Dateline: Halloween 2008, New York City. Cineastes, libertines, and connoisseurs of the weird all took a break from their revelry to attend a special midnight screening of director Ken Russell’s notorious masterpiece The Devils, with Mr. Russell himself in attendance. The Devils is a difficult-to-classify film, simultaneously a period epic and a shocking exploitation film, which delights in the exploits of some very naughty nuns, but nonetheless features fiery lead performances from Oliver Reed and Vanessa Redgrave and touches upon serious issues of religious hypocrisy, political manipulation, and freedom.

Mr. Russell, who showed up to the event in masquerade, proved to have lost nary a spring in his devious step, providing commentary before and after the film that was bawdy, irascible, and touching. Of particular interest were Russell’s anecdotes regarding the censorship and restoration of the film, its current status in distribution limbo, and his working relationship with legendary avant-garde filmmaker Derek Jarman, who provided the visionary production design for The Devils. We are pleased to provide excerpts from Russell’s comments below. (Note: The transcript has been edited slightly for clarity.)

On the Story

It’s stranger than fiction, but it is a true story. I made up nothing. You may think it’s strange that there are naked nuns in a cathedral pole dancing — there aren’t many poles in the film, are there? They did this carrying on in the cathedral to divert the citizens’ attention. The king and the cardinal (Richelieu) wanted to destroy the city walls because that’s what they were doing all over France, so there would be no opposition to their taking over the whole bloody country. So they had to distract the citizens by putting on this big show in the cathedral three times a day.

On the Cuts

Warner Brothers insisted that we do a great deal of editing. In fact, they told the editor to cut any scene showing pubic hair — which reduced the film to a ten minute short!

There was a big chunk missing from the end (of the print that was screened) — it’s just more of the same but a bit naughtier. I have to thank the nuns, of course. I offered them 100 pounds extra if they agreed to be shaved — all over.

On the Music

I met (composer Peter Maxwell Davies) a couple of years before the film. I was so mad about his music — it’s not “Top of the Pops” or whatever. I had a little money to invest so I paid for a recording of his music. When I got another chance to put his music before the public, I thought there couldn’t be a better person to write the score for the film than Peter. I still think it is a classic of its kind.

On the Lack of DVD Release for The Devils

Warners promised a couple of years ago to release the restored version that was done for a TV broadcast. We’re still waiting. If enough people write Warners, and say “hey, come on, get on with it, get the real version out,” then they may release the full version, which they have. There were a few things missing even from (that version). There was a lovely shot of Murray Melvin masturbating . . .

On His Actors

There are several of my repertory actors in the film. I had five children under the age of seven at one time in the Sixties and Seventies and you can see them growing up from precocious kids to precocious teenagers to . . . middle-aged people. I always try to involve my family and friends in each film. Murray Melvin and most of the cast cropped up in more than one of my films. “Filming can be fun” is one of my mottoes.

On His Recent Projects

I am still making films with family and friends, which is how I started off, and I’m still waiting to pay them. I do give them one thing, which is a bloody good meal with plenty of wine. And I am the chef. So I am still making films on my own. They’re not cut because I pay for them myself. One day, if they make any money, I will pay everyone back. The thing is, they don’t cost much anyway. Hopefully some of these are going to be released soon in America, including Hot Pants, which is three sexy shorts. The first one is called “Revenge of the Elephant Man“. The second one is called “The Mystery of Mata Hari“. The last one is “The Good Ship Venus.” I heard an old sea chantey from one of the ancient mariners. I thought, I’ve got to make a film from this sea chantey, or else it’ll disappear forever. So I did, with family and friends. Does anyone know the chantey? Shall I sing you the first verse?

’Twas on the good ship Venus
My God, you should have seen us
The figurehead was a whore in bed
And the mast the captain’s penis

(laughter and applause)

If we had all night, I'd sing you the remaining 33 verses. (more laughter)

On Derek Jarman’s Work as Production Designer for The Devils

Working with a genius is great fun. We did other work together — he was production designer on another film I did called Savage Messiah. He did an opera with me: The Rake’s Progress. We did it in Turin and we had a lot of fun up there. It was updated from the 18th Century to the Falklands War. Auden, who wrote the scenario, neither he nor Stravinsky cared whether it was updated or put in any time or place. There is a sequence in the opera where there is an auction. The directors have carte blanche to auction anything they’d like, so Derek and I thought it’d be funny to auction a sex doll. (silence) Maybe it wasn’t that funny! (laughter). Anyway, we went ahead with it and told the bloke who runs the Turin Opera. He came up to Derek and I, and said “I love the production, it’s a bit over the top but I have to draw the line with the sex doll.” According to this fellow, there were no sex dolls in Italy. Well, Derek and I said we would walk out and made a great fuss. The director said we could auction the sex doll on one condition. Derek and I asked what condition. He said, on the condition that she wears a pair of knickers. Which made her look far more obscene!

I’m very sorry (about the death of Derek Jarman). He was a great friend of mine and a great artist. I met him almost totally by chance. He was traveling back from a weekend in Paris and was in a carriage with a friend of mine - a lady with a baby, an artist - and he gave up his seat for her. She saw he was toting a big portfolio on his arm. He showed her his work, his drawings. She said, “Hey, Ken Russell’s a friend of mine and he’s looking for a designer for The Devils. You should really show him your work.”

I went to meet him. He lived in a huge warehouse on the waterfront in the East End of London. I climbed up the stairs and there was this big, empty room. There was a figure huddled over a stove, and, of course, it was him.

I only gave him one piece of advice. I remember (Aldous) Huxley (author of the book on which The Devils is based) said that the exorcism of Sister Jeanne is the equivalent of a rape in a public lavatory. Well, all public lavatories in England are tiled, almost exactly like what you see on the screen. But I got that idea anyway, apart from the Huxley quote, from one of my very favorite films — I still think it’s one of the best films I’ve ever seen — Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. The only other influence I will admit to is Jean Cocteau. The first home movie I made was very much influenced by him.

Thanks to Derek and the crew, I don’t think there are many films around that look like The Devils.

The evening ended fittingly with the director leading the audience in a round of applause for Jarman and his other departed collaborators, before taking his own bows. Thanks to the fine folks at the Anthology Film Archives for putting on this truly special event, as well as to Mr. Russell himself.