November 6, 2014, 4:30 p.m. — Sebastiane (1976)
Sebastiane
1976. Great Britain. Written and directed by Paul Humfress, Derek Jarman.. With Leonardo Treveliglio, Barney James, Neil Kennedy. Humfress and Jarman’s sado-erotic retelling of the agonies and martyrdom of Sebastian, a fourth-century Praetorian Guard, is Queer Cinema at its most poetic and ravishing. Set in the golden-hued wilds of Sardinia and performed entirely in vulgar Latin by a sun-kissed, all-male cast, the film heralded newcomer Derek Jarman as a savior of British independent cinema. ("Sebastiane was, for so many, nothing short of a miracle,” Tilda Swinton would recall.) Preserved by the BFI in a new 2K digital version, remastered from the camera negative; courtesy Kino Lorber Films. 86 min.