Role Rage
There’s something unintentionally funny about this old poster for RAGE, George C Scott’s one directorial effort. Partly it’s the heavy literal-mindedness of illustrating the title with a shot of Scott exploding in psychotic fury. A moody glower would have enlisted the viewer’s imagination and been less redundant.
But, more strikingly, the proportions are somewhat strange. I have attempted to fill in the missing sections of Mr Scott’s anatomy, using my four years of art school training, to figure out just where the original poster artist went wrong.
Ah yes, there we are.
In other news, a new limerick from me is up at Limerwrecks, celebrating the 100th birthday of Bernard Herrmann.
July 1, 2011 at 10:57 am
I’ve just written a feature on Bernard Herrmann over at http://wellreadundead.com if you’re interested :)
July 1, 2011 at 2:40 pm
SO many films called “Rage”!
July 1, 2011 at 3:30 pm
Great stuff! It has been years since I have seen RAGE, but I remember it being mildly interesting. Actually, he directed another feature THE SAVAGE IS LOOSE (1974), which starred him and his second wife Trish Van Devere as a couple shipwrecked on an island with their young son. When the young son grows into manhood, an incestuous sexual rivalry starts forming over the wife-mother! It is definitely one of those “shake your head” storylines that the ’70s was so good at supplying audiences with. If I remember right, the film was made independently by Scott, and I think he lost a ton of money on it–hence one of the reasons why he was making so many bad films during that period.
July 1, 2011 at 3:35 pm
Scott directed another theatrical picture in 1974 called “The Savage Is Loose” where he did two things you should never do: finance the film yourself and advertise you’ll refund admission if you don’t like the film.
July 1, 2011 at 3:45 pm
Someone who was not me (darn it), said when he saw the payoff of this film, “He’s dying like a bug that got sprayed with Raid!”.
July 1, 2011 at 4:21 pm
For some reason, I misread the tag line as “On a rampage, for NO good reason”. Which sounds to me like George C. Scott’s normal acting setting.
July 1, 2011 at 5:04 pm
Art school pays off at last. He looks like one of those horrible talking babies so beloved in commercials today.
July 1, 2011 at 6:46 pm
Of all the films with “Rage” as an alternative title, “Perker” looks to me like the one that should have gone with it as first choice.
I love George’s acting, but I have to admit he was something of a belter. But very good at waking up, smoking, and harumphing.
As for funding himself and offering refunds, it ties in with his painful integrity, as shown in his refusal of an Oscar, which seriously hurt his career I think. It IS a “self-congratulatory meat parade,” but probably best treated as a nice token of appreciation and an opportunity to further oneself, rather than as something to take a stand against. It’s not that big a deal, or shouldn’t be.
July 1, 2011 at 6:51 pm
Thanks Jon and Chris, sorry your comments didn’t appear right away.
July 1, 2011 at 10:05 pm
Fascinating biographical info on Scott’s Savage is Loose co-star, John David Carson
Note Carson’s first wife.
July 1, 2011 at 11:10 pm
Good Lord!
The Reagan tell-all assassination theory has appeal.
“All governments commit murders,” said no less a person than Gordon Liddy, in Alan Rudolph’s Return Engagement.
By a very weird coincidence I just purchased 2nd hand The Hollywood Murder Casebook by Michael Munn. Profiles on William Desmond Taylor, Thelma Todd, Ramon Novarro et al, but also Marilyn Monroe, which seems far from cut and dried to me.
July 2, 2011 at 9:44 am
ha!
July 3, 2011 at 11:16 pm
Please, more poster adjustments. That is hilarious.
My favourite George C Scott acting moment is his knuckle bite to denote fear (or is it suppression of anger?) in Exorcist III.
And if you see Mr Celluloid Tongue say hello for me and tell him that the weather in Melbourne is pure dreich.
July 4, 2011 at 1:25 am
AH, too late, I think he’s away tomorrow. He and Angela have had a fantastic bout of weather the last two days though!
I love George in E3. He’s what I’d like a detective to be.