The Ruling Class (B+ or 3/4 stars)
A schizophrenic with a Messiah complex inherits the position of an English Earl in 'The Ruling Class (directed by Peter Medak), a biting black comedy satire of British society. The film's irreverent tone is established with the disturbingly hysterical death of the 13th Earl of Gurney (Harry Andrews) during a bizarre attempt at erotic asphyxiation. To the horror of the earl's family, the title passes to his mental case son Jack (Peter O'Toole), who has been locked away for 8 yrs. in a sanitarium after claiming to be the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ.
Mad but fairly harmless, Jack is released by his shrink to assume his seat. However, his embrace of Christianity proves incompatible with a position of power in 'normal' society, where love & peace are considered weaknesses, & a somewhat unhinged psychiatrist is called upon to help him adjust to his new lifestyle. Meanwhile, Jack's scheming uncle, Sir Charles (William Mervyn), works on developing a complex plan to trick Jack out of his position. The scheme involves getting his wacko nephew married to his low-class aspiring singer Grace Shelley (Carolyn Seymour) & for the couple to have a male heir so that he can then commit Jack to a mental institution & take over running the manor until the heir comes of age.
Others in the manor include Charles's sex-starved wife Lady Claire (a great Coral Browne), who tries to seduce Jack when it's determined that there's nothing wrong with his ability to perform sex & then she seduces the willing shrink. Things like electroshock therapy, Communists, hangings, flower-power, Jack thinking he's Jack the Ripper, & other such fun-filled nonsense enters the plot. And of course, Sir Charles copious schemes to get rid of Jack go awry & mayhem ensues.
Loaded with idiosyncratic touches (i.e., unexpected outbursts of song & dance), this movie creates an experience nearly as crazed as O'Toole's brilliantly hilarious performance. Quite simply, he's a tour-de-force, here. Versatile, surprising, kinetic, then introverted. Performance for performance ... I actually think that he was more superb than Brando in 'The Godfather'.
Among the many things this film targets are the perceived anarchism of the British aristocracy (portraying them as annoyingly privileged & decadent), British chauvinism, British institutions, upper-class hypocrisy over sex & the elite's ultra-conservatism. And on the craft side of things, the editing, cinematography, period sets (that manor!), costumes, make-up work, & musical score are all stellar. 'The Ruling Class' is a bit overlong (150 minutes), some of the political jokes went over my head, & various scenes go a tad overkill. But most flaws with this movie are redeemed by O'Toole, the sharpness of the satire, the butler's hysterical asides to us (the audience), & particularly during the wonderfully disturbing finale.
Mad but fairly harmless, Jack is released by his shrink to assume his seat. However, his embrace of Christianity proves incompatible with a position of power in 'normal' society, where love & peace are considered weaknesses, & a somewhat unhinged psychiatrist is called upon to help him adjust to his new lifestyle. Meanwhile, Jack's scheming uncle, Sir Charles (William Mervyn), works on developing a complex plan to trick Jack out of his position. The scheme involves getting his wacko nephew married to his low-class aspiring singer Grace Shelley (Carolyn Seymour) & for the couple to have a male heir so that he can then commit Jack to a mental institution & take over running the manor until the heir comes of age.
Others in the manor include Charles's sex-starved wife Lady Claire (a great Coral Browne), who tries to seduce Jack when it's determined that there's nothing wrong with his ability to perform sex & then she seduces the willing shrink. Things like electroshock therapy, Communists, hangings, flower-power, Jack thinking he's Jack the Ripper, & other such fun-filled nonsense enters the plot. And of course, Sir Charles copious schemes to get rid of Jack go awry & mayhem ensues.
Loaded with idiosyncratic touches (i.e., unexpected outbursts of song & dance), this movie creates an experience nearly as crazed as O'Toole's brilliantly hilarious performance. Quite simply, he's a tour-de-force, here. Versatile, surprising, kinetic, then introverted. Performance for performance ... I actually think that he was more superb than Brando in 'The Godfather'.
Among the many things this film targets are the perceived anarchism of the British aristocracy (portraying them as annoyingly privileged & decadent), British chauvinism, British institutions, upper-class hypocrisy over sex & the elite's ultra-conservatism. And on the craft side of things, the editing, cinematography, period sets (that manor!), costumes, make-up work, & musical score are all stellar. 'The Ruling Class' is a bit overlong (150 minutes), some of the political jokes went over my head, & various scenes go a tad overkill. But most flaws with this movie are redeemed by O'Toole, the sharpness of the satire, the butler's hysterical asides to us (the audience), & particularly during the wonderfully disturbing finale.