Women in Love (1969) – Film Review

Director: Ken Russell
Cast: Alan Bates, Oliver Reed, Glenda Jackson
Certificate: 15

By Sarah Morgan

Whether you love or loathe his work, one thing is for sure – Ken Russell never made a dull movie.

Yes, there were several low points during his career, but there were some incredibly high ones too, with Women in Love showing him at the peak of his powers.

Before making it, he had been behind several key documentaries in the BBC’s Monitor strand, but had limited big-screen experience, having made his debut with the almost forgotten comedy French Dressing, which he followed with the third Harry Palmer movie, Billion Dollar Brain.

“Uniformly excellent”

Women in Love really put him on the map, gaining Russell an Oscar nomination as Best Director (he missed out to Franklin J Schaffner for Patton). And as would be the case with many of his later films, it featured a controversial few minutes that threatened to overshadow the entire project, namely the nude wrestling scene between Alan Bates and Oliver Reed.

It was a groundbreaking moment in a mainstream movie, but now, almost 60 years on, it seems entirely natural to the plot, and simply just one moment in a tale packed with memorable scenes.

Based on DH Lawrence’s novel of the same name and set in 1920s Nottinghamshire, it sees Bates (looking not unlike Lawrence thanks to a bushy beard) and Reed play best friends Rupert Birkin and Gerald Crich, whose lives become entwined with those of sisters Gudrun (Glenda Jackson) and Ursula (Jennie Linden) Brangwen.

Although they live in a working-class town whose male population mostly works at the local coal mine (which is owned by Gerald’s family), the quartet are bohemian in outlook, something that may or may not bring them happiness in their personal relationships.

All four members of the cast are uniformly excellent, including Reed, who had a tendency to deliver, shall we say, overblown performances. However, he could be tamed by a strong director, such as Russell, with whom he had a close personal as well as professional relationship.

However, it was Jackson who won an Oscar for her role as the free-spirited Gudrun; she is electric and you can’t keep your eyes off her whenever she’s on screen.

“Extraordinary shots”

The supporting cast is impressive too, with the likes of Eleanor Bron, Christopher Gable, Michael Gough and a young Phoebe Nicholls (billed as Sarah Nicholls) all popping up.

Billy Williams’s cinematography is a joy to watch, while Russell’s then-wife Shirley designed the sumptuous costumes.

Although all involved are at the very peak of their powers, this remains indisputably a Ken Russell film; look out for some extraordinary shots, including those involving Rupert and Gerald discussing the nature of love, in which the former’s possibly bisexual nature is revealed in a mirror image – wonderful stuff!

Special features include an interview with Shirley and Ken Russell’s son Alexander, Russell’s idiosyncratic documentary about his own life and career, and a short but fascinating film in which Jackson explains her working process.