Review of Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs (1974) by Daniel K — 23 Aug 2013

Produced by George Harrison for Apple Films, adapted from David Halliwell's play and adapted here by Stuart Cooper (Overlord (1975) and The Disappearance (1977)). This is a very odd curiosity, and a little seen one too.

Harrison wanted to make a film version of the film after seeing the production, it was allegedly the only play he'd seen in his life, he made a good choice. Set in a snowy Lancashire, Malcolm Scrawdike (John Hurt) has been expelled from the local arts school for various misdemeanors, his fellow students Wick (John McEnery) and Irwin (Raymond Platt) tell Malcolm they've been forbidden from seeing him again, or they'll be expelled too.

Malcolm convinces them to stand up against the teachers in the school, and they form The Party of Dynamic Erection, where Malcolm plans an elaborate revenge on one of the tutors who expelled him, by kidnapping this tutor and blackmailing him, they're joined in their plot by the oddball Nipple (David Warner), and they plan out how it will go, but tensions between Malcolm, Wick, Irwin and Nipple threaten to tear this party apart.

You can tell it was a stage production, and it's a very sparse and dark affair, with brooding cinematography by John Alcott, plus it was hardly seen no thanks to Apple briefly folding, but Harrison got it released, and it has some brilliant performances in it.