| Herostratus | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Don Levy |
| Written by | Don Levy |
| Based on | Herostratus |
| Produced by | Don Levy James Quinn |
| Starring | Michael Gothard Gabriella Licudi Peter Stephens Antony Paul |
| Cinematography | Keith Allams |
| Edited by | Don Levy |
| Music by | Halim El-Dabh John Mayer |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | British Film Institute |
Release date |
|
Running time | 142 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Herostratus is a 1967 British experimental psychological drama film directed and produced by Don Levy, with the assistance of James Quinn. The film follows a young poet named Max (Michael Gothard), who out of ennui and a desire for fame arranges with the marketer Farson (Peter Stephens) to commit suicide in public. Farson agrees to turn his suicide into a high-profile media spectacle. Clio (Gabriella Licudi), an attractive woman who is Farson's secretary, aids Max in his goals. The film also stars Antony Paul and Mona Hammond (credited as Mona Chin), as well as Helen Mirren in her first credited film role.[2]
The film was first screened publicly on 3 May 1968 having taken a total of six years to develop from the initial scripting.[2][3] Its initial release was limited to film festivals and art house cinemas in Europe, and it did not have a wider cinematic release.[3] In 2009 the film was re-released by the British Film Institute as part of the BFI Flipside series.[4] Both initial reception of the film and the reception at the time of its re-release were heavily mixed, and while many critics had more favourable responses to the film, the public response was generally more negative.
The film critiques consumerism and the advertising industry of the time,[5] whilst also featuring themes of death, urbanisation, and the growing countercultural movement of the time.[3][6] Levy used a number of unorthodox directing techniques in the creation of the film with the aim of heightening the film's emotional impact,[7] some of which greatly distressed other members of the film crew.[8]
- ^ "Herostratus (1967)". BBFC. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ a b Dawson, Jane (1968). "Herostratus". Monthly Film Bulletin. British Film Institute. p. 87.
- ^ a b c May, Dr. J. J. (2015). Minor Cinemas and the Redevelopment of London in the Long Sixties (Doctorate of Philosophy thesis). University of York.
- ^ Foster, Dave (2009). "Flipside Wave 2 in August". The Digital Fix. Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
- ^ Street, Sarah (2020). "Colour and a Critique of Advertising: Privilege (Peter Watkins, 1967) and Herostratus (Don Levy, 1967)". Frames Cinema Journal. 17. doi:10.15664/fcj.v0i17.2072. hdl:1983/8eb6c0b9-f143-4050-bfa1-a4064c8e1c59.
- ^ Hall, Martin (August 2018). Theories of the Subject: British Cinema and 1968 (Doctorate of Philosophy thesis). University of Stirling.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:4was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Gillett, John (Summer 1965). "Happening Here". Sight and Sound. p. 138.