Ready for Her Close-up
June 04, 2012
Film Info
- United Kingdom
- 1947
- 101 minutes
- 1.33:1
- English
- Spine #93
This explosive work about the conflict between the spirit and the flesh is the epitome of the sensuous style of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. A group of nuns—played by some of Britain’s finest actresses, including Deborah Kerr, Kathleen Byron, and Flora Robson—struggle to establish a convent in the Himalayas, while isolation, extreme weather, altitude, and culture clashes all conspire to drive the well-intentioned missionaries mad. A darkly grand film that won Oscars for Alfred Junge’s art direction and Jack Cardiff’s cinematography , Black Narcissus is one of the greatest achievements by two of cinema’s true visionaries.
Cast
| Sister Clodagh | Deborah Kerr |
| The Young General | Sabu |
| Mr. Dean | David Farrar |
| Sister Philippa | Flora Robson |
| The Old General | Esmond Knight |
| Kanchi | Jean Simmons |
| Sister Ruth | Kathleen Byron |
| Sister Honey | Jenny Laird |
| Sister Briony | Judith Furse |
| Angu Ayah | May Hallatt |
| Joseph Anthony | Eddie Whaley, Jr. |
| Con | Shaun Noble |
| Mother Dorothea | Nancy Roberts |
Credits
| Director | Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger |
| Written, produced, and directed by | Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger |
| Adapted from the novel by | Rumer Godden |
| Photographed in Technicolor by | Jack Cardiff |
| Music and sound score composed and conducted by | Brian Easdale |
| Editing | Reginald Mills |
| Costumes | Hein Heckroth |
| Production design | Alfred Junge |
Disc Features
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer, created with the participation of cinematographer Jack Cardiff and director Michael Powell’s widow, editor Thelma Schoonmaker Powell, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
- Video introduction by filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier
- Audio commentary featuring Powell and director Martin Scorsese
- The Audacious Adventurer, a video piece in which Tavernier discusses the film and Powell
- Profile of “Black Narcissus,” a documentary featuring members of the Archers’ production team
- Painting with Light, a documentary on Cardiff’s Oscar-winning work on Black Narcissus
- Original theatrical trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Kent Jones
New cover by F. Ron Miller
Current Posts
Photo Galleries
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Film Essays
Black Narcissus: Empire of the Senses
By July 20, 2010
“It is the most erotic film that I have ever made,” wrote Michael Powell of Black Narcissus. . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus
By January 29, 2001
When Black Narcissus opened in England in 1947, Great Britain was barely emerging from the . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus
By July 11, 1998
Black Narcissus was the sixth production from that remarkable pair of artists Michael Powell . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus: Empire of the Senses
By July 20, 2010
“It is the most erotic film that I have ever made,” wrote Michael Powell of Black Narcissus. . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus
By January 29, 2001
When Black Narcissus opened in England in 1947, Great Britain was barely emerging from the . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus
By July 11, 1998
Black Narcissus was the sixth production from that remarkable pair of artists Michael Powell . . . Read more »
Photo Galleries
Photo Galleries
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Photo Galleries
Interviews
On Jack Cardiff: An Interview with Cameraman director Craig McCall
May 13, 2011
Craig McCall’s labor of love documentary Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff, a . . . Read more »
Clippings
Celebrating Cardiff
January 19, 2011
British cinematographer Jack Cardiff, who passed away in 2009 at the age of ninety-four, was a . . . Read more »
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Powers’s Picks
December 03, 2010
’Tis the season for DVD gift guides, and critic John Powers is quick out of the gate with a . . . Read more »
News
Cardiff Documentary Opens
September 10, 2010
Starting today, Angelenos should dance their way over to the Laemmle Sunset 5 Theatre in West . . . Read more »
Press Notes
Press Notes: Black Narcissus
July 21, 2010
“The most beautiful Technicolor movie ever made,” writes critic Ty Burr in a Boston Globe . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus: Empire of the Senses
By July 20, 2010
“It is the most erotic film that I have ever made,” wrote Michael Powell of Black Narcissus. . . . Read more »
News
The BFI Celebrates Cardiff’s Career
May 05, 2010
Oscar-winning cinematographer Jack Cardiff, whose ravishing Technicolor compositions graced . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus
By January 29, 2001
When Black Narcissus opened in England in 1947, Great Britain was barely emerging from the . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Black Narcissus
By July 11, 1998
Black Narcissus was the sixth production from that remarkable pair of artists Michael Powell . . . Read more »
