The Beast (Includes DVD)

Walerian Borowczyk's most notorious and controversial film wildly re-works the classic Beauty and the Beast story into a very adult fairy tale, a parody of pornographic tropes and an assault on notions of 'good taste'. Bestial dreams interrupt the venal plans of a French aristocrat attempting to save a crumbling mansion by marrying off his deformed son, Mathurin, to a horny American heiress, Lucy. Yet Mathurin seems more interested in his horses than in his bride-to-be, and when Lucy finds out about the story of his 18th-century ancestor Romilda (Sirpa Lane) copulating with the titular beast it sparks to life one of the most outrageous dream sequences in cinema history. A huge hit in France that was extensively censored and banned elsewhere, The Beast broke new ground in sexual explicitness and remains a truly startling experience even today. Bonus Features: New high definition digital transfer of the uncut 98-minute version Introduction by film critic Peter Bradshaw The Making of The Beast: camera operator Noël Véry provides a commentary on footage shot during the film's production Frenzy of Ecstasy, a visual essay on the evolution of Borowczyk's beast and the sequel that never was, Motherhood The Profligate Door, a documentary about Borowczyk's sound sculptures featuring curator Maurice Corbet Boro Brunch, a reunion meal recorded in February 2014 reuniting members of Borowczyk's crew Commercials by Borowczyk: Holy Smoke (1963), The Museum (1964) and Tom Thumb (1966) Gunpoint, a documentary short by Peter Graham produced and edited by Borowczyk (11:04) Behind Enemy Lines - The Making of Gunpoint (5:16) Theatrical trailer Reversible sleeve featuring Borowczyk's own original poster design Illustrated booklet featuring new writing on the film by Daniel Bird and an archive piece by David Thompson, illustrated with original stills