Age of Consent

I caught this rather odd but interesting movie at 1 AM on TCM one night (I guess insomnia isn't always a bad thing). James Mason stars as famous, very jaded middle-aged painter who decides to get away from the frustrations of his public life by relocating to a rural Australian island. Unfortunately, once there he finds more frustrations with his eccentric and annoying neighbors, and bothersome former associates who show up unexpectedly. He also meets a young girl (Helen Mirren) who, uh, "re-inspires" him by agreeing to pose for him in the nude.

The tone of this movie is kind of strange, going from light-hearted comedy to sudden tragedy and back again. It was directed Michael Powell, after this once- respected director had pretty much torpedoed his own career with the movie "Peeping Tom", which was considered unforgivably sleazy in its era in Britain, but is regarded as somewhat of classic today. Mason (who also co-produced) plays a role similar to the one he played in Stanley Kubrick's notorious film version of "Lolita". He walks the same fine line between an erudite artist trying shake off the shackles of bourgeois morality and a mere pervert lusting after some nubile flesh. Nevertheless, this movie doesn't take the predictable May-December sex route. It may be a little "politically incorrect" by today's standards, but I actually found far less creepy than the hypocritical morality of America today (where the media goes into morally-outraged hysterics every time some celebrity nymphet appears in a racy photo or video clip, even as they show this same photo or clip over and over. . .).

For what it's worth, Helen Mirren was well over "the age of consent" in real-life here, and she has the same GREAT body that would become in fixture in British art films and theater over the next three or four decades (even if she doesn't quite demonstrate the acting chops that recently earned her academy award for playing Queen Elizabeth II). This movie has its problems, including its very uneven tone, but it's definitely worth watching.

Whilst this is not a masterpiece of film making, I found it an enjoyable piece of entertainment. Who could not enjoy watching a young Helen Mirren spending much of the time naked? The story is about an artist(James Mason) going to live on an Island in the Great Barrier Reef where he meets young Cora(Mirren)who lives with her horrid granny. He gets Cora to pose naked for him on many occasions. There is some drama along the way and also some comedy mainly from Jack MacGowran, (especially when being pursued by a man mad woman) plus some lovely scenic shots of the island. But by far the best scenery on show is the lovely Helen. Just sit back and enjoy!!

This was a wonderful movie. Those who criticise it probably missed the sixties. It was a liberating expression of moral freedom in its time. Cora spent most of the film frolicking about naked and what a wonderful lindsayan figure of a woman she was! I just loved this movie and would recommend it to anyone to see. Take a moment out to travel back in time to the beginnings of your moral freedoms.

Age of Consent, from the novel of the same name by Norman Lindsay, is essentially a middle-aged man's fantasy -- but a sweet and likable one.

James Mason plays Bradley Morahan, a successful New York painter who has become tired of turning out the same old commercial tripe. He longs for home (Queensland, Australia) and the chance to experience life first hand, again. He rents a shack on a small island off the Great Barrier Reef and moves in with his dog Godfrey, stocking it with food, drink and oil paints.

The island is a tropical paradise, inhabited by fruit bats and several other characters content to have left the world behind. The granddaughter of one of the residents is a young girl named Cora, played by Helen Mirren. She supports her alcoholic grandmother by selling crayfish and oysters to the store on the mainland and dreams of getting away and becoming a hairdresser. Morahan is charmed by her and agrees to help her see her dream come true by paying her to model for him. She proves to be just the inspiration he needed and he begins to paint -- and live -- with renewed energy.

The film is easy-paced, amusing, and despite a few upsets along the way, leads to a fantasy conclusion. If you want to spend a pleasant couple of hours getting away from it all, I recommend seeing this film.

Directed by Michael Powell, it is now available on the Films of Michael Powell DVD along with A Matter of Life and Death (Stairway to Heaven), starring David Niven.

A famous painter retreats to a somewhat remote island in Australia's Great Barrier Reef to inspire his creativity and finds a young woman to pose for him. Mason is fine as the painter. In one of her earliest roles, Mirren looks amazingly young and alluring as the object of Mason's desire. MacGowran provides the comedy as Mason's unwanted guest on the island. There isn't much of a plot in this laid-back and light-hearted comedy, but it features a quirky cast of characters and is quite enjoyable. The dog is cute and receives on-screen billing. The island setting is beautifully filmed under Powell's masterful direction.