Nigel Finch
1949 - 1995Robert Mapplethorpe
Nigel Finch
The Robert Mapplethorpe documentary, from 1988--one year before he died--is an excellent examination of one of the most controversial of American photographers. British documentarian Nigel Finch does an outstanding job fusing interviews with Mr. Mapplethorpe himself, with critic and author Edmund White, and with several of Mapplethorpe's subjects as well, with numerous shots of the man's work. Mapplethorpe, gay, did not hesitate to photograph what he wanted to without fear of reprisal or censorship. Indeed, a good number of his pieces were not shown in the documentary at its original airing on PBS with the comment, "Considered Unsuitable for Viewing On This Transmission." His openly sexual work can at times be more than shocking, but it is always powerful and direct; as critic Lynn Davies says in the documentary, he did not pose people but photographed them doing what they would normally do in the course of their lives.
Robert Mapplethorpe
The Vampyr: A Soap Opera
Nigel Finch
Ripley, the vampire, was frozen in the late eighteenth century, but has revived in modern times and becomes a successful businessman. At a ceremony to invoke Satan, Ripley learns that his revival has come with a price: in the next three days, he must kill three women in order to gain another year of life. Miranda's father, Davenant, arrives and tells her that she must marry the Earl of Marsden to secure a business deal.
The Vampyr: A Soap Opera
Fear and Loathing on the Road to Hollywood
Nigel Finch
Hunter S. Thompson, Ralph Steadman
Fear and Loathing on the Road to Hollywood, also known as Fear and Loathing in Gonzovision, is a documentary film produced by BBC in 1978 on the subject of Hunter S. Thompson, directed by Nigel Finch. The road trip/film pairs Thompson with Finch's fellow Briton the illustrator Ralph Steadman. The party travel to Hollywood via Death Valley and Barstow from Las Vegas, scene of the pair's 1971 collaboration. It contains interviews with Thompson and Steadman, as well as some short excerpts from some of his work.
Fear and Loathing on the Road to Hollywood
The Lost Language of Cranes
Nigel Finch
Brian Cox, Eileen Atkins
When a young gay man comes out of the closet, his friends support him, but when he comes out to his parents, he stirs up a wealth of hidden feelings and secrets in their relationship.
The Lost Language of Cranes
Chelsea Hotel
Nigel Finch
Joe Bidewell, Jobriath Boone
This TV documentary was made for the UK BBC TV "Arena" strand in 1981, and shows some of the colourful residents of and people connected with the New York Chelsea Hotel. Some highlights include Andy Warhol and William Burroughs having dinner; Quentin Crisp pontificating in a blue rinse hairdo on his balcony and Nico forgetting what she is talking about halfway through a dour rendition of "Chelsea Girls". A number of lesser-known characters also appear, linked together by a tour guide walking around the building and some sub-Shining sequences of a child cycling round the landings on a rickety tricycle. (IMDb)
Chelsea Hotel
The Errand
Nigel Finch
Dorothy Alison, Peter Ashley
A soldier at an elite military institution is sent on a strange and increasingly nightmarish errand in this full-on fever-dream thriller from long-time Pete Walker collaborator David McGillivray (House of Whipcord).
The Errand
Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon
Nigel Finch
Kenneth Anger, Mike McShane
Profile of Kenneth Anger, looking at the uproar his books on Hollywood scandals caused and journeying through the darker side of Hollywood's history, including film clips, and Anger playing a guide with comedian Mike McShane playing the God of Hollywood. It also includes a look at some of Anger's own work.
Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon
