This Sporting Life - Richard Harris

Directed by Lindsay Anderson
UK 1963

One of the finest British films ever made, this benchmark of "kitchen-sink realism" follows the self-defeating professional and romantic pursuits of a miner turned rugby player eking out an existence in drab Yorkshire. With an astonishing, raging performance by a young Richard Harris, an equally blistering turn by fellow Oscar nominee Rachel Roberts as the widow with whom he lodges, and electrifying direction by Lindsay Anderson, in his feature-film debut following years of documentary work, This Sporting Life remains a dramatic powerhouse.

***

Lindsay Anderson's adaptation of David Storey's novel of rugby, beer and crippled lives is usually held up as a prime example of the kitchen-sink school of filmmaking. But it's a very different proposition from Saturday Night And Sunday Morning.

There are moments of high symbolism and Brechtian overdetermination which take the movie into very different territory - a scene involving a spider and a hospital bed is a particularly startling deviation from naturalism.

Richard Harris is the young rugby ace who dreams of a life lived for the joy of the game. Rachel Roberts is the middle-aged landlady with whom he pursues a frosty romance. But it's 'Dr Who' star William Hartnell who gives the film's greatest performance, as the tumbledown old man who encourages Harris's game with a barely concealed erotic fervour. He's one of cinema's most unusual corrupting influences. More than anything it has to say about the prison of working-class life, Anderson's movie is a battle between an old man and a widower for a man's affections.

Excerpt from Channel 4 located HERE

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Theatrical Release: my 1963 - Cannes Film Festival

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DVD Review: Criterion (2-disc) - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Criterion Collection - Spine # 417 - Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	2:14:12
Video	1.66:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 7.9 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 1.0)
Subtitles	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Criterion Collection Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 1.66:1 Edition Details: • Audio commentary featuring Paul Ryan, editor of *Never Apologise: The Collected Writings of Lindsay Anderson, and David Storey, screenwriter and author of This Sporting Life • Theatrical trailer Disc 2 • Lindsay Anderson: Lucky Man?* (2004), a short documentary from BBC Scotland featuring interviews with many of the director's friends and collaborators (29:00) • New video interview with Anderson's first producer and close friend Lois Sutcliffe Smith (18:23) • Meet the Pioneers (1948), Anderson's first film, a documentary short about a mining engineering firm (33:07) • Wakefield Express (1952), an early documentary by Anderson about the town that later served as the setting for This Sporting Life (32:17) • Is That All There Is? (1992), Anderson's autobiographical final film (52;12) • 34-page liner notes booklet featuring a new essay by film scholar Neil Sinyard and an article by Anderson from 1963 with many black and white photos DVD Release Date: January 22nd, 2007 Keep Case (overlapping disc holders) Chapters: 24

Comments:

Wow. A fabulous transfer from Criterion on this magnificent film. I'm aware that there have been other DVD editions released (ex. one in Scandinavia) but I do not own any of them to post comparative screen grabs... but I find it hard to believe that any of them could compare to Criterion's SD treatment of this Anderson masterpiece. I have little doubt of this DVDs superiority and brilliance. It has very strong detail at times with excellent grayscale and pristine contrast. Technically it is dual-layered in a 1.66 anamorphic ratio, and progressively transferred. There are some minor (often imperceptible in motion) scratches and light blemishes but the DVD image is visually very impressive indeed.

I LOVED this commentary - juxtaposing Paul Ryan's (editor of Never Apologise: The Collected Writings of Lindsay Anderson) extensive knowledge of Lindsay Anderson is aged novelist David Storey's true-life anecdotes of his experiences in the game of rugby, meeting Anderson and getting his book transformed into a film. I judge it to be the most enjoyable commentary of this short year. Disc one also offers an un-restored 2:22 theatrical trailer.

On disc two we have some featurettes - 'Lindsay Anderson: Lucky Man?' is a 29 minute documentary from BBC Scotland, made in 2004, featuring interviews with many of the director's friends and collaborators. In the category Meet the Pioneers, we are shown Anderson's first film from 1948. It is a documentary short, running 33:07, about a mining engineering firm. Also under that sub-heading is a new video interview with Anderson's first producer and close friend Lois Sutcliffe Smith. It runs 18:23. Wakefield Express is another early documentary by Anderson (made in 52') about the town that later served as the setting for This Sporting Life (32:17). Is That All There Is? (1992), Anderson's autobiographical final film running almost an hour. It was originally made or The Director's Place on the BBC. It is filled with Anderson's daily life chores infusing his caustic humor - a great tribute to this intelligent, overlooked master director. Finally a 34-page liner notes booklet featuring a new essay by film scholar Neil Sinyard and an article by Anderson from 1963 with many black and white photos.

This may be the best DVD yet - early in the year I realize but it should get deserved mention in our next Poll. STRONGLY recommended!

Gary W. Tooze

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