Privilege

Plot synopsis:
The story is presented as a narrated documentary, set in a near-future 1970s England, and concerning a disillusioned pop singer, Steven Shorter (Paul Jones), who is the most-loved celebrity in the country. His stage show involves him appearing on stage in a jail cell with handcuffs, beaten by police, to the horror and sympathy of the audience. It is described that the two main parties of England have formed a coalition government and encourage the success of Shorter to placate the masses and divert them from political activity. Shorter is consistently monitored and manipulated by handlers consisting of manager Martin Crossley (Jeremy Child), public relations representative Alvin Kirsch (Mark London), record company executive Julie Jordan (Max Bacon), and financial backer Andrew Butler (William Job). Businesses including nightclubs, shopping centers, product brands, and media outlets, carry Shorter's name, demonstrating his appeal to consumers. An artist, Vanessa Ritchie (Jean Shrimpton) has been hired to paint his portrait, and Shorter gravitates to her amidst his loneliness and isolation.
Demands upon Shorter's time and energy increases. He is asked to film a commercial for the country's apple growers, hoping to convince citizens to eat a disproportionately large amount of apples to make up for a surplus supply. More ominously, the collective churches of England strike an arrangement with the government and Shorter's empire to turn him into a messianic leader that will boost church attendance and a sense of national unity. An image change is announced in advance of a huge stadium concert, where he will publicly "repent," no longer perform in handcuffs, and will espouse religious themes in his songs. Shorter's equilibrium becomes more shaky; at a picnic where lobster is served, he absurdly orders hot chocolate to drink, and everyone present in turn orders hot chocolate as well, demonstrating he will be enabled at all times.
The stadium rally has a record attendance, and features militarized performance from various nationalist organizations. A firebrand preacher, Reverend Jeremy Tate, tells the assembled crowd they will be handed cards reading "We Will Conform," rails against the perceived post-war apathy in the country, and demands they repeat the words at his prompting, which they follow. Shorter and his band take the stage, with the band members wearing costumes and assuming poses reminiscent of Nazi Germany. Disabled citizens are given preferential seating to the stage, in the hopes Shorter's music will heal them. When Shorter later watches footage of the rally on television, he is disgusted at the display, and goes on a furniture-breaking tear. He also reveals to Vanessa that contrary to the publicity that his old show was just an act, he bears real scars and bruises from being legitimately assaulted by the mock policemen in the act.
Shorter's record company holds a formal event to give him an achievement award and profess theirs and the nation's love for him. Shorter finally breaks down, inarticulately declaring disgust for the public that cannot see past his charade, and asking to be seen as an individual and not the inflated deity he has been presented as. After stunned silence, the public reacts angrily, and his popularity immediately plummets. Andrew Butler announces his immediate resignation from the Shorter organization, as it is no longer lucrative for his investors. The narrator states that to placate the now-hateful masses, and to preserve the viability of the still extant businesses that carry his name, Shorter's music will be banned from airplay, and he shall not be allowed to speak or perform publicly again.
In postscript, the narrator reveals that there is little left of Shorter's career, and over archival footage of him ("with the soundtrack removed, of course..."), declares, "It is going to be a happy time in England, this year in the future."

Tags: violence, romantic, satire, sadist, flashback

Review:
Privilege is one of those `lost' rarely screened masterpieces that always seem to end up on some critic's top-ten list, but you almost never know anyone who has seen the film.
Paul Jones (lead singer of Manfred Mann) plays Steve Shorter, a British manufactured rock-n-roll icon, who is shaped and molded into a tool used to sell every product imaginable.
His managers know this and there is no organization they will not sell him out to.`The Church', in an act to attract more young members into its congregation, hires Steve to convince the nation's youth to become God-fearing Christians.
Privilege, even though rarely shown, is a surreal motion picture every film fanatic and music historian should seek out.
A film society at my school showed this movie for free in a lecture hall last night.
They also showed the short film "Lonely Boy" just before "Privilege" (it's funny to hear Paul Anka's manager saying how no one will be as famous as Paul Anka ever again, knowing that only two short years later The Beatles were on Ed Sullivan).
The film society also said that the director of "Privilege" watched "Lonely Boy" repeatedly, to get a feel for the mass hysteria and hero worship of teen idols."Privilege" is about pop star Steven Shorter, who has the teen population of Britain in the palm of his hand.
Behind Steve, however, are the corporations and investors using him to control teens, which is pretty scary to think about, considering the same is very nearly true today.
