THE NINTH CONFIGURATION (TWINKLE TWINKLE KILLER KANE)

US, 1979, 117 minutes, Colour.
Stacy Keach, Scott Wilson, Jason Miller, Ed Flanders, Neville Brand, Moses Gunn, Robert Loggia.
Directed by William Peter Blatty.

For fifteen years Exorcist author William Peter Blatty has promoted this project, now directing it himself. It is stylishly done, in a Gothic mansion in northern California, full of statues and gargoyles, containing Vietnam veterans, mentally collapsed. Scott Wilson has a significant role. Vincent Kane (a glazed-eyed Stacy Keach) comes to heel with bizarre results, role-plays in a cuckoo's nest. The plot twists after an hour and there is a pwerfully melodramatic sequence of humiliation and violence, fraught with Christ-figures and Catholic theological and philosophical overtones as has been the first part. The epilogue (and last minute) are not as persuasive as the rest. Enigmatic, partly pretentious; religious, symbolic and disturbing. Blatty wrote the screenplays for some of Blake Edwards' Pink Panther comedies in the '60s.

1. The significance of the title? Play on nursery rhyme - hints of madness? Violence with the twinkling? An alternate title, The Ninth Configuration? How is this film best described? The conventions it uses? Breaking through conventions? What is the audience left with after the experience? The ending?

2. William Peter Blatty and his reputation as a writer? The Exorcist? His responsibility for this film, novel, screenplay, production, direction? His intention to make the film in the '60s? A different film released in 1980? What would it have said about America and Vietnam in the '60s? In comparison with what it says In 1980? The changes of attitude in the audience? Americans? World wide audience?

3. The use of Panavision? Colour photography? The importance of the musical score? The use of the castle, a European atmosphere in California? The atmosphere of Gothic castles, beauty, mystery, the sinister, religious? The religious overtones of the castle and the statuary and symbolism? The castle as hospital, asylum? Its nearness to the town and the contrast with the way of life in the town, especially the hotel and the bikies? How well did the film suggest insanity, costumes and decor? The atmosphere of the '60s with the diner and the bikies? The importance of dreams, vision? The psychological atmosphere of the film, sickness and healing?

4. The importance of the structure: the focus on the castle and its inmates, the coming of Colonel Kane, his involvement in the healing? The revelation of the truth about him? The first part of the film centred in the castle? How well did the film make the transition to the diner and the characters being outside the castle? The explosion of violence? The return to the castle and the ending? The epilogue with the happy ending, the effectiveness or triteness of the St. Christopher medal?

5. The overtones of the title, innocence of the nursery rhyme, madness? The importance of the focus on Kane, his identity, reputation as a killer?

6. The film as a comment on Vietnam, on war, American involvement, the violence and viciousness of war, the average American's involvement in it, the attitude of people at home to the war? Government and the administration of war? The consequent madness and the need for healing? The reasons given for the war? Pro and anti? The film indicating how the war made America mad? The types of madness displayed? The destruction of America? Saviours needing salvation?

7. The type of Americans who went to war - the ordinary soldiers, their inability to cope with the violence, the breaking into madness? The officers? The type of Americans presented outside the walls of the castle: NASA, the bikies and their violence at home, their capacity for war?

8. Captain Cutshaw as the focus of the film? The dream, the moon? His performing, with the men, with Colonel Fell, with Kane? His reaction to the takeover? The fire? His suffering, violence, action and dress? His tears? His drive? The relationship with Kane himself? His being a victim? The escape from the castle? The diner? His drinking? The discovery by the bikies of his reputation as an astronaut? The build-up to his being bashed? His being saved by Kane? The impact of Kane intervening and erupting in violence? The return to the castle? Cutshaw confronting his phobias, his inability to face the space launch, his fears about going to the moon? His fears about himself? The final interaction with Kane? Confrontation, Kane giving his life? His carrying Kane and the overtones of the Pieta? The film ending with Cutshaw's return to the castle and his observations? The fact that he was saved and healed? The focus on humanity, Cutshaw being served, the quality of Kane's giving of himself, the breaking down of the madness? The final questions that he asked about sanity and salvation?

9. The portrait of Kane, the build up to his coming, the solemnity of his arrival and his silence, Stacey Keach's presence, grimness? The reputation for being a killer? The interaction with the doctor and meeting the patients? The oddity of Kane? The gradual revelation of his identity? His work for the patients, his availability? The language of violence, his memories of Vietnam and their vividness? The language of Catholic theology blended with psychology? The interaction with Cutshaw and the main focus of the healing process with him? Reno and Spinnell and the discussions? Colonel Fell and his quips, his revelation of the truth about Kane, his grief? The arguments, especially about religion? The ironic references to movies e.g. The Great Escape? The importance of Kane's dreams? Violent outburts? The importance of role-plays and the acting out of trauma? His going out to save Cutshaw? The humility and silence in the diner? The ugliness of his licking the boots of the bikie? The credibility of his erupting in violence? His confrontation of the bikies? A second time of killing? His return to the castle, his talking with Cutshaw, his giving his life for him, the significance of the note? The importance of the Christ figure overtones of Kane emptying himself, becoming one with the mad soldiers? Giving his life?

10. Colonel Fell and the comic introduction to him, his wisecracks, his attempts to help Kane? The importance of the revelation of the truth about him? His tears? His grief at the end? The irony that he was controlling the experiment and that it was as much for his brother as for the others? Was he left with failure or not?

11. The range of patients and the 'Cuckoo's Nest' overtones of their appearance, dress, behaviour? Reno and the long discussions about presenting Hamlet in a canine form? The place of the dogs in the castle? The interviews with the dogs? Fairbanks and his hammer and Kane's smashing? Spinnell? The man who thought he was Superman? The Al Jolson imitation? The humour of the mad antics of this group of patients? The pathos of their behaviour? How well did the film strike a blend between the ludicrous and the pathetic? Where did audience sympathies lie?

12. Groper and his sanity, his being in charge, his voicing the official opinion of the men being fakes? The emphasis on toughness? His resentment? The importance of 'Hands off him'? The confrontation with the Nazi overtones? His reaction to the truth? His wanting to protect Kane?

13. The world of the bikies, their appearance, violent? The men, the women? The waitress and the staff at the diner and their normality? The police? A microcosm of the potential violence in American society?

14. The war sequences, their place as flashback, as a dream? The importance of the attitude towards the Asians? The ugliness of visualising Kane's killing, especially the head? The madness of war and the questioning of the values of war?

15. The film's theories about therapy, human needs, guilt and salvation, role-play, outlets for tension, fear? Breaking through mental blocks? Therapy as helping men take stock of themselves, its corrective value? The difficulty in the situation of discovering whether the men were truly mad or not, faking it in order to stay out of active service? What attitude did the screenplay take towards madness and therapy?

16. The overtones of the cinema world and drama, films, quiz questions about films, role-plays and acting, Hamlet, The Great Escape?

17. How credible was the religious atmosphere of the film? the gargoyles of the castle, the Christ figures and the crucifixes? The bikies as the gargoyles of modern America? Devil figures? The Catholic talk? The long discussions about the soul, God, suffering? The theory of the Christ figure and giving of life for others? The significance of the St. Christopher medal?

18. The film as a parable about America in the '60s and '70s? The various stances that the key figures represented? The value of the film as an analysis via symbol and role play? The film's prognosis for American society?