The Ballad of Tam Lin

I saw this film for the first time last night and loved it! After reading so many mixed or out- right negative reviews of it over the years, I was truly surprised by how much I enjoyed it, how well it was made, how well the Tam Lin legend was updated to a relatively contemporary setting, and, ultimately, how enthralled I was by Gardner's Fairy Queen.

I have to admit the first 15-20 minutes or so did take some work. Not that they were poorly spent minutes, but adjusting to the 1970s milieu of swinging London took some time, though it was great fun watching a very young Joanna Lumley in a film that somewhat prophesied her role as Patsy Stone on ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS.

Now that I've seen this, I wish Roddy had made more films. This is how I like my spooky fairy tales told. May be it all comes down to you're either on the SHREK bus or the TAM LIN bus. I'm definitely taking another ride on the latter.

I enjoyed Ava Gardner's sense of age of Aquarius presence for the film. I would have appreciated seeing more films directed by Roddy McDowall. True works of art always have always been birthed from turmoil. The male leads were memorable (Ian McShane)…."You wasted my life….You won't let me go…". The movie helped me respect my middle-age and desire to have something more to life than impending old age and empty nest syndrome. I can't wait to find a bright orange outfit like the one Ava wore in the opening scene. "Give him back……." (so memorable). The character's Scottish retreat appears to offer the viewer a permanent round of relaxation and welcome (along with a picnic basket of memorable one liners!) All the characters were interesting to watch unfold - male accountant; (my favorite was the fortune teller. The plot moves too quickly to convey very mature feelings in a immature world of valley of the doll babies. Tom makes the potentially fatal error of falling in love with the daughter of the local vicar – he should have stayed with Micky. This movie was not sluggish and uneventful; it gets better as it progresses into the story. I would recommend this film as a sleeper and a keeper! (smile)

Based on Robert Burns' version of the Scottish folk tale "The Ballad of Tamlin," this modest but mesmerizing 1971 thriller concerns a young man, Tom Lynn ( Ian McShane), who becomes the romantic prisoner of an evil enchantress Michaela Cazaret ( Ava Gardner ). In a particularly arrestingly eerie and phantasmagorical set piece during which Tom, stoned out of his mind, is pursued by murderous acolytes of the bewitching Miss Cazaret, McDowall effectively punctuates the story's fairy tale quality with an entirely harmonious nightmarish and hallucinogenic tone that forever reflects the psychedelic sixties. McDowall's laudably creative panache as a filmmaker was embellished by a seductive performance from his star Ava Gardner. Though past her prime, she is nonetheless sultrily convincing as the irresistible, vampiric dominatrix insatiably commanding her hapless lovers to their eagerly desired doom.

Tam Lin (aka The Devil's Widow ) was also McDowall's solo directorial effort. Based on the splendid result (especially the aforementioned set piece), it was a great pity that Roddy did not pursue a career as a film director because - as with Charles Laughton, who blessed us with his only turn as a director, the superb "The Night of the Hunter" - he possessed a definite flair as a filmmaker. Produced in 1969, his film sat on the shelf for two years. In 1971, McDowall returned to his film to do some post-production work on it but 'twas all for naught because it was poorly distributed and sank into relative obscurity. In 1998 Republic Home Video, in collaboration with Martin Scorsese and McDowall, restored "Tam Lin" and rescued it from oblivion by releasing a stunningly superb widescreen print with an introduction by McDowall.

I highly recommend this stylishly directed and unjustly neglected gem to lovers of the macabre and mysterious. To all such, I strongly encourage you to seek it out.

One should be a fan of British cinema, retro pop culture, fantasy/folklore, and personal auteur-ship for maximum enjoyment of this likable but format-challenged film from the late 1960's/early 70's. I sure am, and as such quite savored this cinematic retelling of the Tam Lin ballad.

It's sufficiently enjoyable that I immediately transferred the VHS tape to DVD for future viewings. One suspects it had been slated for same, what with its 17 minute director's introduction, but remained lost in the ether of Republic Pictures' post-demise assorted distribution deals. One further suspects that its release under of aegis of an Ava Gardner tribute series was the ticket for its seeing light of day at all post theatrical debut. It's been written that Roddy McDowell lost control of this, his only directed film, with it subsequently languishing in drive-ins of the 1970's under such noms-du-exploitation as "The Devil's Widow!" As McDowell's sole direction job, this is a movie one ever so wants to be as good as Charles Laughton's similar solo effort "Night of the Hunter," which it isn't and cannot be, as few films can match "Hunter's" expert, mannerist weirdness. McDowell's is a B+ to Laughton's A+. What is it does share is the quirkiness of a singular vision, seeming unlike anything else of its respective era while still conforming to mainstream requisites, and the retelling of a dreamy but occasionally frightening fairy tale in modern clothes, with assorted decidedly odd touches. A true loss to cinema that both actors never directed another film.

Simply put, it's the ballad of Tam Lin (its original title in fact) retold with late '60's characters, and peopled with a cast of still working, familiar British names like Ian McShane (representing the titular captured knight Tam Lin,) Joanna Lumley and Stephanie Beacham (the Hammer horror ingénue, here as the ballad's Janet) with both Cyril and Sinead Cusack in tow. Gardner as the controlling "Faerie Queen" seems an apt focus of the swirling debaucheries and cruelties rationalized as group activity fun. This, strangely, isn't so much part of the fantasy as modern viewers might conclude: some of us who were adolescents in the '60's remember the genuine, wealthy older types lending their mansions to us young'uns in order to share in the decadent fun, whether vicariously or actively.

In "Tam Lin" you'll find a little seen but quite good updated fairy story, plus amusing music from jazz to the Pentangle, great costuming, retro period fun, gorgeous Scottish border scenery and an always great to watch cast. Time for whoever owns Republic's split assets this week to fund that DVD release.

Roddy McDowell at his first and unique directorial experience hired his goddess Ava Gardner to play this fabulous and contentious ancient folk Scottish fairy tale "Tam Lin" adapted for late sixties, over a possessive Witch-Lady (Gardner) that used to gathering around free-spirit youngest group and a special lover (McShane) as long as he doesn't dare leave her love nest for another girl, in that case she used to kill them, however such death will not undertaken by the spiteful woman, after drug-induced aiming for a self-murder by a stark having mad in a hunting carried out by the crazy crowd of the youngest group.

The outcome has a strong similitude with THE MOST DANGEROUS GAMES's Zaroff, it was shot in 1967, although the Commonwealth United Entertainment went to bankrupt before the movie be released, henceforth it was shelved, let McDowall too much disgruntled, worst it made a true damage for the picture that lost the timing previously stablished, just in 1970 the movie was released finally, nevertheless it was utterly chopped to the dismay of the young director Roddy McDowall, just now come out officially the uncut and restored version conceived by him in plenty way.

Since then the cinephiles around the world have been assessed, therefore dealing it as near masterpiece like me, it has many qualities on cinematography, moving camera, slow motion, great photography and an outstanding Scottish landscape, great scenarios also a scariest and lavish adornment as turkey mark used by Ava Gardner, a must to see!!

Thanks for reading.

Resume:

First watch: 2024 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 8.