Man of Flowers

Man of Flowers
Man of Flowers
Directed by	Paul Cox
Written by	Paul Cox; Bob Ellis;
Produced by	Jane Ballantyne
Starring	Norman Kaye; Alyson Best; Chris Haywood; Sarah Walker;
Cinematography	Yuri Sokol
Edited by	Tim Lewis
Distributed by	International Spectrafilm; Palace Academy Home Video; Roadshow Entertainment;
Release date	1983;
Running time	91 minutes
Country	Australia
Language	English
Budget	A$240,000
Box office	$396,041 (Australia)

Man of Flowers is a 1983 Australian film about an eccentric, reclusive, middle-aged man, Charles Bremer, who enjoys the beauty of art, flowers, music and watching pretty women undress. Werner Herzog has a cameo role as Bremer's father in flashbacks. The film was directed by Paul Cox and was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival.^[2]

Plot

Charles Bremer (Norman Kaye) is a wealthy, reclusive man. He finds erotic satisfaction in the beauty of art, flowers, and a young woman (Alyson Best), who undresses for him. During the undressings he listens to operatic music such as Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor.^[3] Throughout the film, he reads letters he has sent to his mother. His mother had long since died, and the letters, it is later revealed, are addressed to himself.

Cast

Norman Kaye as Charles Bremer
Alyson Best as Lisa
Chris Haywood as David
Sarah Walker as Jane
Julia Blake as Art Teacher
Bob Ellis as Psychiatrist
Barry Dickins as Postman
Patrick Cook as Coppershop Man
Victoria Eagger as Angela
Werner Herzog as The Father
Hilary Kelly as Mother
James Stratford as Young Charles
Eileen Joyce as Aunt
Marianne Baillieu as Aunt
Lirit Bilu as Florist
Juliet Bacskai as Florist
Dawn Klingberg as Cleaning lady
Tony Llewellyn-Jones as Church warden

Production

The idea for the film came out of a discussion between Paul Cox and Chris Haywood where they decided to make a low budget erotic film, along with Haywood's then-girlfriend Alyson Best. Bob Ellis was brought on to work on the script. (Ellis says he spent nine hours on it because Cox didn't want to spend any more time.^[4]) The movie was shot over three weeks.^[1]

Reception

The film was an art house hit around the world. It grossed $396,041 at the box office in Australia,^[5] which is equivalent to $1,045,548 in 2009 dollars.

Awards

Result	Award	Recipients(s)
Winner	Australian Film Institute - Best Actor in Lead Role	Norman Kaye
Winner	Valladolid International Film Festival - Golden Spike Award	Paul Cox
Nominated	Australian Film Institute - Best Achievement in Cinematography	Yuri Sokol
Nominated	Australian Film Institute - Best Director	Paul Cox
Nominated	Australian Film Institute - Best Film	Jane Ballantyne
Nominated	Australian Film Institute - Best Original Screenplay	Paul Cox, Bob Ellis

References

^ ^a ^b David Stratton, The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry, Pan MacMillan, 1990 p124-125
^ "Festival de Cannes: Man of Flowers". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
^ "YouTube". YouTube.
^ Interview with Bob Ellis, 13 August 1996. Retrieved 14 October 2012
^ "Film Victoria - Australian Films at the Australian Box Office" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2010.

External links

Man of Flowers at IMDb
Man of Flowers at Rotten Tomatoes
Man of Flowers at Oz Movies
Article on Man of Flowers at Senses of Cinema 28 November 2009
Man of Flowers at New York Times

[stratton2-1] David Stratton, The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry, Pan MacMillan, 1990 p124-125

[festival-cannes.com-2] "Festival de Cannes: Man of Flowers". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 24 June 2009.

[3] "YouTube". YouTube.

[interview-4] Interview with Bob Ellis, 13 August 1996. Retrieved 14 October 2012

[5] "Film Victoria - Australian Films at the Australian Box Office" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2010.

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