I will watch anything done by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, one of the best directing duos/teams in the history of the cinema. Even their least interesting material still proves worthy of attention.
I have watched a 111-minute long version of GONE TO EARTH, far longer than the 82 minutes in the IMDB entry, which might refer to the US version that ran under the title of "The Wild Heart".
This 111-minute version is a well-constructed film about a beautiful, firm-bodied young woman, Hazel Woodus, who lives in a poor shack in the woods and responds to the urges of her nature, with a father who strangely plays the harp but is rather wild too. Hazel is played by American actress Jennifer Jones, and neither is her accent right nor does she ever seem to belong to those surroundings - that is one of the film's flaws, in my view.
Hazel has various pets, the main one a fox called Foxy. It becomes obvious from the outset that she would never part from that domesticated but wild animal that will attack the chickens in her coop at the slightest opportunity.
At the heart of GONE TO EARTH is an examination of at least three human souls and their vagaries into love and sin: Hazel, the wild young woman whose father wants her married off to the first man who proposes but who has a will of her own and loves more than just one man; John Reddin (played by David Farrar, one of Powell's regular choices for male lead), a self-centered, wild, carnal man riding in a red jacket who just sees Hazel as a female he has to own; and Parson Edward Marston (portrayed by Cyril Cusack), the first to propose and the one who truly loves Hazel, as she realizes after getting a clearer understanding of what Reddin really stands for. Which explains her calling Marston "my soul." Marston is the soul of forgiveness and respect for divine laws, but that narrow path is one of loneliness and incomprehension from the local community, which flows with the latest gossip and backstabbing.
Even if it did not quite satisfy me, I have to admit that the tragic finale is the honest conclusion to this elyptical tale of human souls hankering after love on this wild Earth.
Cinematography by Chris Challis is brilliant, in line with all of Powell's and Pressburger's work. The colors are verily fantastic, the landscapes to die for, the shots of the fox lovingly done. Editing by Reginald Mills does not rate quite as high, but does not compromise.
The script bears a somewhat wayward exploration of the realities of life in a backwater UK town in the late 19th Century - by Powell and Pressburger off the novel by Mary Webb.
No masterpiece, but high art, intelligent cinema. Definitely recommended, particularly if you are a Powell/Pressburger admirer like me. 7/10.
I have watched a 111-minute long version of GONE TO EARTH, far longer than the 82 minutes in the IMDB entry, which might refer to the US version that ran under the title of "The Wild Heart".
This 111-minute version is a well-constructed film about a beautiful, firm-bodied young woman, Hazel Woodus, who lives in a poor shack in the woods and responds to the urges of her nature, with a father who strangely plays the harp but is rather wild too. Hazel is played by American actress Jennifer Jones, and neither is her accent right nor does she ever seem to belong to those surroundings - that is one of the film's flaws, in my view.
Hazel has various pets, the main one a fox called Foxy. It becomes obvious from the outset that she would never part from that domesticated but wild animal that will attack the chickens in her coop at the slightest opportunity.
At the heart of GONE TO EARTH is an examination of at least three human souls and their vagaries into love and sin: Hazel, the wild young woman whose father wants her married off to the first man who proposes but who has a will of her own and loves more than just one man; John Reddin (played by David Farrar, one of Powell's regular choices for male lead), a self-centered, wild, carnal man riding in a red jacket who just sees Hazel as a female he has to own; and Parson Edward Marston (portrayed by Cyril Cusack), the first to propose and the one who truly loves Hazel, as she realizes after getting a clearer understanding of what Reddin really stands for. Which explains her calling Marston "my soul." Marston is the soul of forgiveness and respect for divine laws, but that narrow path is one of loneliness and incomprehension from the local community, which flows with the latest gossip and backstabbing.
Even if it did not quite satisfy me, I have to admit that the tragic finale is the honest conclusion to this elyptical tale of human souls hankering after love on this wild Earth.
Cinematography by Chris Challis is brilliant, in line with all of Powell's and Pressburger's work. The colors are verily fantastic, the landscapes to die for, the shots of the fox lovingly done. Editing by Reginald Mills does not rate quite as high, but does not compromise.
The script bears a somewhat wayward exploration of the realities of life in a backwater UK town in the late 19th Century - by Powell and Pressburger off the novel by Mary Webb.
No masterpiece, but high art, intelligent cinema. Definitely recommended, particularly if you are a Powell/Pressburger admirer like me. 7/10.