Peter Whitehead and the Sixties

Synopsis

Filmmaker Peter Whitehead was at the heart of Swinging London, chronicling the youth explosion, the burgeoning popular music scene and the counterculture of the 1960s. Two of his films are now released for the first time; WHOLLY COMMUNION (1965) and BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT (1967). These two films, together with 91 minutes of additional material including a new interview with Peter, provide a fascinating document of the radical, experimental, literary and theatrical scenes of 60s London.

On 11 June 1965, the Royal Albert Hall played host to a slew of American and European beat poets for an extraordinary impromptu event - the International Poetry Incarnation - that arguably marked the birth of London’s gestating counterculture. Cast in the role of historian, as a man-on-the-scene, and massively elevating his limited resources, Whitehead constructed the extraordinary WHOLY COMMUNION from the unfolding circus. As Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gregory Corso, Harry Fainlight, Alexander Trocchi and others took to the stage, Whitehead confidently wandered with his borrowed camera, creating a participatory and anarchic film that is as much a landmark as the event itself, and launched his career.

Following this first success, Whitehead was invited to film a controversial new play, US, by radical theatre director Peter Brook. Building on the provocative question of Britain’s relationship to America during the Vietnam War, Whitehead pushed the issue of complicity further, challenging the relationship between the actors - including a young Glenda Jackson - and their performances. Steadfast and provocative in its consideration of international relations and war, BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT has troubling relevance to the current political climate.

DVD extras: specially commissioned interview with Peter Whitehead - for which he returns to the Soho flat he once lived in (44 mins); JEANETTA COCHRANE (1967), Whitehead’s rarely seen experimental short, featuring music from Pink Floyd; footage from the George Devine Memorial Plays Performances at The Old Vic featuring Laurence Olivier, Alec Guinness and Albert Finney; footage of Vanessa Redgrave at the Royal Albert Hall (1966)

The DVD also contains an 18-page illustrated booklet with an essay by William Fowler, Curator of Artists’ Moving Image, BFI National Archive, biography of Peter Whitehead, notes on the extras and credits.

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Year of release

2007

Year of production

1965 1967

Subjects

Social Studies; Film studies

Keywords

social history; counter-culture; political issues; 1960s

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 2 PAL

Price

£14.99

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

98 minutes

Year

2007

Sections

Title

Wholly Communion

Synopsis

On 11 June 1965, the Royal Albert Hall played host to a slew of American and European beat poets for an extraordinary impromptu event - the International Poetry Incarnation - that arguably marked the birth of London’s gestating counterculture. Cast in the role of historian, as a man-on-the-scene, and massively elevating his limited resources, Whitehead constructed the extraordinary Wholly Communion from the unfolding circus. As Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gregory Corso, Harry Fainlight, Alexander Trocchi and others took to the stage, Whitehead confidently wandered with his borrowed camera, creating a participatory and anarchic film that is as much a landmark as the event itself, and launched his career.

Duration

33 mins

Title

Benefit of the Doubt (US)

Synopsis

BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT is a 1967 documentary on Peter Brook’s anti-Vietnam protest play,with the Royal Shakespeare Company, known under the title US. It was filmed at London’s Aldwych Theatre. Whitehead pushed the issue of complicity further, challenging the relationship between the actors and their performances. It features Peter Brook, Michael Kustow, Michael Williams and a young Glenda Jackson

Duration

60 mins

Distributor

Name

BFI Video

Email

video.films@bfi.org.uk

Web

http://www.bfi.org.uk External site opens in new window

Phone

020 7957 8957

Fax

020 7957 8968

Address

21 Stephen Street
London
W1T 1LN

 

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