Goodbye Gemini (1970) User Reviews

Twins make trouble

[Bribaba · 6/10 · 17 August 2012]

Twins arrive in London on an overnight bus wearing matching fluorescent jackets and clutching a teddy-bear (always a sign of evil). They've not even unpacked their bags before they murder their new landlady and get invited to an inevitably swinging' party. Jacki (Judy Geeson) is the female half of the twins and looks lovely even in the aforementioned garment, which is more than can be said for Julian (Martin Potter). He's the possessive twin who swings both ways and whose love for his sister is less than wholesome. They attend a few parties, talk to their teddy and get mixed up with some menacing Earls Court transvestites, a liaison that leads to blackmail and murder.

There's nothing here that can really be called a narrative, it's more like someone thought a swinging London movie with a psycho tilt would be really groovy. However, the film is based upon Ask Agamemnon by Jenni Hall (no, I've never heard of it, either). Despite the wavering storyline it's a strangely compelling film with an admirable wildness. The cast are game, except Michael Redgrave who has the air of an actor unaccustomed to such material. The camera-work from Geoffrey Unsworth is as exceptional as ever, tut the psychotic tone is best summed up by The Peddlers funky theme song: ('when the world comes knocking') Tell The World We're Not In.

Twinsanity forces jolly old Britain to examine its values (Spoilers)

[edeighton · 6/10 · 26 October 2018]

Also titled in some markets as "Twinsanity", this was an interesting 1970's British horror/thriller. This movie, with its drag queens, gay rape and incest themes, was probably much more of a disturbing freak show in the eyes of a conservative older British audience in 1970 than it is to a modern American viewer. The depiction of the "Aquarius Generation" as infantile, indulgent and decadent shows that although this was advertised as a youth-film, it was really a glimpse at an older generation's perceived horror at what they believed the younger generation was getting up to. In fact, when this movie was released it was targeted by the conservative press as endemic of everything wrong with contemporary British culture, resulting in protests and theaters refusing to show the film.

The soundtrack to the movie unmistakably sets the period and location of this film. The original soundtrack album became a cult classic and enjoyed far more popularity than the movie itself and was a sought after collector's item.

The movie was based on the novel, "Ask Agamemnon", by Jenni Hall. The novel was set up in non-chronological sequence (like "Pulp Fiction") so that the reader encounters Jacki after the murder, as she is in a state of shock and amnesia and follows her as she tries to piece together what happened and locate her brother. The doll, Agamemnon, plays a much larger roll in the novel than it does in the movie as in the novel, the doll guides Jacki through a series of long, Greek- tragedy type monologues.

The real locations used as settings in this film provide a neat glimpse of downtown London in the year 1970. Apparently, the bar scene was filmed at a famous drag queen bar and utilized a famous drag queen that went on to appear in the more appreciated film, Cabaret starring Liza Minnelli.

The relationship between James Harrington-Smith (Michael Redgrave) and Jacki (Judy Geeson) might have been the creepiest part of the whole film. This older distinguished television commentator was enamored by the twins. He stared at them at the house boat party and then later sent drinks over to them in a pub. When Harrington-Smith finds an emotionally unstable Jacki running through the streets of London late at night, he coaxes her back to his apartment and eventually beds her. Even after he discovers that Jacki might have been involved in a murder, Harrington-Smith keeps her as his personal and secret bed mate. But ultimately, when Jacki needs him the most, Harrington-Smith puts his reputation first and lets Jacki down condemning her to whatever fate she may suffer.

I have read a theory that suggest the scene of the twin ghosts killing Clive was direct inspiration to John Carpenter for the Michael Myers with a sheet over his head sequence in "Halloween", but I dont know if I buy that theory.

Goodbye Gemini when later released as a Video Cassette was added to the infamous "video nasties" list of VHS rentals banne

Campy incest and murder

[BandSAboutMovies · 6/10 · 20 December 2019]

Alan Gibson may have been born in Canada, but he's more known for his British horror films, which include Dracula A.D. 1972 and The Satanic Rites of Dracula.

