Why, oh why.....

is this film not on DVD? And, for the record, what about The Devils? Ken Russell was the most courageous and daring film-maker of his or any generation. His films were, and still are, waaay ahead of their time. There's no way anyone would touch that subject matter today. In an industry filled with formulaic scripts and passionless, bland, Winona Ryder-esque acting, his films were the jewel in the crown, the needle in the haystack. We desperately need more writers/directors/producers with his uncompromising vision and storytelling talent.

NAZTROVJA!!!

That is really a somewhat americanization of my polish/baltic heritage...'to your good health'! Tip back your head and swallow down a nice fat shot of (w)vodka as you begin to drink in the absolute wonder of this mind blowing ride in Ken Russell's vision! I too,as so many others have said, am at a total loss as to why this has not yet made it to dvd! I have a pirated copy I taped from (I think it was either Cinemax or HBO) and am lucky I caught at least that! The tape is sealed in airtight plastic as are a few other gems I happened by that I'm also waiting for on dvd. DO NOT MISS!

For Ken Russell loyalists, a worthy film

One could argue that this is Ken Russell's most understated film. That said, it's still a struggle to get through at times though Richard Chamberlain gives one of his finest performances. One senses that Chamberlain, decades away from revealing his own sexuality, felt a certain kinship to the Tchaikovsky presented in this film.

Beautiful music and scenery aren't enough to carry "The Music Lovers" and it falls a bit short as it drags on to it's inevitable conclusion. Still, Russell does a much better job by Tchaikovsky than he would by poor Franz Liszt several years later in "Lisztomania", one of the worst of films of 1975.