NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: BFI Blu-ray (June 2025): BFI have transferred Shane Meadows' TwentyFourSeven to Blu-ray. It is on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate. Shot in stark black-and-white and TwentyFourSeven’s aesthetic choices enhance its themes of despair, hope, and working-class struggle. This choice evokes classic social realist films like Lindsay Anderson’s This Sporting Life , Ken Loach's Cathy Come Home or even some of Terence Davies work, grounding the story in a timeless, almost documentary-like authenticity. The 1080P transfer picks this up effectively. The lack of color strips away distractions, focusing attention on character emotions and the town’s bleakness. The grainy texture of the original 35mm print is preserved, maintaining the film’s raw, post-industrial aesthetic, while the restoration eliminates scratches and artifacts, making urban decay - crumbling estates, sweaty boxing rings - vividly tactile. Scenes like the Wales camping trip benefit from nuanced grayscale, with natural landscapes popping against the stark urban settings. This transfer respects the film’s social realist roots while elevating its visual impact. The HD presentation appears to be wonderfully authentic.

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On their Blu-ray, BFI use a linear PCM dual-mono channel track (24-bit) in the original English language. TwentyFourSeven audio captures the film’s naturalistic sound design with clarity and depth. Ambient noises - pub chatter, street hum, the thud of boxing gloves - are crisp, immersing viewers in the Midlands town’s atmosphere. The dialogue, often improvised and overlapping, is well-balanced, ensuring the youths’ banter and Bob Hoskins’ commanding delivery remain intelligible. The score is credited to Boo Hewerdine (Intermission) and Neil MacColl (2015's Far From the Madding Crowd.) The soundtrack, featuring The Charlatans’ “North Country Boy” and Van Morrison’s “Wild Night,” among others, resonates with emotional weight, with restored audio enhancing the music’s warmth and texture. While limited to mono, the mix avoids distortion and complements the film’s raw energy, especially in boxing scenes. The audio restoration aligns with Meadows’ vision of authenticity, reinforcing the film’s working-class pulse. The uncompressed transfer handles the job cleanly, effectively and without flaw. BFI offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'B'-locked Blu-ray.

The BFI Blu-ray offers a new commentary by Andrew Graves (Welcome to the Cheap Seats: Silver Screen Portrayals of the British Working Class, Not Dancing With Ingrid Pitt) that offers a thoughtful breakdown of Meadows’ directorial techniques, the film’s social realist influences, and its commentary on post-Thatcher Britain, veering into scholarly territory as well. Worth the indulgence for those who enjoy the film or director. The Guardian Interview: Shane Meadows and Bob Hoskins (1997/2025) stands out, delivering a dynamic feature-length conversation with Derek Malcolm where the duo reflects on the film’s creation, Hoskins’ immersive role, and Meadows’ use of non-professional actors, blending original 1997 footage with fresh 2025 insights. Historical shorts like Ritchie, The World’s Light-weight Boxing Champion (1914, less than a minute), showcasing Willie Ritchie’s training for his 1914 fight with Freddie Welsh, and Twelve Hours Punching (1924, 1.5 minutes), featuring amateur bouts at Alexandra Palace, provide a fascinating historical lens on boxing’s past, though their short lengths limit their scope. Lastly are two 1997 trailers and the package's illustrated booklet with new essays by Andrew Graves, Caj Sohal (Head of Sport at Channel 5 TV and MD of Tenmonkeys, makers of sport docs,) and Tim Coleman explores themes of class, masculinity, and Meadows’ style in detail.

Shane Meadows' TwentyFourSeven is a raw, emotionally charged British drama that marks the filmmaker’s feature debut. Starring Bob Hoskins (Mona Lisa, The Long Good Friday) as Alan Darcy, a flawed but idealistic loner, the film explores themes of redemption, community, masculinity, and the fragility of hope in a world marked by despair. Darcy recruits aimless youths - many entangled in gang rivalries, drugs, and petty crime - offering them purpose through boxing. A complex protagonist, Darcy is both savior and tragic figure. His passion for boxing stems from personal redemption, but his temper and inability to confront his demons (hinted-at alcoholism and isolation) doom his efforts. Hoskins delivers a tour-de-force performance, balancing warmth, intensity, and vulnerability. His character reflects the archetype of the flawed idealist, akin to figures in Ken Loach’s social realist films. The BFI Blu-ray of TwentyFourSeven is a definitive release for Shane Meadows’ (Dead Man's Shoes) poignant debut, offering a meticulously remastered high-definition presentation that elevates its black-and-white visuals to new heights, faithfully preserving its gritty social realist aesthetic. The extras, including Andrew Graves’ commentary, the extensive Guardian Interview with Meadows and Hoskins, historical boxing shorts, trailers, and an insightful booklet, provide substantial value, deepening appreciation for the film’s craft and context. This release not only showcases Bob Hoskins’ powerhouse performance and Meadows’ raw talent but also resonates with boxing-film fans, making it a must-own for those who engage in British cinema and working-class narratives.

Gary Tooze