When he found that Milligan biographer Jimmy McDonough was selling his collection of the director’s own film prints he bought the lot and, as a long-time fan of BFI Flipside titles, approached the BFI to suggest that Nightbirds and The Body Beneath be included on the label. With Milligan’s own print materials missing some scenes, the BFI has been on a journey much like an archaeological dig to find other elements from which to assemble the most complete and authentic presentations possible.

Nicolas Winding Refn comments: “…when you watch an Andy Milligan movie you’re in no doubt whose film you’re watching. It’s a special quality to have a unique personal style. He was sort of a Douglas Sirk figure: there’s so much subtext in his movies, what you’re seeing is not all that’s going on. First time perception is one thing, but when you get into them, and read more, you begin to realise that these films were made by someone who was very tormented, and also very intelligent, a sensitive man who used film as an art form to express his views on life.”

Newcastle-born Berwick Kaler who plays Dink is nowadays best known for writing, directing and starring as the Dame in one of Britain’s most admired traditional annual pantomimes, at the York Theatre Royal.

Special features
• All content presented in both High Definition and Standard Definition;
• Newly mastered from original 16mm camera elements and surviving 35mm prints, under the supervision of celebrated filmmaker, and Andy Milligan fan, Nicolas Winding Refn;
• Audio commentary with Berwick Kaler (2011): The stalwart of British stage and screen looks back at Nightbirds, and his other four Andy Milligan roles, with film expert Stephen Thrower;
The Body Beneath (Andy Milligan, 1970, colour, 82 mins): Milligan’s second British-shot feature is a ghoulish horror in which a young woman comes to visit her distant relative, the Reverend Algernon Ford, only to discover that she is descended from a long line of vampires;
• Optional dialogue-only soundtrack presentations for both Nightbirds and The Body Beneath;
• Original Nightbirds trailer;
• Original The Body Beneath trailer;
• Extensive illustrated booklet with newly-commissioned essays by filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn, Milligan biographer Jimmy McDonough and film experts Stephen Thrower and Tim Lucas.

RRP: £19.99 / cat. no. BFIB1133 / BFI Flipside no. 023 / Cert 15
UK / 1970 / black and white / 77 mins + 82 mins / original aspect ratio 1.33:1
Disc 1: BD50 / 1080p / 24fps / PCM mono audio (48k/16-bit)
Disc 2: DVD-9 / PAL / Dolby Digital mono audio (320 kbps)

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colinr0380
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#19 Post by colinr0380 » Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:46 pm

Wow, the first Flipside commentary track! I guess that the addition of the commentary and different soundtracks of the films were the reasons for the slight delay in the release.

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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#20 Post by MichaelB » Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:54 pm

colinr0380 wrote:Wow, the first Flipside commentary track! I guess that the addition of the commentary and different soundtracks of the films were the reasons for the slight delay in the release.
As far as I'm aware the delay was caused by a last-ditch attempt at tracking down every usable scrap of material.

Presumably the reference to "16mm camera elements and surviving 35mm prints" means they were successful.

At any rate, I think it's safe to say that this release of Nightbirds will be unimprovably definitive!

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manicsounds
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#21 Post by manicsounds » Fri Apr 20, 2012 8:39 am

Now the coverart says "Nicholas Winding Refn Presents", huh? To get the "Drive" fans interested in it.

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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#22 Post by MichaelB » Fri Apr 20, 2012 8:53 am

manicsounds wrote:Now the coverart says "Nicholas Winding Refn Presents", huh? To get the "Drive" fans interested in it.
I suspect it's more to acknowledge the fact that this release wouldn't have happened without him: it was his idea, he supplied the source materials, and he supervised the transfer-cum-restoration.

Though of course the number of people who've heard of Refn must be several orders of magnitude greater than the number of people who've heard of Andy Milligan, so it's canny marketing too.

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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#23 Post by Thomas Dukenfield » Fri Apr 20, 2012 3:44 pm

The Nightbirds print was up for sale to anyone, so you could argue that Refn "rescued" the movie. It seems to me that a high quality restoration and special edition Blu-ray would have been impossible without someone making it a pet project. Even within the minute realm of Andy Milligan fans, Nightbirds was barely known and never seen except by Jimmy McDonough.

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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#24 Post by MichaelB » Mon May 14, 2012 7:24 am

Part two of Anthony Nield's fascinating Anatomy of a Flipside series explains where the materials for Nightbirds came from - and in passing reveals the reason for the four-month delay to the release mentioned above.

In a nutshell, the BFI was originally planning to work exclusively from Refn's 35mm print, which had some significant problems (not least missing footage) but which was believed at the time to be the only copy available anywhere in the world - but after following up a couple of leads they ended up tracking down the original 16mm film that passed through Milligan's camera! (Though the 35mm print still proved essential, as Anthony's article explains in detail).

So it really is pretty much inconceivable that Nightbirds can look any better than this on a current domestic format.

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colinr0380
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Re: Flipside 023: Nightbirds

#25 Post by colinr0380 » Mon May 14, 2012 12:28 pm

Kudos to Something Weird as well for their assistance, by the sound of it!

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