At the time of recording his Simon Magus DVD director's commentary, director Ben Hopkins hadn't seen Simon Magus for six years - since it came out, in fact - so his exposition is as much a grounding process for him as for us.
With such a complex genesis, and a range of influences from the stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer to Sergio Leone's Once Upon A Time In The West, Hopkins isn't 100 per cent positive he can remember what he's up to from scene to scene, but he's pretty sure that the initial position of Simon Magus is symbolic; like the Tarot's Hanged Man, Magus is often depicted upside down in medieval paintings.
We also learn a bit more about the historical Simon Magus, the 'first heretic' - branded by early Christians in a propaganda exercise, as a "failed, rubbish magician." As for why the film is shot in a pseudo German Expressionist style, "it's a good question. The answer is probably just because I like it and I'm somewhat obsessed with it. I don't think cinema's ever been that good ever again." Hopkins also elaborates on what it's like to work with Rutger Hauer. "A bit scary, because he's a big person in every way. If you annoy him, he might cut you into pieces!"
The obviously awed director also says, "He's one of the most eccentric people I've ever worked with. Half the time I couldn't understand what the hell he was talking about. He has a very kind of inventive and almost surreal use of language." Initially Ian Holm's devil character was named Sirius "and when he appears later on, 'Boris'. I thought this was quite humorous. To have a devil called Boris. But people didn't see it as humorous. They saw it as ridiculous."
As evinced from the Nine Live Of Tomas Katz DVD commentary, Hopkins is his harshest critic. The final scene "is a great ending to a slightly flawed and not-that-great a film. In some ways I regret making it as a first film; but you can't make a film twice, unfortunately."
For those wondering why we're not seeing more of this kind of thing in British cinema, Hopkins succinctly spells it out. "The market for this kind of film in the UK... collapsed, and then, let's say, was artificially removed by the UK Film Council, set up at the turn of the decade to support more mainstream fare. It was kind of the death knell for filmmakers like me in this country. Which is why I've been trying to work mainly abroad and on the continent ever since. I remember the filmmaker I was back then; my eyes were full of dreams. I'd no idea I would be so disillusioned so quickly."
With such a complex genesis, and a range of influences from the stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer to Sergio Leone's Once Upon A Time In The West, Hopkins isn't 100 per cent positive he can remember what he's up to from scene to scene, but he's pretty sure that the initial position of Simon Magus is symbolic; like the Tarot's Hanged Man, Magus is often depicted upside down in medieval paintings.
We also learn a bit more about the historical Simon Magus, the 'first heretic' - branded by early Christians in a propaganda exercise, as a "failed, rubbish magician." As for why the film is shot in a pseudo German Expressionist style, "it's a good question. The answer is probably just because I like it and I'm somewhat obsessed with it. I don't think cinema's ever been that good ever again." Hopkins also elaborates on what it's like to work with Rutger Hauer. "A bit scary, because he's a big person in every way. If you annoy him, he might cut you into pieces!"
The obviously awed director also says, "He's one of the most eccentric people I've ever worked with. Half the time I couldn't understand what the hell he was talking about. He has a very kind of inventive and almost surreal use of language." Initially Ian Holm's devil character was named Sirius "and when he appears later on, 'Boris'. I thought this was quite humorous. To have a devil called Boris. But people didn't see it as humorous. They saw it as ridiculous."
As evinced from the Nine Live Of Tomas Katz DVD commentary, Hopkins is his harshest critic. The final scene "is a great ending to a slightly flawed and not-that-great a film. In some ways I regret making it as a first film; but you can't make a film twice, unfortunately."
For those wondering why we're not seeing more of this kind of thing in British cinema, Hopkins succinctly spells it out. "The market for this kind of film in the UK... collapsed, and then, let's say, was artificially removed by the UK Film Council, set up at the turn of the decade to support more mainstream fare. It was kind of the death knell for filmmakers like me in this country. Which is why I've been trying to work mainly abroad and on the continent ever since. I remember the filmmaker I was back then; my eyes were full of dreams. I'd no idea I would be so disillusioned so quickly."