This film is part of Free
The Scarlet Woman
Catholic fantasy starring Elsa Lanchester and Evelyn Waugh in an Andy Warhol fright wig.
Home movie 1924 44 mins Silent
Overview
Much of the appeal of this confusing but fascinating amateur film is a gloriously camp performance by its writer, Evelyn Waugh. He plays the Dean of Balliol College, Oxford, and based his performance on the real Dean, 'Sligger' Urquhart. Urquhart, he observed, was Catholic, homosexual, and a snob; an epithet that could as well describe the author himself after his conversion in 1930. Filming took place at Hampstead Heath, Golders Green, and the Waugh family's Hampstead back garden in the summer of 1924.
In the film the Dean is under orders from the Pope and his envoy Cardinal Montefiasco to convert the English monarchy to Roman Catholicism. The Dean holds a sinister influence over the Prince of Wales, but this is counteracted by the attractions of cabaret actress Beatrice de Carolle, played by a sinuous Elsa Lanchester (The Bride of Frankenstein) in her first film role.
Subjects
Related
Pioneers of Personal Film
Local Scenes and Family Pictures
Amateur film 1927 14 mins Silent
Grandma and Grandad also join in the fun of this home movie - with beaches, swings & roundabouts and a medieval pageant led by Christopher Robin
Royal Silver Jubilee 1935 - Cardiff
Home movie 1935 15 mins Silent Location: Cardiff/Caerdydd
Yards of bunting have been put up in Cardiff to celebrate King George V’s 25 years on the throne and the Wade home in Park Place has its share.
Our Holidays 1932
Amateur film 1932 10 mins Silent Location: Walton-On-The-Naze
With the luxury of a beach hut as their base, the Mann family from Southend took any opportunity to head up the coast to spend many happy days at Walton-on-the-Naze
Outing on the Thames
Amateur film 1933 9 mins Silent Location: Henley-on-Thames
An interwar outing on the River Thames with a reminder of the Great Western Railway's influence in Birmingham.
Barnstaple Fair in the 1920s
Non-Fiction 1926 5 mins Silent Location: Barnstaple
Join the crowds in Barnstaple for fairground attractions
Seven O' Clock Regulars' Swimming Club Part 1 of 3
Non-Fiction 1929 11 mins Silent Location: Plymouth
Seven O'Clock Regular Swimmers' Club open the new season with a splash!
Hampstead Heath
Khaki Bank Holiday
Non-Fiction 1915 1 mins Silent Location: Hampstead Heath
The holiday crowds are in the mood to enjoy themselves at Hampstead Fair, and army recruiters seize the opportunity to encourage enlistment.
New
Slug Life
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 7 mins
A curious woman creates her own perfect partner, a beautiful, talking giant slug.
The Penguin Who Couldn't Swim
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 2 mins
A disabled penguin feels isolated from the rest of her colony.
Uki
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 2 mins
A short stop-frame animation following a lonely Inuit who struggles to survive after an oil tanker leaks oil off the coast of Alaska, killing all the wildlife in the area.
Meteorlight
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 10 mins
Sci-fi animation set in an alien world. When a child discovers a dark secret at their father's factory, they must choose between what is right and what is easy.
O, Hunter Heart
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 2 mins
Nature and domesticity collide in this dark love story featuring stop-motion puppets.
\\_sleeper
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 7 mins
The story of Frank, a recluse who wakes each day to a strange anomaly.