Goodbye Gemini was based on the book Ask Agamemnon by Jenni Hall. The book differs in that it is written in the style of a Greek tragedy, with Agamemnon coming to life and interacting with Jacki, who has amnesia and sees the story unfold in less linear fashion.

The film is way more about the incestuous relationship between Jacki and Julian, which angered conservative groups who were already enraged about the excesses of pop culture at the end of the 1960's.

This film and Freddie Francis' Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly were targeted by the conservative press, which resulting in protests and theaters that refused to show either film. While they weren't on the list of video nasties, the scandal that came in the wake of these two films was definitely a precursor to their era.

Jacki (Judy Geeson, fresh off To Sir, With Love) and Julian (Martin Potter, fresh off Fellini's Satyricon) are twins on break from university who have entered London's party scene, accompanied by Jacki's teddy bear Agamemnon. The twins see the stuffed toy as a father figure and often speak to him as if he were a real person.

The twosome eventually connect with Clive (Alexis Kanner, The Prisoner), a pimp who knows the wealthy and well-connected. He's on the make for Jacki with his kind of, sort of girlfriend Denise wants Julian. However, Julian sees he and his sister as two sides of one hive mind and believes that incest is the natural next stage in their closeness.

Clive, on the other hand, is hiding from a huge debt within the house of the twins. In order to get the money, Clive drugs Julian and has two of his transgender prostitutes molest the twin while the pimp takes photos for blackmail. Denise confesses this plan to Jacki, telling her that Clive has done this in the past and has gone so far as to sell men into sexual slavery.

Jacki soon comforts Julian, telling him that their relationship has not changed. She helps him escape this issue by tricking Clive. It starts when they bet him that he can't tell them apart. They dress their room into an altar for their bear and dress in ceremonial robes. As the pimp awakens, they repeatedly stab him, which leads to Agamemnon being cut in half. This causes her to have a nervous breakdown.

As an amnesiac Jacki recovers at the home of parliament member James Harrington-Smith (Sir Michael Redgrave, father of Vanessa and Lynn, in one of his last roles), the police go on a manhunt for the twins. Between James not wanting to be connected to the scandal and the twins increasingly fragile grasp on reality, there's no way that this story can end happily.

Bizarre but cool Swinging London/British psycho flick

[lazarillo · 13 December 2006]

This is a very decent movie directed by Alan Gibson, who would later become a second-rate Hammer director responsible for such dreck as "Dracula AD 1972" and "The Satanic Rites of Dracula". It features Judy Geeson, at the height of her loveliness, and Martin Potter, one of the pretty-boys from "Fellini's Satyricon", as a pair of seemingly innocent fraternal twins who come to London and are preyed upon by a crowd of jaded hedonists led by a guy named Clive (who sports flaming red mutton-chops and the strangest English accent I have ever heard).

Most of the movie resembles a more serious version of Pete Walker's "Cool It, Carol", and probably a more historically accurate one too as far as the Swinging London Era of the 1960's is concerned. The movie then veers into psycho territory, however. The twins have an unusually symbiotic relationship and display some psychopathic tendencies, like playing a nasty prank that causes their landlady to fall down the stairs. In the most memorable scene they dress up in bedsheets with only their eyes showing and challenge Clive to tell them apart. The childish game shockingly winds up with an ornamental sword going through one person's neck and everything unravels from there. Some may find the sheer pathos and the unresolved ambiguity of the end a little frustrating, but it makes for a memorable movie is nothing else.

I'd recommend this period because it is genuinely unique movie, but if you like films about Swinging London like "Blow Up" or "Cool It, Carol", or British psycho movies like "Peeping Tom" or "Twisted Nerve" this one should be especially enjoyable

Goodbye. And good riddance.

[BA_Harrison · 2/10 · 17 April 2017]

Infantile psychotic twins Jacki and Julian (Judy Geeson and Martin Potter) arrive in London, immediately arranging an accident for their grouchy landlady so that they can have the run of the place. The siblings then set about experiencing the swinging London party scene, where they meet louche rogue Clive (Alexis Kanner, sporting some impressive mutton-chops). After Clive is roughed up by a bookmaker to whom he owes £400, he tricks Julian into bed with a pair of transvestites, takes a few photos and proceeds to blackmail the young man. However, instead of getting cash for his troubles, Clive gets knifed in the neck instead.

