6 May 2008
'In the 14th Century, England and France were engaged in a war that would last a hundred years. Claudia and Heron were born after the war began, and would die before it ended...'
With this brief prologue begins John Huston's A Walk with Love and Death, a story of a student, Heron (Assi Dayan), who leaves Paris to walk to the sea but encounters Claudia (a 17-year-old Anjelica Huston), a young noblewoman with whom he falls in love and pledges to protect after her home is destroyed in a peasant revolt.
Filmed in 1968, (the same year as Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet) Huston's tale of young lovers adrift in France during the Middle Ages owes more to the spirit of the late 1960s in its questioning of authority and insistence on love, not war. Described in the press notes as a 'lost' late 60s cult classic, A Walk With Love and Death was based on Hans Koningsberger's novel of the same name and features a memorable score by Georges Delerue that includes one of his most haunting love themes.
A Walk With Love and Death will be released on UK DVD on 26th may 2008 by the BFI at the RRP of £12.99. Featuring a 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer and Dolby Digital mono soundtrack (320kbps), the disc will contain the following extra features:
- Walking with Love and Death (1968) – Behind-the-scenes footage of Huston on set, directing the actors;
- Illustrated booklet with an original essay by Hans Koningsberger on the filming of his book (from Film Quarterly, Spring 1969); a review from Monthly Film Bulletin, February 1977; cast and credits.
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