Les Diables

Titre original : The Devils

1971
16
1h 51min

NOTE IMDb

7,7/10

19 k

MA NOTE

POPULARITÉ

4 552

205

Dark Comedy Period Drama Biography Drama History

Au 17ème siècle en France, le père Urbain Grandier veut protéger la ville de Loudun contre la corruption du cardinal de Richelieu. L'hystérie survient dans la ville quand il est accusé de so... Tout lireAu 17ème siècle en France, le père Urbain Grandier veut protéger la ville de Loudun contre la corruption du cardinal de Richelieu. L'hystérie survient dans la ville quand il est accusé de sorcellerie par une nonne sexuellement réprimée.Au 17ème siècle en France, le père Urbain Grandier veut protéger la ville de Loudun contre la corruption du cardinal de Richelieu. L'hystérie survient dans la ville quand il est accusé de sorcellerie par une nonne sexuellement réprimée.

Voir les informations de production sur IMDbPro

NOTE IMDb

7,7/10

19 k

MA NOTE

POPULARITÉ

4 552

205

Voir les informations de production sur IMDbPro

Récompenses
- 4 victoires au total

Anecdotes
Derek Jarman's sets are modeled on the sets of Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1927). Ken Russell wanted to avoid the clichéd look of period films and insisted on anachronistic, even futuristic, design. Russell's guidance to Jarman was that it should echo the 'rape in a public toilet' line from the Huxley novel that inspired the film.

Gaffes
Early in the movie when Urbain Grandier (Oliver Reed) is seen grooming his hair. It is a close-up of him supposedly looking at a mirror in the upper left hand corner of the screen, behind the viewer. Obviously there is no mirror as he consistently misses combing the more egregiously messed up parts of his hair and instead repeatedly combs the portions that are already groomed. In fact when he is done, his hair is still messed up.

Citations
Grandier: Don't look at me! Look at your city! If your city is destroyed, your freedom is destroyed also... If you would remain free men, fight. Fight them or become their slaves.

Crédits fous
At the start of the film: "This film is based upon historical fact. The principal characters lived and the major events in the film actually took place."

Versions alternatives
In 2012 the BFI persuaded Warners to allow them to release the film on video in the UK. Warners refused to allow the director's cut at all and would only allow the BFI to release the original 'X' certificate version on DVD. Warners refused permission to allow a hi rez release. The BFI produced a superb DVD transfer for the first time in its proper 2.35:1 ratio. The Channel 4 documentary 'Hell on Earth' was included but the 'Rape of Christ' sequence was removed. They also cut a line of dialogue when one of the actors refers to Warners as a bunch of 'c**ts'. Before this in the USA the 'unrated' version appeared as an upcoming release complete with sleeve art. 24 hours later Warners stopped the release!

Connexions
Featured in Omnibus: Russell's Progress (1971)

Bandes originales
Bourrée d'Avignon
from Secretum musarum (1615)
Music by Nicolas Vallet.
Played as the king's dance in the opening.

Avis des utilisateurs154

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Ken Russell's little known masterpiece

A few movies are so controversial that the Movie industry does their best to kill them off (see Terry Gilliams' "Brazil"). Such was the case with "The Devils" First, to clear a few things up...this did NOT come from a play, nor was it a novel. It is based on Aldous Huxley's painstakingly researched religious history of the famous Loudun exorcisms during the time of Richelieu. The book may be out of print, but my wife found a copy published in 1952 by Chatto & Windus. There are some more recent publications, but this one is lovely, with an engraving of Bishop Urban Grandier(the main character) dating back to 1627. Huxley actually includes original letters, which still exist, written by the participants of this travesty. Much of the dialogue of the film is directly from Huxley. The vision however is uniquely Russell's. When this movie was originally released, it was given an X rating, not due to sex, or even violence, although there is some of each. The plain fact is that the film in its original form is simply overpowering. The Movie Review board thought so! I was fortunate enough to see the original uncut version, rated X at the local art-house upon its release. This film is a shortened version. While still worthwhile, this film absolutely SCREAMS for a Criterion Collection restoration to its original (brilliant) form.