Steve controlled the public so well that with just one speech, he is able to turn the teens against himself.I liked this movie.
Corporate ownership of a rock star...hmm..Singing the message his corporate masters want him to sing...hmmm...Using pop songs to manipulate the ideas and thoughts of youth in the mold that is 'desirable' by 'those in charge'...hmmm  Naw, it'd never happen!!
Turns out this film was pre Beatles Apple (empire) and it turned out the idea was somewhat 'prophetic' I liked the film..I remember seeing it several times..bought the book, own two copies of the soundtrack.
(bought the Who's 'Who Sell Out' the same day...)  Neither Paul Jones and Jean Shrimpton were particularly brilliant actors, but they were able to convey the feelings of the time.
The late Michael Leanders music is still enjoyable and interesting..check out the film's version of 'Onward Christian Soldiers'  Overall, I would like to see this film again!.
Using the faux documentary style, Watkins' follows a year in the life of a pop star.
Paul Jones gives a wonderful performance as Steven Shorter, possibly the most famous man in Great Britain.
The original songs are great ("Privilege(Set Me Free)" was covered by Patti Smith in 1978) and the scenes of Shorter leading a fascist-like rally are still eerie (perhaps an influence on the film PINK FLOYD THE WALL?).
Another great scene deals with Shorter being conscripted into writing a Catholic rock song, which anticipates how the organized Christianity of today tries to use rock as a way of converting people.
The young pop star receives "Privilege" in return for exercising power (unknowing manipulation) over the masses for his unseen (but knowing) masters.
The finale of the film is an Orwellian vision where he has fallen from grace, his career is over, but since record of him cannot be erased so easily his publicised image is restricted to visual only, his voice is erased...I guess the film was originally created as a "pop" metaphor of Communist regimes, but my memory of it resonates with much of modern media, and public, pop-hysteria.Oh, I remember the music as good too, but I'm bracing myself for a shock if I hear it again...
Nowadays it feels very "middle of the road"!)  Paul Jones still rocks, running his show on BBC Radio 2 on Blues (at time of writing)..
The formerly preposterously rare (two extant prints in the universe) 1967 film "Privilege" has just been digitally restored in its original color and is now available on any DVD sales site.This matters for several reasons.
Its plot, considered so far-fetched at the time that the film was oft labeled science fiction, centers around an increasingly totalitarian government in a first world country that attempts social engineering at all levels, including utilization of pop culture.
It's hit on the formula to control youthful rebellion and dissent in general by investing a young pop idol with state-sponsored power (more in a minute) as centerpiece of national obsession.
(Not like....now in 2008!) This person hired to quell all rebellion eventually starts to rebel against the state-sponsored "love." And the actor hired to be both this convincing a pop star and soul tormented practically to torpor was an actual rockgod, Paul Jones, the tall, good-looking blond singer of the Manfred Mann group of the mid-60's, if you recall the hearty voice on classic Brit oldies "Do Wah Diddy" and "Pretty Flamingo." "Privilege"'s director Peter Watkins, known for terrifying all of Britain with the first realistic, ultra-violent post nuclear apocalypse film "The War Game," knew how important casting is, despite trade-offs.
Paul Jones was of the minute modern, and could convey this fantastical idea of Orwellian government control through a pop star by being a credible pop star known at the time.
Suffice it to say, their roles and performances well hold up today: they are who they play, and they look perfect.Jones is actually a compelling performer and great vocalist, singing real (as opposed to "movie") rock songs in this film.
Pretty good rock songs too: one was covered 25 years later by Patti Smith and Paula Pierce and The Pandoras, which then sounded as modern as ever.
"Privilege" feels more real and works better today in 2008 than when it was released forty one years ago.
Peter Watkins "Privelege" pretends to be a documentary about a fictional rock star, "Steven Shorter".
Paul Jones (singer for Manfred Mann in the early, "Doo Wah Diddy"/"Quinn The Eskimo" days), struggles to deal with his personal problems, amidst violent live shows,and assorted political conspiracies that attempt to manipulate and control him.
Some pretty reasonable music, (the christian rock group made up of young robed monks, is an odd highlight!), including a visually stunning climactic performance of "Jerusalem", will make you wonder why this film isn't better known in America.
Not as sinister as Big Brother in Orwell's '1984' but an impressive and lighter look at how certain segments of the establishment can influence society via a mixture of nationalism and religion.A quality cast with original music and WOW clothes design.
Very fascinating movie about how a society can control their youth via a super star.
