This Sporting Life - Criterion Collection
by Lindsay Anderson
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Richard HarrisDirector: Lindsay Anderson
Brand: Image Entertainment
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Black & White, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Restored, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.66:1
Running Time: 135 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-01-22
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Criterion Collection
Movie Reviews of This Sporting Life - Criterion Collection
Movie Review: "Take a good look...there isn't a bleedin' man amongst them!"
Summary: 5 Stars
It was in the early part of this decade, when I was in my late teens, that I first began my obsession with movies. It was in these formative years of film study that I first compiled my list of favorite actors, both of the leading and character variety. Though the list continues to grow to this day, there still isn't an actor I favor more than Richard Harris. I find it immensely fascinating how he could convincingly portray the supreme ruler of all Rome, Marcus Aurelius, in "Gladiator" and also so believably give such a nuanced perfomance of the poor, simple farmer Bull McCabe in "The Field". Then there was the soulful portrayal of the brilliant yet haunted Abbe Faria in "The Count of Monte Cristo", and the brief yet scene-stealing role of English Bob in "Unforgiven".
Yet, while I had loved each of these performances, they all fell somewhere within the twilight years of his career. I was more than curious to see the early work of Harris and felt that the 2008 Criterion Collection release of "This Sporting Life" would be a perfect place to start. Harris was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance here, the only time he was so honored until he received the nod for "The Field". It's a crime he never won either time, because there's no question that he deserved the trophy for each film.
"This Sporting Life" is, in a word, a masterwork. Though I must mention Lindsay Anderson's adept direction, the lion's share of the credit must go to Harris, who portrays miner-turned-rugby-player Frank Machin. It's definitely in the top ten pantheon of film performances because Harris wholly inhabits this role. When he's passive or downtrodden, the depths of his troubles are etched on every line of his face. When he's upset or angry his intensity is electric! The DVD cover captures one of my favorite moments from the film, when Machin is observing himself in the mirror and thrusts a punch into the air. There's a raw masculinity to his demeanor, so much so that his destructive spirit is at once intoxicating and repulsive.
I find it difficult to write about the plot of the film, because when the film is over the broad details seem immaterial. The sole reason to watch this film is for Richard Harris, though it bears mention that all the supporting actors turn in strong performances (especially Rachel Roberts performance as Margaret Hammond). Concerning the plot, it's interesting to note that the film is complex enough that audiences are nearly always divided on who is the "villain" of the piece. Personally, I placed great sympathy with Machin, even though he plowed through his world with reckless fervor and often displayed little consideration for the feelings of others. In many ways he was, as Hammond so succinctly phrased it: "just a great ape on the football field".
I'm amazed this film isn't more iconic than it is, the themes presented resonate with me to this day - particularly as a young man. Machin embodied a more pure 'rebellious youth' than films such as "Rebel Without a Cause" because he was dealing with reality head-on. There was no placement of blame on a broken marriage between his parents or that he moved somewhere that he didn't like. It wasn't because his puppy died or a kid at school bullied him. Machin had very real and very serious problems. It took nearly all he had to confront them, and often, he seemed to be unable to. The sheer weight of it all was too much too bear at times, he would shut himself off from the world and those around him. But, in the end, Machin was still a good man at heart. The picnic scene is beautifully shot and clearly portrays that Machin's humanity is very much intact, particularly in his energetic and playful interactions with the children.
It could be argued that Machin was driven to his destructive tendencies as a manner of coping with the fact that Hammond simply could not return his deep affection for her. By the same token, it could be said that Machin drove the poor widow mad with his overbearing presence and lack of emotional intuition. It's these dense layers within the film that make is so compelling to watch, even though it's utterly depressing to watch two people burn out so quickly and violently. It feels starkly realistic because 'till the bitter end there is little hope of something better.
The Paul Newman film "Hud" was once my favorite character study, but these days it takes a distant second to "This Sporting Life". I've seen the film three times so far, and each time I don't feel melancholy afterward, but rather a sense of relief at the notion that - perhaps - things are better for both of them in the end. Maybe, just maybe, the end result isn't so bad after all. I suppose it's a testament to the impact of the film that I'm so completely swept away with it that I delude myself with fantasies of a happier conclusion.
Summary of This Sporting Life - Criterion Collection
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.SPECIAL EDITION DOUBLE-DISC SET FEATURES:
New, restored high-definition digital transfer
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
Lindsay Anderson: Lucky Man? (2004, 30 min), a BBC Scotland documentary featuring interviews with many of the director s close friends and collaborators
New video interview with Lois Sutcliffe Smith, Anderson s close friend and president of the Lindsay Anderson Memorial Foundation
Meet the Pioneers (1948), Lindsay Anderson s first documentary short
Wakefield Express (1952), Anderson s short-film contribution to England s Free Cinema series, shot in the same town that served as the location for This Sporting Life
Is That All There Is? (1992, 50 min), Anderson s autobiographical, final film
PLUS: A booklet featuring a new essay by film scholar Neil Sinyard and writings by Anderson, including his groundbreaking article, Stand Up! Stand Up!
Prolific British filmmaker Lindsay Anderson weaves this small, evocative tale of young life at the crossroads in early 1960s Northern England. A rough, sullen young man (Richard Harris) working in the local coal mines begins to make a name for himself as a star rugby player, but even as he begins to fall in love he cannot escape the harsh realities of the bleak life around him. The rugby sequences in the film are striking, but no more so than the depiction of downtrodden people living in the shadow of industry and corruption that too often crushes their spirit. Harris in one of his first roles, is remarkably effective as an unlikable but sympathetic figure trying against hope to savor the small joys life has to offer, and the film also features the debut of renowned actress Glenda Jackson. One of a series of working-class, character-driven British imports, This Sporting Life is one of the best on the field. --Robert Lane
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