Review: The Man Who Had Power Over Women
Blu-ray: The Man Who Had Power Over Women (1970)
Though released in 1970, London is still swinging as though it’s the 60s as top talent agent Peter Reaney (Rod Taylor) finds his world in turmoil after his wife leaves him and he moves in with best mate and fellow work colleague Val Pringle (James Booth).
Unfortunately for Val, his work life is complicated by his wife Jody (Carol White) and Peter starting an affair behind his back, while Peter juggles hiding his affair at the same time as dealing with difficult client and narcissistic pop star Barry Black (Clive Francis).
A charming sex comedy that has hardly any sex but thankfully quite a few laughs, The Man Who Had Power Over Women is driven by the onscreen presence of Rod Taylor, a man who oozes so much testosterone that you could grow a beard just by him looking out of the screen at you for a few minutes.
Clive Francis makes the obnoxious Barry Black an antagonist so hateful, that when he gets his deserved comeuppance at the end of the movie, it’s hard to stifle an audible cheer, and with a sharp 89 minute running time, the narrative skips by with no long drawn out scenes, moving from one entertaining moment to another.
Definitely a film of its time, The Man Who Had Power Over Women mixes sex comedy tropes with a dash of kitchen sink drama and smattering of nudge nudge, wink wink comedy.
Another of those great ‘Sunday afternoon movies’.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
4K restoration
Original mono audio
The BEHP Interview with John Krish(1994–2004, 90 mins): archival audio recording of the celebrated director in a career-spanning conversation with Rodney Giesler, made as part of the British Entertainment History Project
A Bad Marriage (2024, 11 mins): screenwriter Allan Scott discusses the process of adapting The Man Who Had Power Over Women for the big screen with writing partner Chris Bryant, and the reasons for removing their names from the final film
Break-In (1956, 44 mins): Krish’s dramatised training film about the military police, made for the British Army and featuring Jim Dale in his earliest-known screen appearance
Let My People Go (1961, 24 mins): Krish’s powerful, polemical film which combines archival footage and staged reconstructions to inform and educate about the brutal realities of Apartheid in South Africa
Image gallery: promotional and publicity materials
New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Limited edition exclusive 40-page booklet with a new essay by Vic Pratt, archival interviews with Rod Taylor and John Krish, new writing on Break-In, Patrick Russell on Let My People Go, and film credits
World premiere on Blu-ray
Limited edition website exclusive of 3,000 copies
Released 29th January.
Review by Dave from a disc kindly supplied by Powerhouse Films.