As a child of the '70s, I have an affinity with films from that era, especially those set in the UK, but Goodbye Gemini was a tough one to endure. It's horrible, hippy nonsense that features hedonistic characters hard to sympathise with, atrocious dialogue, and incomprehensible behaviour from all involved. An incestuous relationship between the inseparable twins is hinted at, which adds an edginess to proceedings, the music is groovy, and there are a couple of outrageously camp homosexuals who are mildly amusing (one wears a bright pink shirt and uses the word 'ducky' a lot—you don't get much more '70s than that!), but there really is very little else worthy of mention.

Twins of evil?

[tomsview · 7/10 · 6 June 2014]

"Goodbye Gemini" has Nehru shirts, large ties, hair helmets and sideburns, old guys hanging around with young birds, wall-to-wall partying, a dash of transvestitism, a little incest, and an atmosphere of anything goes as long as it's outrageous. It could only be the Swinging Sixties, and as they say, if you remember them, you weren't there.

The film is hard to define. It's a thriller, but with a unique vibe. Julian (Martin Potter) and Jacki (Judy Geeson) are an unnaturally close twin brother and sister who play games and live in a make-believe world. As Michael Redgrave's character says, "They carry their own universe with them". But Julian has a stronger attraction towards his sister than she has for him.

When they move to London to live in a large house arranged for them by their father, things start to unravel. We learn that all is not right when Julian viciously gets rid of the housekeeper who is in charge of the household. With the run of the house, they gravitate towards the London pub and party scene.

They meet some unsavoury characters especially Clive (Alexis Kanner), a bi-sexual pimp whose sadistic streak threatens to destroy the pair. At a party, Jacki also encounters politician, James Harrington-Smith (Michael Redgrave) who helps her when her life spirals out of control. As Jacki and Julian attempt to free themselves from Clive, it leads to a violent murder and a bleak ending.

I first became aware of this movie when I bought the soundtrack record for a few dollars back in the 1980's. Apparently it became a bit of a collector's item before it was eventually released on CD. The music and songs catch the flavour of the 60's, and composer Christopher Gunning's lyrical main theme weaves its way through the film. Gunning is a brilliant composer, mainly for television, and hasn't done many films - this was his first - but he had great range; under the right circumstances, he could have been another John Barry.

If there is one reason to watch this film it is Judy Geeson. Cute and nymph-like, she breezes through the movie for much of the time in hip-hugging satin pants, captivating all the males around her whether young, old, or closely related.

The mood in the film changes just a little too abruptly in places, but it has a similar feeling of accumulating decadence to Joseph Losey's "The Servant" - although it takes its own course towards it's depressing, typical late 60's ending.

Beautifully filmed, "Goodbye Gemini" captures London at a certain time, but to be honest, with its offbeat story and slightly hysterical treatment, it's probably more of a novelty item these days.

Goodbye weirdos

[AAdaSC · 4/10 · 15 April 2017]

The freak twins, Judy Geeson (Jacki) and Martin Potter (Julian) come to London to stay in a house in Chelsea and they immediately hit the party scene thanks to a meeting with Alexis Kanner (Clive) in a pub. Kanner is strange – he's a nasty conman who uses people but he's not as strange as the twins. Geeson and Potter are both child-like with Geeson laughing way too much at things that aren't funny and Potter being obsessively possessive about his sister. Worse, they love each other – and I mean actually love in an incestuous way that includes a physical relationship. So, it's uncomfortable viewing. The twins exact revenge on a couple of people. Are they untouchable?

This film is way too weird and not particularly enjoyable. You watch because you don't know where it's going but once watched, I think you get rid. It reminded me a bit of "Beyond the valley of the Dolls" but set amongst a seedy London party scene. Both films are not good and dish out some horror as well as peculiar characters that are scary and hard to relate to. Scary in a sexuality scary kind of way. Michael Redgrave (James) pops up in this as a familiar face on TV whilst Mike Pratt (Rodd) is probably the best in the cast as a debt collector.

