John Mackenzie's - The Long Good Friday - DVD Bob Hoskins Helen Mirren John Mackenzie The Long Good Friday DVD Bob Hoskins Helen Mirren

directed by John Mackenzie
UK 1980

Bob Hoskins, in his breakthrough film role, stars as a London racketeer fast losing control of his gangland empire; Helen Mirren shines as his classy moll. John Mackenzie’s stylish thriller is a marriage of gangster flicks from both sides of the Atlantic.

****
The Long Good Friday is a textbook example of what a commercial British picture should be - which makes it all the more ironic that, due to various legal snarl-ups, the film was never actually given a wide release in UK cinemas. It's a fast-paced thriller that's strikes the right balance between humour and seriousness, and manages to function as both a penetrating psychological character study and a fascinating social and historical snapshot of a certain place at a certain critical point in history. MacKenzie's achievement is to blend all these elements together into a satisfying whole without ever pulling his punches - this is one of that rare breed: a gangster film for adults.

Whatever his shortcomings as a visual stylist, MacKenzie's pacing is faultless - the incredible bottle-attack scene starts with an ominously long spell of silence during which Harold is seen pouring himself a drink on his boat, and, while the audience is still absorbing the ferocity of its conclusion, the scene is followed by a powerful image of Harold in the shower, his squat head and shoulders refracting through the steamed-up shower door. This is the moment at which you realize just how skillfully and powerfully you've been caught up by the energy of this actor, this character, this remarkable film.

Excerpt from Neil Young's Jigsaw Lounge review located HERE.

Theatrical Release: November 1980 - London Film Festival

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DVD Comparison:

Criterion - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Anchor Bay (Special Edition) - Region 1 - NTSC

(Criterion - Region 0 - NTSC LEFT vs. Anchor Bay (Special Edition) - Region 1 - NTSC RIGHT)

DVD Box Cover
Distribution	Criterion Collection - Spine # 26 Region 0 - NTSC	Anchor Bay (Special Edition) Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:54:12	1:53:56
Video	1.70:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 4.62 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 5.23 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono)	English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Subtitles	None	None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: Widescreen letterboxed - 1.70:1 Edition Details: • British and American theatrical trailers DVD Release Date: November 24th, 1998 Keep case Chapters 21	Release Information: Studio: Anchor Bay Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Commentary by director John MacKenzie • Featurette: ' Bloody Business' (54:26) • Trailers • Cockney Slang Glossary • Poster Gallery • Talent bios (text) DVD Release Date: April 4th, 2006 Keep Case inside cardboard box Chapters 20

Comments

NOTE: We have added one frame from the PAL UK (also by Anchor Bay) release below. It has the same commentary but the featurette is a 30 minute interview.

In an unusual circumstance Anchor Bay is besting Criterion whose ancient (1999) bare-bones 4:3 widescreen release seems like easy pickings to climb above. The Criterion captures are in their native resolution but the Anchor Bay have been reduced from 960 to 800 so judgment of detail via the screen caps is not 100% accurate. I still think the Criterion nudges ahead on detail - colors are about the same. The Criterion edition has a black border around the outer edge limiting horizontal resolution. The Anchor Bay skin tones are a little red indicating some possible manipulation.

Where the Anchor Bay vaults ahead is in the extras department - Criterion offers a UK and US trailer but Anchor Bay have a director commentary and an , almost hour long, featurette.

One note of disappointment - as the cockney slang can be quite thick until you catch on - optional subtitles, by either release, would have been appreciated.

- Gary Tooze

DVD Menus

(Criterion - Region 0 - NTSC LEFT vs. Anchor Bay (Special Edition) - Region 1 - NTSC RIGHT)

Screen Captures