Red Shift

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MichaelB
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Red Shift

#1 Post by MichaelB » Tue May 13, 2014 9:28 am

A classic 1978 BBC Play for Today, directed by John Mackenzie (The Long Good Friday) and adapted by Alan Garner (The Owl Service) from his own fantasy novel.


Out in September.

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GaryC
Joined: Fri Mar 28, 2008 3:56 pm
Location: Aldershot, Hampshire, UK

Re: Red Shift

#2 Post by GaryC » Tue May 13, 2014 1:53 pm

I remember this being on in 1978 in its only broadcast but as it was post-watershed I didn't get to see it until a few years ago at the BFI Mediatheque. It's a pretty good adaptation of a difficult book (one I've read several times).

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Paul Moran
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:06 pm
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Re: Red Shift

#3 Post by Paul Moran » Tue May 13, 2014 6:22 pm

GaryC wrote:.... It's a pretty good adaptation of a difficult book....
Difficult indeed! I failed completely in my attempts, after the first reading, to decode the encoded message at the end of the book. Many years later, after a re-reading, I found a detailed explanation, and decoding, on an Australian site devoted to Alan Garner. (No doubt there are dozens more explanations out there, but I only found the one, googling for Lewis Carroll's code.) I don't think I ever saw the TV version, but this will be going on my wants list - together with The Changes, and Out of the Unknown.

Update: I made a hard copy of the explanation etc. at the time, of course, but I had long since lost the web address. Surprisingly, though, it still comes out top in a google search for "lewis carroll's code". So, in case it's of any use to others, here it is.
Last edited by Paul Moran on Thu May 15, 2014 8:24 am, edited 1 time in total.

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warren oates
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 12:16 pm

Re: Red Shift

#4 Post by warren oates » Tue May 13, 2014 6:30 pm

For those in the U.S. there's a nice new New York Review of Books edition of this. Fascinated by the concept, I snagged a copy of this printing when it came out a few years ago. This release of the film, which I'll almost certainly blind buy, will be the perfect opportunity to finally make myself read it.

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MichaelB
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Re: Red Shift

#5 Post by MichaelB » Tue Sep 16, 2014 5:22 am

Full specs announced:[quote]Red Shift
A film by Alan Garner and John Mackenzie

Directed by John Mackenzie (The Long Good Friday, Just Another Saturday), this acclaimed and long-unseen BBC TV Play for Today from 1978 is adapted by Alan Garner (The Owl Service) from his own complex and enthralling sci-fi fantasy novel. It will be released on DVD for the first time on 13 October 2014 as part of the BFI’s SCI-FI: DAYS OF FEAR AND WONDER, a 3-month nationwide celebration of Sci-Fi film and TV.

Red Shift takes the viewer on a beguiling voyage through English history, spanning three distinct time periods: Roman Britain, the English Civil War and 1970s modern day. Garner’s story follows three troubled young men, Tom, Thomas and Macey, who occupy these different eras and are haunted by shared visions. They are also linked by a common location (Mow Cop in south Cheshire) and by the discovery of a mystical talisman: an ancient axe-head.

Exploring themes of mysticism, folklore and geography that are common in Alan Garner’s fantasy novels, Red Shift is a uniquely compelling Play for Today from the golden age of BBC drama.

Alan Garner has contributed a new essay to the accompanying booklet.

Special features
· Brand new High Definition transfer
· One Pair of Eyes: Alan Garner – All Systems Go (Lawrence Moore, 1972,
40 mins): an experimental, autobiographical documentary presented by Alan Garner
· Interview with 1st Assistant Director Bob Jacobs and Film Editor Oliver White (2013, 5 mins)
· Spirit of Cheshire (Kevin Marsland, 1980, 20 mins): Michael Hordern voices a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost on a journey to several Cheshire landmarks and tourist attractions
· Illustrated booklet with extensive credits and newly commissioned essays from David Rolinson, Alan Garner, Michael Brooke, Paul Vanezis and Sergio Angelini

Product details
RRP: £19.99 / cat. no. BFIV2007 / Cert 12
UK / 1978 / colour / English language, with optional hard-of-hearing subtitles / 84 mins /
Original aspect ratio 1.33:1 / DVD9 / Dolby Digital 1.0 mono audio (192 kbps)[/quote[

Zobalob
Joined: Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:34 pm
Location: Scotland

Re: Red Shift

#6 Post by Zobalob » Fri Sep 26, 2014 10:07 am

I'm looking forward to this, didn't even know of it's existence. It's from the days before video recorders were prevalent so if you missed something, it was gone. Back then, most evenings found me in the pub or out somewhere, so there are a lot of interesting programmes that I must have missed. I should still have a dog-eared paperback of the novel somewhere, must dig it out..

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