As a Londoner, I recognized the locales – I spotted Cheyne Walk, Notting Hill Gate and Shepherds Bush Market and I know for a fact that there were hotels like that in Paddington in the 1980s. Dodgy ones. The central characters of the twins were just too weird.

Capture the era well

[udar55 · 6/10 · 21 September 2021]

Twins Jacki (Judy Geeson) and Julian (Martin Potter) arrive in swinging London and quickly fall in with the wrong crowd. Well, smarmy Clive (Alexis Kanner) to be more specific. Clive worms his way between the tight bond the twins have and, after he threatens to blackmail Julian, some killing goes down. This is a pretty minor horror-thriller as nothing really happens for the first 50 minutes. After that, it is a half hour of overwrought drama as Jacki runs from the law and gets help from an old guy. The film's biggest merit is probably the capturing the bars, folks and style of late 60s swinging London. Oh, and the hippest debt collector you will ever see. There is also some pretty snappy dialog and Kanner is really good as the would-be blackmailer.

Nailing Your Nose to the Lavatory Seat

[loza-1 · 2/10 · 8 March 2014]

The film starts off well. We are on a bus. As the Peddlers sing and play the song "Tell the World We're Not In," We see a carefree pair of star- crossed lovers. As the film progresses, we find out that the pair are actually twins. They are both immature. And they talk to a teddy bear named Agamemnon. In one scene the male twin uses the teddy bear as an oracle, which is probably how the source novel is called "Ask Agamemnon". In real life, twins can shut the world out even to the point of constructing their very own language. This pair have not got that far, but they have reached the point where incest is very much in evidence. Jenni Hall, the novelist also wrote: My Son, My Lover, which also touches on incest.

The pair fall into the Swinging London scene. There are drugs, scotch whisky, very camp gays, transvestites to add to incestuous twins. The impression I get is that the whole thing is to shock people for the sake of shocking them...under the guise of Swinging London. I was up and about in Swinging London. If you were at a party, chances were you would be drinking wine or beer, dancing with someone of the opposite sex,and dressed according to your own gender. People even smoked tobacco. And I can't say I ever witnessed anyone conversing with a teddy bear.

The male twin is the most unstable of the two, and wants to shut the rest of the world out; he just wants to be with his sister. That does not stop him for going out for the night with his sister's boyfriend to a seedy hotel, where he is seduced by transvestites. His sister's boyfriend photographs the proceedings, and uses it to blackmail the male twin,so that he can pay off a large sum of money to a violent loan shark, played by a moustachioed Mike Pratt.

The male twin challenges his sister's boyfriend to tell the twins apart. While the latter is out of the room, the twins dress in bedsheets where eyeholes have been cut with a sword. The sheets of course conceal the sword as well. The boyfriend is invited back in....Having been through incest, violence, smoking illegal substances, cross-dressing, male-on- male rape; then murder and subsequent suicide are mere bagatelles.

Quoting from Dame Edith Sitwell has not been fashionable for years. But her criticism of "that insignificant, dirty little book" which is how she described "Lady Chatterley's Lover," is what comes to mind when seeing this film. There comes a time in life when you stop pretending to be open-minded, and say: "Look I don't want to see this. I really don't want my nose nailed to other people's lavatories." We all know that there are people who have minds like sewers. The problem comes when they ram their filth down other people's throats. And Society really does degenerate as a result.

Fortunately, the Peddlers made a record of "Tell the World We're Not In;" so you can enjoy the best bit of this "insignificant, dirty little" film without having to watch it.

Really bizarre tale of a twin brother/sister combo set in the backdrop of 60's swinging London

[nomoons11 · 6/10 · 27 May 2012]

I really didn't know what to expect when I got to watching this. After the end, I walked away with a sense of watching twins who were not far outta their element.

What you'll get with this one is a fraternal twin brother and sister come to London. They're new in town and they have 2 real issues, they haven't grown-up and they're a tad too close to each other. They're in the early 20's and they cling to each other like white on rice and still like to play childhood games we all did when we were young. Problem is, they're right smack dab in the middle of swinging London in the late 1960's and there's a lot of strange characters lurking about. Of course not 1 is even close to the bizarreness these twins are but they are of the normal variety with "criminal" tendencies and they decide to try and pounce on what they think is an "easy" opportunity. Big mistake...these twins aren't that naive.