The one major flaw of the film is Paul Jones' performance as the Singer Steve.
Steven Shorter is a charismatic pop star with mesmerizing influence over his young impressionable audiences.
In this struggle, he is encouraged by the young artist who is painting his portrait.The original songs by Mike Leander and rock versions of "Jerusalem" and "Onward Christian Soldiers" are catchy and provide the movie's best moments.
Despite success as a fashion model, her lackluster performance herein was likely one reason she has only two film credits.In support of the two leads, Shorter's handlers and the clergy are convincing, and the film has a fascination that transcends its flaws, which include lazy overuse of narration.
Burning crosses, hysteria-induced "miracles," screaming young women with tear-stained cheeks, pounding hymns and anthems, sinister-looking clergymen, police brutality: "Privilege" seems to have been drawn from "Triumph of the Will" and, in turn, later inspired "Pink Floyd, The Wall." An often powerful warning about the evils of mixing church and state, restricting individual rights, and following demigods, "Privilege" remains a flawed work that is definitely worth a look..
Made on the cusp of 'swinging' London/Britain, this rather prescient story of the states use of popular culture as a form of mass control (in this instance, pop music), and the abuse of a single human in place of controlling everyone else of the same age group, is a bizarrely forgotten piece of British cinema.
Even the presence of two well-known figures of the time, did not seem to help this piece; these being Paul Jones (famous as front man for pop group Manfred Mann), and Jean Shrimpton, who is said to have been the world's first supermodel.Steven Shorter (Paul Jones), is "the most dangerously loved entertainer in the world".
Like Jones' character it is not complete, the surface of the canvas marked but not whole.Directed by British filmmaker Peter Watkins, it was a progression of his experiments mixing documentary and drama.
I believe Privilege should have its place along with these, and other British/European films of the time, and remembered for being a wildly interesting, and important British film - both sociologically and politically.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com.
It's really the first feature about the ugly side of the music business and with a thinking mans vile of sci-fi brew tinged with British black humor it's point is probably easier to convey than it was back then since we have seen so many media manufactured teen stars selling everything from, happy meals and fashions to virginity.
Vivid, effective mockumentary about a wildly popular rock star whom the Powers that Be are trying to turn into a tool of the state.
In short the music is by far the best thing about the movie So what's wrong with the rest of the miss en scene ?
It worked fine in Watkin's previous work like CULLODEN and THE WAR GAME but these were precursors to what we now call " docudramas " , the only time we see a natural home for the Italian neo-realist style .
You see both the state and the church want to use the popularity and charisma of Shorter to control the population for their own end , in short to make popular music in general and Stephen Shorter in particular the new opiate of the masses .
Let's not forget if Bush and Blair want to be seen doing good in the world then all they have to do is call a press conference and have Bob Geldof and Bono talk about AIDS , starving babies and third world debt and the link between Nuremberg rallies and present day rock concerts is presented very well , it's just that you're never entirely convinced an Illuminati would never need to pull strings in order to bring about fascist regimes or fundamentalist theocracies because these type of societies come about via more obvious methods PRIVILEGE was a film that was supposed to make a star out of Paul Jones and put Watkins on the map as Britain's most important film director .
It's also a film that very rarely crops up on network television either , to my knowledge Channel 4 last showed it 20 years ago which is a great pity because this deserves to be at least a cult classic whatever its flaws and for music fans who have bought Patti Smith's Easter album just wait till you hear Jones perform the original Set Me Free.
Besides being a classic rock film, the score of "Privilege" should be noted.
Also notable is that the role of Steven was played by Paul Jones who was the vocalist for the group "Manfred Mann."  If for no other reason than its historical and sociological importance, this film and its score should be examined by students of our culture.
We still talk about it.Reviewer gein's comment reminded me that, like Steve Shorter, the Rolling Stones were asked to help the British necktie industry by wearing ties on-, and, probably, off-, stage.
Like "Darling" and the recent "Stoned," it's a great look into the darker side of "swinging London." chrish51 I, too regret that this film is not available on DVD or shown on TV.
Paul Jones is rock idol Steven Shorter in "Privilege," a 1967 film from Britain that also stars Jean Shrimpton.
Shorter (Jones) has the minds and hearts of the British public with his Beatle-like appearance and music, so the people behind him use him to promote any agenda they have, be it pushing the consumption of apples, conformity, religion, you name it.
