Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village

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MichaelB
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Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village

#1 Post by MichaelB » Wed Sep 01, 2010 1:36 am

Confirmed as a 2011 release:
Although best known for his celebrated work as editor on Lindsay Anderson's If... and O Lucky Man!, as well as on the acclaimed BBC TV series Ways of Seeing, David Gladwell has rarely been recognised as the director of a number of extraordinary and ground-breaking films.

This Dual Format Edition (DVD + Blu-ray) provides the opportunity to experience Gladwell's unique and compelling 1975 film Requiem for a Village, as well as a selection of his rare short film works - Summer Discord (1955), Miss Thompson Goes Shopping (1958), The Great Steam Fair (1964) and An Untitled Film (1964).

All films on this Dual Format Edition (DVD + Blu-ray) are presented in new HD transfers from original film elements held in the BFI National Archive.
Last edited by MichaelB on Tue Jun 07, 2011 2:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Perkins Cobb
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#2 Post by Perkins Cobb » Sat Sep 04, 2010 9:49 am

Wow, another one with no IMDb entry, as far as I can tell.

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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#3 Post by MichaelB » Fri Apr 22, 2011 5:14 am

This was always a racing certainty given its BFI Production Board origins, but I can now confirm that this release will be region-free.

Nothing
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#4 Post by Nothing » Fri Apr 22, 2011 11:41 pm

Found some screenshots here.

Looks like this should appeal to the same nostalgic provincialism that made the tiresome sleep furiously such a local hit. Smart move from the BFI.

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John Edmond
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#5 Post by John Edmond » Sat Apr 23, 2011 5:02 am

Obviously worrying about the history of rural areas is a no-no. I'm glad you and Weerasethakul can agree on something.

Nothing
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#6 Post by Nothing » Tue Apr 26, 2011 12:24 am

? You're comparing the replacement of old road signs and the possible cancellation of a traveling book rental service with endemic exploitation and a recent history of violent political repression? That strikes me as remarkably racist, but perhaps you'd like to clarify.

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antnield
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#7 Post by antnield » Mon May 23, 2011 2:21 pm

Image

zombeaner
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#8 Post by zombeaner » Mon May 23, 2011 3:00 pm

I've yet to be disappointed in a Flipside film, so this is on my list! Started in on Joanna late last night and I'm really enjoying it so far, though I understand the tone changes significantly in the second half.

Nothing
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#9 Post by Nothing » Tue May 24, 2011 3:20 am

Rated 18 for "sexual violence" - hmm, perhaps this one doesn't sleep furiously afterall...

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antnield
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Re: Flipside: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 1975)

#10 Post by antnield » Tue May 24, 2011 4:40 am

Amazon product description:
REQUIEM FOR A VILLAGE

A Film by David Gladwell

Although best known for his celebrated work as editor on Lindsay Anderson's If.... and O Lucky Man!, as well as on the acclaimed BBC TV series Ways of Seeing, David Gladwell has rarely before been recognised as the director of a collection of extraordinary, ground-breaking films which explore Britain's rural traditions and the undying power of memory. This Dual Format Edition (DVD + Blu-ray) provides the rare opportunity to finally experience Gladwell's lyrical, poetic 1975 film Requiem for a Village, as well as a selection of his rare and striking short film works.

Extra Features:

- Dual Format Edition: includes both the Blu-ray and the DVD of the film and the extras
- A Summer Discord (David Gladwell, 1955, 17 mins)
- Miss Thompson Goes Shopping (David Gladwell, 1958, 23 mins)
- The Great Steam Fair (David Gladwell, 1964, 18 mins)
- An Untitled Film (David Gladwell, 1964, 9 mins)
- Illustrated booklet featuring new sleevenote essay by David Thompson

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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#11 Post by MichaelB » Fri Jun 10, 2011 10:27 am

Full specs announced:
BFI Flipside presents: Requiem for a Village
A film by David Gladwell


David Gladwell is perhaps best-known for his celebrated work as editor on Lindsay Anderson’s If.… and O Lucky Man! Requiem for a Village, along with the four exquisite and startling short films also included in this BFI Flipside Dual Format Edition, reveal him to be an unfairly overlooked director of ground-breaking work.

The idyllic, rural past of a Suffolk village rises to life in Requiem for a Village (1975) through the memories of an old man who tends a country graveyard. With influences that range from the poet TS Eliot to the artist Stanley Spencer, and using real village residents as amateur actors, the film powerfully suggests that history and memory are ever-present in our lives, regardless of the unrelenting drive towards modernisation.

This extraordinary, little-seen film, an archetypal Flipside discovery, is preserved in the BFI National Archive and newly transferred in High Definition.

