Ken Russell

Ken Russell remains one of cinema's true provocateurs, and I mean that as the highest praise. A British director who pioneered work in both television and film, he was flamboyant, controversial, and utterly unwilling to play it safe. His liberal adaptations and biographies of Romantic composers were less polite retellings than fevered reinventions. Some found him excessive; I find that excess thrilling. In a medium that often rewards restraint and consensus, Russell insisted on intensity, even when it made audiences uncomfortable. He died in 2011, but the sheer combustible energy of his films refuses to fade. Real artists make you feel something, and Russell always did.

Name (English)

Ken Russell

Name (Japanese)

ケン・ラッセル

Reading

けん・らっせる

Born

July 3, 1927 – November 27, 2011

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Cancer / Rabbit

Origin

Southampton, United Kingdom

Occupation

film director / actor / screenwriter / cinematographer / film producer

University

University of East London

• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken%20Russell
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B1%E3%83%B3%E3%83%BB%E3%83%A9%E3%83%83%E3%82%BB%E3%83%AB
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55249

Tags

• film director
• actor
• screenwriter

Last updated

2026-06-17

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.