USA/1974
Directed By: Wakefield Poole
Written By: Wakefield Poole
Starring: Bo White, Caprice Couselle, Georgina Spelvin
Color/76 Minutes/Not Rated
Region FREE
The Film
A nuclear explosion signifying the beginning. A fetus being formed. A naked man exploring a cave, emerging on to a beach. He collapses. A naked woman emerges from the sea like a siren temptress to the man. Wakefield Poole's BIBLE! has begun.
There has been no shortage of biblical stories being adapted for film. From The Ten Commandments to Passion Of The Christ, some of the most respected names in the business have worked on such films. None are quite like Wakefield Poole's BIBLE! though. BIBLE! is pure 1970s midnight theater, the more weed you've got to smoke the better, weirdness. Taking on three separate stories from the bible, Wakefield Poole creates a piece of work unlike anything I can think of. Largely absent of dialogue and having actors movements choreographed to music as many films from the silent era did, BIBLE! moves from scene to scene in a weird fever dream of mesmerizing nudity and color. From Adam and Eve to Bathsheba and even Samson and Delilah, we're exposed to sex, seduction, murder and infidelity (and much, much more). You need not be overly familiar with the source material, a very brief idea of the stories would suffice and really none at all and you'd be okay just to follow along with the images on screen that will surely make you dizzy with delight. How this didn't become some sort of cult phenomenon when it was released is beyond me.
The Audio & Video
Vinegar Syndrome has released this DVD of BIBLE! with a damn fine A/V presentation. The visuals play excellent job here. The dream like atmosphere is present in every color filled shot that looks solid with only such an important role in this film thanks to the almost complete lack of dialogue and VS has done an a bit of dirt and speckling from the original negative present. BIBLE! is presented in it's original aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The 2.0 audio track sounds great and comes across loud and clear. There's no background noise, cracks or pops to speak of. While there's very little dialogue there is an important classical music score that sounds great.
The Extras
BIBLE! features a nice array of special features including Myrrh, frankincense, and gold... actually not. But it does include:
-Audio commentary from the director
-Video introduction from the director
-Women Of BIBLE!: New interviews with Georgina Spelvin and Gloria Grant
-Emerald City Interview: Wakefield Poole talks about BIBLE on public access TV in 1977
-Screen tests
-Stills gallery
-Theatrical Trailer
The Bottom Line
From the way the film caught me totally off guard to the fantastic presentation and a wonderful collection of special features, I have to recommend this to any fan of weird, midnight movies from the 70s.
BIBLE! is available HERE
1 comment:
I happen to be in possession of an estate sale stash of Caprice Couselle original photos, negatives and more. Included is a biography sheet listing all her films including Raging Bull and being a model for Salvador Dali, among many other things she is never credited for online.
I am obsessed with this woman's life, mostly because I know nothing about her or her life, (even though I have more info about her than I can find anywhere online), and I would like to know more about her.
I'm posting this comment here in the hopes that anyone who actually knew her or is related to her might contact me about Caprice. Her fan, Gavriel Discordia.
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