Review by Gary Tooze

Production:

Disc:

Video (both):

Audio:

• Commentary by actor Ray Winstone

Interviews:

• Clive Parsons and Roy Minton (15:56 in 1080i)

• Roy Minton (18:56 in 1080i)

• Audio commentary with actor Ray Winstone and film critic Nigel Floyd (2006)
• Interview with actor Mick Ford (2019 - 19:18)
• Interview with actor Ray Burdis (2019 - 15:17)
• Interview with actor Perry Benson (2019 - 11:05)
• Interview with cinematographer Phil Méheux (2019 - 18:10)
• Interview with association producer Martin Campbell (2019 - 9:19)
• Interview with producer Don Boyd (2019 - 31:23)
• Interview with editor Michael Bradsell (2019 - 29:30)
• Interview with editor Esta Charkham (2019 - 21:43)
• Cast Memories (2005): featuring interviews with Phil Daniels and Julian Firth (16:53)
• Archival interview with writer Roy Minton and producer Clive Parsons (2004 - 15:55)
• Archival interview with writer Roy Minton (2005 - 19:13)
• Archival interview with producers Davina Belling and Clive Parsons (2005 - 8:24)
• Archival interview with producer Don Boyd (2005 - 12:17)
• Original ‘U’ (1:05) and ‘X’ (2:27) certificate theatrical trailers
• Image gallery: on-set and promotional photography
• Limited edition exclusive 80-page book with a new essay by Ashley Clark, recollections from cast and crew members, archival interviews with Alan Clarke, an extract from writer Roy Minton’s novelisation, a look at Mary Whitehouse’s High Court case over the film’s television broadcast, an overview of contemporary critical responses, archival articles and film credits
Limited Edition of 8,000 copies

Bitrates:

 

Description: Scum refers to the label slapped upon reform-school inmate Ray Winstone. Such reformatories are called "borstals" by the British. When he isn't being beaten up by the other boys, Ray is being beaten down by The System. He rebels against this treatment and "wins" by becoming more vicious than any of his oppressors. Scum was originally filmed for British television, but rejected because of the bleakness of its outlook. In America, it went straight into theatres, where audiences had to strain to comprehend the "punk" jargon and thick provincial accents.

 

 

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

Subtitle Sample - Indicator - Region FREE - Blu-ray

More Blu-ray Captures

 

 

Audio :

We get a previously released commentary by actor Ray Winstone and others (actors Phil Daniels of Quadrophenia fame, David Threlfall - his first role, and producer Margaret Matheson). There are also almost an hour's worth of interviews with Clive Parsons, Roy Minton, Davina Belling and Don Boyd. There is a piece entitled Cast Memories running over 15-minutes and both the Censored and Uncensored trailer.

This is where Indicator make a more demonstrative advancement with many new supplements. Firstly, it includes the audio commentary with actor Ray Winstone and film critic Nigel Floyd from 2006. There is a new 20-minute interview entitled No Luxuries from 2019 where actor Mick Ford looks at his character of Archer and his working relationship with director Alan Clarke. An Outbreak of Acting spends over 1/4 hour with actor Ray Burdis on returning to the role of Eckersley for the feature film. Smashing Windows lasts a dozen minutes with actor Perry Benson recalls the daily experiences of being on set. Continuous Tension is an interview with director of photography Phil Méheux analyses the documentary approach of his cinematography running 18-minutes. Criminal Record is 10-minutes with associate producer Martin Campbell on remaking the banned teleplay for the big screen. Back to Borstal is 1/2 hour with executive producer Don Boyd reflecting on his efforts to reinvigorate British cinema in the late seventies. Concealing the Art spends 1/2 hour with veteran editor Michael Bradsell who recalls collaborating with Alan Clarke. That Kind of Casting is also from 2019 and interviews casting director Esta Charkham on the influence the Anna Scher Theatre had on production. There are also the vintage interviews with Roy Minton and Clive Parsons from 1999; the writer and producer look back on Scum twenty years after its release. There are 2005 interviews with Roy Minton and another with Davina Belling and Clive Parsons where the producers of Scum discuss its transition from banned teleplay to feature film. I also liked a 13-minute interview with Don Boyd and the Cast Memories documentary featuring interviews with Phil Daniels, Julian Firth, Mick Ford and David Threlfall. The Blu-ray also includes the original ‘U’ and ‘X’ certificate theatrical trailers and an image gallery with stills, promotional and publicity material. The package contains a limited edition exclusive 80-page book with a new essay by Ashley Clark, recollections from cast and crew members, an archival on-set report by critic Michael Billington, executive producer Michael Relph’s viewing notes, archival interviews with director Alan Clarke, an extract from writer Roy Minton’s novelisation, a look at Mary Whitehouse’s High Court case over the film’s television broadcast, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits.   

Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

Indicator - Region FREE - Blu-ray

BOTTOM LINE:
As well as an excellent film - Clarke offers excellent story-telling skills in his realization of the film. It is quite memorable and extremely well done although not a topic that some will embrace. The Blu-ray seems quite solid - a restored image, lossless sound and bountiful extras. For those interested in this dark classic of reform-school horrors - this Kino package does an impressive job!