Review of Russ Meyer`s Up!

Introduction

By 1976 Russ Meyer had created a genre all of his own. Though he relied in part of the (financial) support of other `Producers`, these films were very much his. Writing, Directing, Shooting, and Editing were just some of the areas that Meyer handled during its making, and by all accounts he was very autocratic in the way that he dealt with cast and crew - creating a `campsite` as accommodation during filming and running this surreal production with military precision.

`Up` is perhaps the zaniest, most surreal, of Meyer`s movies containing liberal doses of trademark ultra-violence, well-endowed women and pathetic men. The story is peripheral to the endless stream of Meyer consciousness that mixes the sado-masochistic fantasies of a Hitler look-alike with rape scenes; kung fu styles battles, and (perhaps more than any other movie) plenty of on-screen bonking.

In truth, there`s something here to offend everyone, though, with Meyer, it`s probably better to leave your politically correct sensibilities at the door and just soak up the craziness. After all - the man`s dead now, and this proved to be his penultimate film as the tide of taste changed away from his favour.

Much of the potentially offending content is watered down by Meyer`s use of slap-stick cartoon - everyone here is larger than life, in every conceivable sense of the word! There`s plenty of trademark Meyer - fast cut montage to close-ups of record players and radio sets, extreme angle photography, and, once again, a movie shot mainly in the great outdoors.

Meyer seemed to have an amazing cinematic grasp of how to maximise the saturation of his film stock, with wonderfully vibrant colours throughout.

`Up` is Meyer gently nudging the boundaries that separated out and out porn (which he disliked) and soft-core, although in this uncut version there are occasions where that line gets distinctly blurry.

There`s also plenty of humour here. Perhaps not laugh aloud stuff but enough to remind you that the movie is intended to be fun, not art.

Normally I try to describe something of the narrative of a movie but with `Up` there`s just no point. It`s the erotic equivalent of The Monkees `Head`. But as crazy and mixed up as it is, it`s wildly entertaining.

Video

The print here shows distinct signs of wear and tear and it`s a shame that Arrow, who have put a great deal of effort into these releases, weren`t able to find a better print. That said, you probably wouldn`t have seen a better copy in the flea-pit style cinemas that were the norm in Britain at the time of its release.

It`s 4:3, which looks like it might have been the original framing too. There is no sign of panning and scanning and nothing seems lost from Meyer`s expert eye for composition.

The extras come in 16:9 anamorphic and 16:9 letterbox consecutively.

Audio

Just what I`d expect - the original mono offered up as a centred mix stereo track. It`s fine.

Features

No Meyer audio commentary this time but by way of compensation we get a Raven De La Croix interview, which shows her to be bright, positive and intelligent - able to analyse her role and Meyers with some insight. I suppose I should add that she looks as sparkling today as she did then, despite the thirty years that have transpired since its release.

Then there`s a brief interview (poorly shot in a Nottingham night club) with Kitten Natividad under the title "Pussy Galore Nite". This is diverting enough but shows that Kitten`s fun loving go-go dancing personality is at marked odds with De La Croix`s more intellectual persona. Nonetheless, it`s informative and fun.

There`s also the standard trailer reel which gives healthy doses of all his other releases on Arrow.

Conclusion

`Up!` is possibly Meyer`s zaniest movie. He was at the end of a more innocent era and nudging his inimitable way towards more hardcore movie making, though was determined not to get to far into a genre that he had no respect for. Perhaps that`s why he virtually gave up movie making after his next movie.

Of course, this move allowed Meyer to explore his wildest fantasies unreigned - and what strange viewing it makes. With plenty of mad-cap slapstick and humour, we`re being warned not to take any of it too seriously, yet `Up!` remains one of the most surreal movies made in the twentieth century.

One things for sure - you`ll either love it or hate it.