The Driver’s Seat (Identikit) | Press Release

BFI Blu-ray, iTunes and Amazon Prime release on 26 June 2023

Never before released in the UK, THE DRIVER’S SEAT (aka IDENTIKIT) remains the most obscure, bizarre and wildly misunderstood film of Elizabeth Taylor’s illustrious career. Adapted from an unnerving novella by Muriel Spark (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie), the film marked a bold step into the unknown for the screen icon in the early 70s. Now newly restored in 4K by Cineteca di Bologna and Severin Films, the BFI brings it to Blu-ray on 26 June 2023. Extras include a filmed introduction, an audio commentary and a selection of complementary archival films.

Elizabeth Taylor stars as a troubled woman who, upon arriving in Rome, finds a city fragmented by autocratic law enforcement, leftist violence and her own increasingly unhinged mission to find the most dangerous liaison of all.

Co-starring Ian Bannen, Mona Washbourne and Andy Warhol, THE DRIVER’S SEAT stunned critics and audiences alike on its premiere in 1974. The film also features cinematography by three-time Oscar winner Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now).

Special features

Restored in 4K by Cineteca di Bologna and Severin Films, and presented in High Definition

Introduction by Kier-La Janisse, author of House of Psychotic Women (2022, 6 mins)

Audio commentary with curator and programmer Millie De Chirico (2022)

A Lack of Absence (2022, 22 mins): writer and literary historian Chandra Mayor on Muriel Spark and The Driver’s Seat

The Driver’s Seat credit sequences (1974, 4 mins)

Darling, Do You Love Me? (1968, 4 mins): in a parody of her media persona, Germaine Greer stars as a terrifyingly amorous woman who pursues a man relentlessly

Waiting For… (1970, 11 mins): a woman embarks on a filmmaking project after being given a camera and told to capture her everyday reality

The Telephone (1981, 4 mins): a young woman enacts imaginative revenge on her boyfriend

National Theatre of Scotland trailer (2015, 2 mins): a promotional clip for the UK’s first stage production of The Driver’s Seat

***First pressing only*** illustrated booklet with new essays by Simon McCallum and Bruce LaBruce, an essay by Kier-La Janisse originally published in the book House of Psychotic Women, notes on the special features and credit

Product details

RRP: £19.99 / Cat. no. BFIB1489 / 15

Italy, West Germany | 1974 | colour | 102 minutes | English language with optional descriptive subtitles

/ original aspect ratio 1.85:1 | BD50: 1080p, 24fps, LPCM 2.0 mono audio (48kHz/24-bit)

Pre-order from the BFI Shop: https://shop.bfi.org.uk/the-driver-s-seat-blu-ray.html