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| Courtesy of Janus Films |
Adapted by playwright
Peter Barnes from his own subversive stage text, it tells the story of Jack
Gurney, 14th Earl of Gurney (Peter O’Toole), a paranoid
schizophrenic nobleman who believes he is the reincarnation of Jesus Christ (or JC for short) who dressed in a swanky white suit sleeps standing upright outstretched on his own bedside cross when he isn't frolicking the estate grounds. Set to inherit an empire after the 13th
Earl of Gurney accidentally dies, his unethical uncle Sir Charles (William
Mervyn), uptight Bishop Lampton (Alastair Sim) scramble to come up with a plan
to either “cure” him of his insanity or simply marry him off to produce an heir
in an effort to steal what’s left of the inheritance.
Completely all over the map with no
real predictable thread, often bursting into song and dance mid-sentence when
Jack Gurney aka Jesus Christ isn’t shifting in and out of being the Lord our
God, the same old Jack and finally Jack the Ripper, The Ruling Class is
genuinely wild. Though overtly a
satirical comedy with its acerbic tongue firmly planted in cheek, Medak’s film
co-produced by legendary British actor Jack Hawkins isn’t content to simply be
a straightlaced exercise in snark, giving in throughout to increasingly absurd
and bizarre flights of fancy.
Somewhat
of a character study of an unmitigated madman in a performance that goes well past
chewing up the scenery as O’Toole proceeds to swallow his scenes whole,
partially a barbed swipe at the follies of the bourgeoisie, The Ruling Class
doesn’t always make its intentions clear but no one can deny the larger
than life power of Mr. O’Toole’s performance in the piece.
There’s definitely an allegory at play here
which isn’t always transmitted onscreen successfully but O’Toole is so
maniacally energized in it you find yourself overlooking the film’s, at times,
heavy handedness. Recurring thematic
elements can be found in Medak’s later works as well including The
Changeling for mixing horror with criticism of political powers and the
more recent Let Him Have It which specifically targeted the British capital
punishment judicial system.
Whatever you remember
from the madness and mayhem unleashed in Medak’s adaptation of Peter Barnes’
play, one sequence that will stick into mind is a slow buildup of O’Toole
working up from a growl to a full-blown howl, his eyes looking like they’re
going to pop out of his head. Most of
the film feels like you are on the receiving end of O’Toole’s roaring, not all
of it registering but definitely leaving an undeniable impression.
At the time the low budget filmed stage
play, edited by 2001: A Space Odyssey and Aliens editor Ray
Lovejoy, overstays its welcome at two-and-a-half hours with the ferocious
energy opening the picture starting to wane over the lengthy running time. When released in America, the film’s
distributor excised thirteen minutes out though esteemed film critic Roger
Ebert remarked at the time it could’ve been even shorter.
In Medak’s pantheon, The Changeling manages
to channel many of the same ideas (and contempt) for the so-called Ruling
Class with greater precision and brevity, getting all of the themes brewing
about regarding corrupt or criminal figures in positions of power onscreen
under the two-hour mark. Though funny
and delightfully acerbic, The Ruling Class for all of its eccentricity
and the fierce (even violent) energy of Peter O’Toole tends to…meander? Whatever the case, you won’t find another O’Toole
picture quite like this one in the actor’s distinguished filmography.
--Andrew Kotwicki