For me to go into scenes and plot would be a big mistake. I will say to expect some cross dressing, rape and murder. Strange scenes to say the least. You almost get the feeling that this was a wanna-be art film.

Most of the film you'll be trying to figure how these twins were raised...i.e...how they became the way they are. Of course we never do find out. Just expect a strange film about twins who are way to close to each other for their own good.

Bizarre

[malcolmgsw · 3/10 · 2 March 2020]

This.seems to be a hangover from the swinging sixties.A very strange story and weird characters.It is difficult to know what Michael Redgrave is doing in this.The film is a total mess and wouldn't have advanced the career of anyone involved with it.

Cool little psycho drama thriller

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 4 November 2010]

Sweet, naive Jacki (a perky and appealing portrayal by the adorable Judy Geeson) and moody, petulant Julian (a solid and effective performance by Martin Potter) are a couple of rich, spoiled, and sheltered fraternal twins who live in their own odd fantasy world and have an extremely close and uneasy symbiotic relationship. Their fragile personal universe gets ripped asunder with dire consequences for everyone when sneaky and ingratiating small-time criminal Clive Landseer (excellently played with devilish charm to spare by Alexis Kanner) attempts to blackmail Julian. Director Alan Gibson and writer Edmund Ward not only offer a funky and flavorsome depiction of the seamy underbelly of the decadent Swingin' Mod London night scene (the soundtrack in particular is appropriately groovy), but also deliver a frank and disturbing exploration of the darker, more unhealthy, and suffocating side of sibling love and loyalty complete with a bold presentation of incest and a stunning sequence in which Jacki and Julian dress up in white bedsheets and challenge Clive to tell them apart. Geeson and Potter display a strong and totally convincing natural chemistry in the lead roles; they receive sturdy support from Michael Redgrave as smooth, kindly politician James Harrington-Smith, Mike Pratt as menacing hoodlum Rod Barstowe, Freddie Jones as pompous, sharp-tongued overaged partygoer David Curry, Marion Diamond as Julian's long-suffering girlfriend Denise Pryce, and Terry Scully as mincing homosexual Nigel Garfield. Kudos are also in order for Geoffrey Unsworth's crisp and vibrant cinematography and Christopher Gunning's sumptuous score. The startling downbeat ending packs a very potent punch. Worth a look.

VERY strange but good psychological thriller

[preppy-3 · 7/10 · 1 February 2022]

Takes place in 1970 London. Jacki (Judy Geeson) and Julian (Martin Potter) are 20 year old twins who live together and love each other (incest is implied) Then they meet Clive (Alexis Kanner) who breaks up their little fantasy world. This leads to blackmail, murder and a very disturbing ending.

Forgotten thriller/horror movie. The script is good and the acting is great (Geeson and Potter are excellent) but it is dark and disturbing. It's not a blood and guts film (the one murder is obviously faked) but it does work on you. This may be too dark for some people but I found it fascinating. Good luck with the thick British accents.

So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu!

[Coventry · 3/10 · 19 May 2022]

I'm beginning to develop a real aversion towards alleged cult-films that feature the words "...in swinging London..." in their synopsis. It seems like "swinging" is simply a poor excuse to bring forward insufferable lead characters, nonsensical and totally unrealistic storylines, and ridiculously random plot twists. "Goodbye Gemini" is one of the most disappointing movies I've ever seen, especially because it was coming from an adequate director (Alan Gibson of "The Satanic Rites of Dracula") and starring one of the most gorgeous actresses of British horror cinema (Judy Geeson of "10, Rillington Place" and "Fear in the Night").

Based on a book that I luckily haven't read - it's probably even ten times more boring than the film - the story revolves around twin siblings, Jacki and Julian, arriving in London. They are naïve, childish, and unnaturally obsessed with each other. Just because they are so 'otherworldly', annoying hippie Clive hopes to take advantage of them, but then the twins turn psychotic.

The first full hour of "Goodbye Gemini" is dull, irritating, and pointless. Then comes the one and only horror-highlight. And then the last half hour is terribly boring again, with a miserable climax.