This is a truncated, theatrical version of an Italian-British co-production, originally shot to run nearly five hours as a TV mini-series. As a result, the plot, which borrows heavily from the celebrated giallo films of the 1970s, is overly complicated, with much exposition culled in order to bring the drama down to a more acceptable feature length, and the characters appear roughly sketched and hastily thrown together. Whereas a longer television serial may have brought necessary pace and menace to the proceedings. this brutally edited version merely mystifies and infuriates: the final denouement seems anticlimactic after the hurried and confusing build-up.
The UK-based Incorporated Television Company (ITC) produced numerous, expensive television shows during the 1960s and 70s, often haphazardly cutting shows into smaller pieces, or even splicing two or three separate episodes together, in order to exploit foreign cinema markets. Their mercenary attitude towards their own product, whilst inhibiting original and intelligent programming by forcing actors, producers and writers to appeal to the lowest common denominator, also betrays the aspirations of most high concept, big business film and television production: by throwing far too much money at a project, the filmmakers are forced to exploit every opportunity for revenue in fear of losing profit. In this way, the antics of ITC can be seen as a specifically British forerunner of commercial film production in the UK at this moment in time.
With producers and funding organisations in this country desperate to upscale every new production in a vain attempt to compete with Hollywood’s multiplex domination, films like How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008; dir. Robert B. Wiede), The Constant Gardener (2005; dir. Fernando Meirelles) or Dorian Gray (2009; dir. Oliver Parker) try to take advantage of every possibility for revenue – including sell-thru markets, merchandising, tie-in novels and soundtracks – to claw back some of the public money they have wasted during filming and distribution. Lower budgets not only equal higher profit margins, but insist that alternative techniques to those employed by the over-budgeted, commercial mainstream should be found. ITC and its subsequent collapse into receivership should prove that the British film industry needs to explore cheaper film production, and all that comes with it, in order to rebuild a respectable market-base and regain its dignity.
The Secret of Seagull Island at the IMDb
The Secret of Seagull Island (1981; dir. Nestore Ungaro)
This is a truncated, theatrical version of an Italian-British co-production, originally shot to run nearly five hours as a TV mini-series. As a result, the plot, which borrows heavily from the celebrated giallo films of the 1970s, is overly complicated, with much exposition culled in order to bring the drama down to a more acceptable feature length, and the characters appear roughly sketched and hastily thrown together. Whereas a longer television serial may have brought necessary pace and menace to the proceedings. this brutally edited version merely mystifies and infuriates: the final denouement seems anticlimactic after the hurried and confusing build-up.
The UK-based Incorporated Television Company (ITC) produced numerous, expensive television shows during the 1960s and 70s, often haphazardly cutting shows into smaller pieces, or even splicing two or three separate episodes together, in order to exploit foreign cinema markets. Their mercenary attitude towards their own product, whilst inhibiting original and intelligent programming by forcing actors, producers and writers to appeal to the lowest common denominator, also betrays the aspirations of most high concept, big business film and television production: by throwing far too much money at a project, the filmmakers are forced to exploit every opportunity for revenue in fear of losing profit. In this way, the antics of ITC can be seen as a specifically British forerunner of commercial film production in the UK at this moment in time.
With producers and funding organisations in this country desperate to upscale every new production in a vain attempt to compete with Hollywood’s multiplex domination, films like How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008; dir. Robert B. Wiede), The Constant Gardener (2005; dir. Fernando Meirelles) or Dorian Gray (2009; dir. Oliver Parker) try to take advantage of every possibility for revenue – including sell-thru markets, merchandising, tie-in novels and soundtracks – to claw back some of the public money they have wasted during filming and distribution. Lower budgets not only equal higher profit margins, but insist that alternative techniques to those employed by the over-budgeted, commercial mainstream should be found. ITC and its subsequent collapse into receivership should prove that the British film industry needs to explore cheaper film production, and all that comes with it, in order to rebuild a respectable market-base and regain its dignity.
The Secret of Seagull Island at the IMDb
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