He goes along with their current manipulation of the public until he meets a beautiful young artist (Shrimpton) who encourages him to delve deeper into his own feelings and desires.The film has a great premise and lots of potential but for this viewer, it wasn't realized.
The rock versions of "Onward Christian Soldiers" and "Jerusalem" are great.Jean Shrimpton at one time was a world-famous supermodel and a spectacular beauty.
Paul Jones is actually a very good actor, and gets to show it in a couple of scenes, but he was directed to have that empty vessel syndrome - where you're such a blank that an audience can infuse anything they want into you.
I saw Privilege years ago, when it had just come out on the screen and found it interesting, if a bit strange.
I was lucky enough to find this movie on Ebay, after hearing good things about it.Similar to other comments, I definitely can see how the main character Steven Shorter can be compared with some of today's pop stars.Originally I read that this film is a lot like the 'A Clockwork Orange', but with the exception of the whole conformity thing I didn't see it.It's a good movie in its own right, though.
The story is a interesting concept on how you could use a superstar singer to exploit products and ideals.The guy from Manfred Mann(Paul Jones) plays the lead, and even though he's not that great, he's not that bad either.The way the religious folks were kind of betrayed like Nazis wouldn't play too well today, but it was effective.The stunning visuals during the musical performances and the music is very good, but forget about a finding a soundtrack.Patti Smith does a cool version of 'Set me Free'.Maybe one day they'll release this on DVD..
As mentioned by another user, this film was clearly inspired by the b&w short subject, "Lonely Boy," including several scenes (such as the press conference) where entire snatches of dialogue from the short were integrated into the script.The songs were quite memorable, including, as I recall, two versions of the title theme ("It's an honor to see me, an honor to free me, an honor to have that privilege...") as well as rocked up versions of "Onward, Christian Soldiers!" and "Jerusalem." And the climatic night time concert sequence was quite compelling -- and very Nuremburg Rally.Finally, this rather intellectual British art film was basically remade in '68 in the dumbed down American film, "Wild in the Streets"..
Good thing, too, as I doubt my local Blockbuster (if it's still open) is stocking this next to all those copies of "The Hunger Games".Well, having read a bit about the movie's subject matter, I popped Privilege into my DVD player.
It worked for me for about 25 minutes, as I enjoyed the movie version performance of the aforementioned song, but it seemed like a long downhill slog from there.
Paul Jones seemed to do OK as the lead (even if he wasn't a "trained" actor), and Jean Shrimpton sure is nice to look at, but of course also not being a real actor, her part didn't seem too believable.You're going to have to really work to see this movie in 2012, as it won't be easy to find, or to make it all the way through a viewing.
Manfred Mann lead singer Paul Jones stars as Steven Shorter(SS),a pop star who is the creation of church and state.
Jones' gives an effectively introverted, naturalistic performance that was subject to unfairly harsh criticism when the film was released.
On a side issue I was rather surprised to note that the clothes, particularly the girls' seemed very much pre 1967 but thought maybe I was wrong and then watched another 1967 film (The Sorcerers) and there the cameraman is almost climbing up the slinky mini skirts so not quite sure why Watkins' girls looked from previous time..
If I'm being generous I'd not entirely castigate Paul Jones' performance for this, as I suspect he was being told Stephen Shorter should have 'no personality' and is a 'blank canvas'.
The producers ought to have held out for a talented actor who could have been dubbed, rather than a pop star who should have stuck with Manfred Mann (although if he had maybe we wouldn't have got all the brilliant Mike D'Abo hits such as Mighty Quinn or Ragamuffin Man).I thought 'Privilege' felt most like it could have been a British 'Network'?
But it is the phenomenal acting in the latter which raises it from rather preposterous story to completely believable gem, with Faye Dunaway demonstrating just what can be imbued in a character designed to be just as two-dimensional and vapid emotionally as Shorter.Looking at it 45 years on, the themes of state control and pop puppetry retain a contemporary relevance which make this film an interesting watch.
Since both films deal with rock star celebrity issues, it made some sense.
One example: in both films there is an interview with the manager who is asked if it is true that they sell the star's hair after a haircut and the answer is something like, "we donate it to charity.".
I wish this film was available, but I remember several images though it's been almost 30 years since I saw it on a late TV movie.
this film came out in the late sixties and pretty much died on its release, i saw it and did not like it that much, nor did most of the critics.
peter watkins the filmmaker with this film and his punishment park, another film which unbelievably is more relevant today than when it was made over 30 years ago, seems to have known where the world was going whilst the rest of us just partied on without a care.