Writing in the 1975 London Film Festival programme, Lindsay Anderson commented: ‘David Gladwell’s film is an authentic, lyrical pastoral of absolute and obstinate originality – the work of a unique artist… Requiem for a Village is one of that handful of works which prove that the English poetic genius is fully capable – given the right, rare circumstances – of expressing itself in cinema, as it always has in literature and painting.’

Since his wide and accomplished career as a film editor, writer and director, David Gladwell has returned to painting. He enjoyed a residency at Lambeth College in South London in 2004-2005 and currently lives and works in South London.

Special features
• Presented in both High Definition and Standard Definition;
A Summer Discord (David Gladwell, 1955, 17 mins, silent): a visionary drama centred around a young girl’s argument with her mother;
Miss Thompson Goes Shopping (David Gladwell, 1958, 23 mins): a sensitive and inventive portrait of an elderly lady’s shopping trip;
The Great Steam Fair (David Gladwell, Derrick Knight, 1964, 18 mins): a lyrical example of Gladwell’s extensive work as editor and director of documentary shorts;
An Untitled Film (David Gladwell, 1964, 9 mins): an extraordinary piece of film art, exploring the power, beauty and violence contained in a single moment of time;
• 36-page booklet illustrated with Gladwell’s paintings, with essays by Elizabeth Sussex; Rob Young, author of ‘Electric Eden: Unearthing Britain’s Visionary Music’ (2010), and Patrick Russell and William Fowler from the BFI National Archive. David Gladwell himself also contributes an essay.

Release date: 18 July 2011
RRP: £19.99 / cat. no. BFIB1096 / BFI Flipside no. 018 / Cert 18
UK / 1975 / colour / 68 mins / English (optional hard-of-hearing subtitles) / original aspect ratio 1.33:1 / Disc 1: BD50 / 1080p / 24fps/ PCM mono audio (48k/24-bit)
Disc 2: DVD9 / PAL / PCM mono audio (48k/16-bit) (Extras Dolby Digital 320kbps)

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antnield
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#12 Post by antnield » Sat Jul 02, 2011 6:35 pm


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MichaelB
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#13 Post by MichaelB » Sun Jul 03, 2011 7:48 am

An absolutely superb review - I still haven't seen this yet, but I really can't wait.

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John Edmond
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#14 Post by John Edmond » Sun Jul 03, 2011 8:05 am

Yes, even ignoring the rest of the review that Also Available section was above and beyond. I'm eagerly awaiting my pre-order.

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antnield
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#15 Post by antnield » Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:52 am



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zedz
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#17 Post by zedz » Wed Aug 31, 2011 4:06 pm

Requiem for a Village is an intriguing film, but I'm posting here to draw attention to one of the extras, An Untitled Film, which was a gobsmacking surprise.

It's an incredibly great experimental film, predicated on virtuoso slow motion effects and a superb electronic score by the memorably named Ernest Berk (possibly the most appropriate name ever for an experimental composer!), and its nine minutes fully justified my purchase - a cascade of unforgettable images. I expect this film will appear on my 60s list next time around. As a bonus, it boasts an absolutely stunning HD transfer, direct from the original 35mm camera negative (and it shows).

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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#18 Post by Thornycroft » Sat Dec 12, 2015 3:26 am

While watching Requiem for a Village earlier this year I found myself experiencing déjà vu thanks to David Fanshawe's wonderful score, I was sure I'd heard it somewhere before.

It turns out that while there was never an official soundtrack release, much (if not all) of Fanshawe's score was released on a KPM Music Library LP the same year the film came out. The music that accompanies the haunting images of villagers rising from their graves was later prominently featured in, of all things, Last House on Dead End Street.

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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#19 Post by lemoncurry » Wed Dec 23, 2015 6:34 am

Thornycroft wrote:It turns out that while there was never an official soundtrack release, much (if not all) of Fanshawe's score was released on a KPM Music Library LP the same year the film came out.
You don't happen to know the title and/or catalogue number for that KPM album? I'd love to get my hands on that fantastic score.

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Thornycroft
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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#20 Post by Thornycroft » Mon Dec 28, 2015 8:55 pm

lemoncurry wrote:You don't happen to know the title and/or catalogue number for that KPM album? I'd love to get my hands on that fantastic score.
KPM 1152, an album called Sound Odyssey. Here's the discogs page.

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Re: Flipside 018: Requiem for a Village (David Gladwell, 197

#21 Post by lemoncurry » Wed Dec 30, 2015 3:57 am

Thornycroft wrote:
lemoncurry wrote:You don't happen to know the title and/or catalogue number for that KPM album? I'd love to get my hands on that fantastic score.
KPM 1152, an album called Sound Odyssey. Here's the discogs page.
Thanks a lot, much appreciated!

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