Sunday Bloody Sunday [Criterion Collection]

Director: John Schlesinger

Overview

This British film examines the choices individuals must make when confronted with a romantic relationship which is rewarding but does not offer them everything they want. In this sympathetic and psychologically precise drama, Alexandra Greville (Glenda Jackson), "Alex" to her friends, has a younger man as her sometime lover, the young sculptor Bob Elkin (Murray Head). Elkin is completely open about the fact that he is also the lover of her acquaintance, Dr. Daniel Hirsch (Peter Finch). These relationships continue in some kind of equilibrium until Alex and Bob agree to house-sit the children of a couple known to the three of them. In their roles, neither Head nor Finch "swished," or otherwise catered to homosexual stereotypes, and theirs was considered to be a groundbreaking, sympathetic portrayal of this kind of relationship, not condescending in any way. One highlight of the film is a scene in which Dr. Hirsch attends the Bar Mitzvah of his nephew. This critically well-received movie was unexpectedly successful at the box office. The film's director and screenwriter, as well as Jackson and Finch, were nominated for Academy Awards.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/23/2012
UPC:	0715515099615
Original Release:	1971
Rating:	R
Source:	Criterion
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:50:00
Sales rank:	19,242

Special Features

New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised by director of photography Billy Williams; New interviews with Williams, actor Murray Head, production designer Luciana Arrighi, John Schlesinger biographer William J. Mann, and Schlesinger's longtime partner, photographer Michael Childers; Illustrated 1975 audio interview with Schlesinger; Plus: a booklet featuring an essay by cultural historian Ian Buruma and Penlope Gilliatt's 1971 introduction to her published screenplay

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Peter Finch	Dr. Daniel Hirsh,Scotsman
Glenda Jackson	Alex Greville
Peggy Ashcroft	Mrs. Greville
Tony Britton	George Harding
Maurice Denham	Mr. Greville
Bessie Love	Answering Service Lady
Vivian Pickles	Alva Hodson
Frank Windsor	Bill Hodson
Thomas Baptiste	Prof. Johns
Harold Goldblatt	Daniel's Father
Hannah Norbert	Daniel's Mother
Richard Pearson	Middle-Aged Patient
June Brown	Woman Patient
Caroline Blakiston	Rowing Woman
Peter Halliday	Rowing Husband
Douglas Lambert	Man at Party
Marie Burke	Aunt Astrid
Richard Loncraine	Tony
Cindy Burrows	Alex as a Child
Kimi Tallmadge	Lucy Hodson
Emma Schlesinger	Tess Hodson
Patrick Thornberry	Baby John Stuart Hodson
Robert Rietty	Daniel's Brother
Ann Firbank	Party Guest
Carl Ferber	Hodson Child
Henry Danziger	Cantor
Robin Presky	Daniel's Nephew
Gabrielle Daye	Wife at Hospital
Royce Mills	Bob's Partner
John Rae	Airline Doctor
Joe Wadham	Lorry Driver
Liane Aukin	Daniel's Sister-in-Law
Edward Evans	Husband at Hospital
George Belbin	Next-Door Neighbor
Ellis Dale	Chemist
Monica Vasilliou	Travel Agent
Daniel Day-Lewis	Child Vandal
Murray Head	Bob Elkin
Russell Lewis	Timothy Hodson
Ron Geesin	Composer

Technical Credits

Penelope Gilliatt

Joseph Janni	Producer
Penelope Gilliatt	Screenwriter
Simon Kaye	Sound/Sound Designer

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- Sunday Bloody Sunday
1. Pains [5:12]
2. Running Late [2:36]
3. A Good Family [2:37]
4. Weekend Together [3:52]
5. Longing [2:11]
6. Acceptance [3:37]
7. From Alex to Daniel [6:06]
8. Unanswered [3:33]
9. Jealousy Strikes [4:22]
10. Familiar Face [6:41]
11. Outing in Greenwich [5:34]
12. Haunting Memories [5:07]
13. Bob's New Project [2:45]
14. Home Alone [2:17]
15. On and Off [5:45]
16. Out to Grass [4:16]
17. Playing Games [4:40]
18. Surprise Visit [4:21]
19. Freedom [3:30]
20. Discovering Bob's Plans [3:36]
21. Bar Mitzvah [4:14]
22. Fending with Family [2:11]
23. "Nothing's Changed" [3:53]
24. An Urgent Call [2:34]
25. The Last Time [3:04]
26. Chance Encounter [5:24]
27. "But I Am Happy" [6:07]
28. Color Bars [:00]

Menu

Disc #1 -- Sunday Bloody Sunday
Play the Movie
Chapters
Supplements
Cast and Crew Interviews
John Schlesinger
Play
Murray Head
Play
Billy Williams
Play
Luciana Arrighi
Play
On Sunday Bloody Sunday
Play
Michael Childers
Play
Trailer

Editorial Reviews

An honest look at the changing attitudes toward sexual identity in the early 1970s, Sunday Bloody Sunday rises above the standard hot-button topical melodrama, thanks to some sensitive performances from its leads. Glenda Jackson and Peter Finch are both outstanding as the two lovers of the same man; Finch in particular imbues his character with a quiet dignity. Though somewhat less skilled, Murray Head is still surprisingly effective as the center of the romantic triangle. Director John Schlesinger made his name with 1969's Midnight Cowboy, another film which dealt with controversial homosexual issues; Sunday is less urgent than Cowboy, but no less perceptive. Both Jackson and Finch garnered Academy Award nominations, as did Schlesinger and New Yorker film reviewer Penelope Gilliatt.