BY FRED BLOSSER
In
Bryan Forbes’ “The Raging Moon†(1971), a sudden, devastating illness leaves
24-year-old Bruce Pritchard (Malcolm McDowell) a paraplegic. A friend asks if he was stricken by
polio. “I don’t know what it is,†Bruce
answers. “I can’t pronounce it, but it’s
not polio.†Whatever the nature of his
life-altering blow, he reacts the same way that most of us would probably
react, with stony, simmering self-pity and anger. McDowell is at his intense best in those
scenes, calling to mind the all-time master, James Cagney, in portraying a
volatile character whose temper threatens to explode through his edgy quiet any
moment. Now confined to a wheelchair,
Bruce becomes a charity case and moves into an assisted-living facility. There, he sullenly brushes off overtures by
the staff and the other residents. “How
do you think you’ll like being here?†dutifully asks Reverend Corbett, who
manages the church-supported institution. “I’m not going to like being here at all,†Bruce responds with a look
that quietly speaks daggers. He remains
in his glowering isolation for several
months before becoming curious about another resident, Jill (Nanette
Newman). Also paralyzed from the waist
down, in her case by polio, Jill seems as outgoing and placid as Bruce is
bitter.
His
initial approach to Jill turns awkward. “I expect you’re glad to finally meet me,†Bruce says, masking
insecurity with belligerence -- another fine moment for McDowell, well
supported by Newman. Then the couple
gradually but believably fall in love, discovering that each gives the other a
strength and purpose they lacked individually. The relationship thaws Bruce’s icy resentment in general, and he begins
to engage with the other residents. He
and Jill decide to marry, but their ambition collides with reality when they’re
reminded that the home lacks facilities for married couples. If they want to stay, they’ll have to
continue residing in separate rooms. Bruce suggests to Jill that they live on their own. Another resident provides Bruce with a lead
on a job that he believes will support them, and Bill the handyman, who works
at the home with his wife Sarah, offers to build them a residence with needed
accommodations for their disabilities. But even as the characters look ahead optimistically, a worse turn of
events awaits.
“The
Raging Moon†opened in the U.K. in January 1971 and reached American theaters
the following September under a new title, “Long Ago, Tomorrow.†Maybe the studio executives feared that U.S.
audiences would mistake a film named “The Raging Moon†for a science-fiction
thriller or confuse it with “The Stalking Moon,†a 1969 Gregory Peck
Western. A new title track, “Long Ago,
Tomorrow,†was added for further appeal to U.S. audiences, written by Hal David
and Burt Bacharach, and sung by B.J. Thomas. A retooled ad campaign described the movie as “a different love story,â€
an obvious pitch to viewers who had recently made “Love Story†a smash
hit. Nevertheless, “Long Ago, Tomorrowâ€
passed swiftly through theaters without making a stir, although Malcolm
McDowell’s fortunes rebounded in December with the release of “A Clockwork
Orange.â€
Despite
the attempt to link Forbes’ production with “Love Story†as a selling
point, American audiences may have found
its setting and vernacular too British and its tone too downbeat for their
tastes. The institutional culture of the
“place for cripples†(as Bruce’s brother thoughtlessly calls the home) is
loosely but stiflingly regimented. Table
tennis, chess, and basketwork in the recreation room are about the only
diversions available for the residents. Reverend Corbett and his assistant, the Matron, seem to be well-meaning
but lack anything more than superficial empathy for their charges. It’s a grim reminder that people with
disabilities were generally marginalized in that era. Fans of “Love Story†were probably
disappointed that Forbes avoids the hazy, feel-good montages and manipulative
conventions of the usual four-Kleenex romantic drama. The denouement arrives suddenly, and if on
first viewing it seems abrupt and rushed, a second viewing fully and
affectingly validates Forbes’ approach.
A new Blu-ray edition
of “The Raging Moon†from Kino Lorber Studio Classics presents the film in its
original 1.85:1 format with fine audio commentary by film historian and
filmmaker Daniel Kremer. Kremer
discusses the movie’s origins in a 1964 semi-autobiographical novel by British
author Peter Marshall, the film’s production history, its place in a long
succession of dramas about people with disabilities, and Bryan Forbes‘
cinematic style. Bernard Lee’s name
appears in the credits as Bruce’s uncle, and yes, it’s that Bernard Lee in a
peripheral but welcome appearance. It’s
amusing to see 007’s formidable M fiddling impatiently with a cheap instant
camera at a family gathering, a rare but not singular comic touch that helps
balance the generally somber mood of the story.
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(Fred Blosser is the author of "Sons of Ringo: The Great Spaghetti Western Heroes". Click here to order from Amazon)