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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
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Brilliant and Bittersweet is Schlesinger's Masterpiece
John Schlesinger's masterpiece is about more than a love triangle. It explores the complexity of human relationships amid the rapidly shifting cultural dynamics of late nineteen sixties' bohemian London. This film is about communication--or lack thereof--among adults who are just starting to grow up.
Ironically, it is missed signals that are the glue that binds the characters together. Calls are made, and calls are dropped. Schlesinger's forte, aside from the deftly crafted cinematography and directing of the actors, is the psychological background of the characters. Past and present are beautifully linked together to provide unsurpasssed richness of character. In the end, the audience is asked to connect these clues to theme, and intercede with their hearts and minds on behalf of the craft and the world it so brilliantly portrays.
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THAT KISS
"SUNDAY BLOODY SUNDAY"
That Kiss
Amos Lassen and Cinema Pride
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" directed by John Schlesinger, a gay English director, now dead is a sociologically astute drama about bisexual love during the early sexual revolution of 1970 and was shocking when it was released in 1973 as it showed the first one screen male-male kiss. It is the story of three characters attempting to navigate the changing mores of the British Empire and it is classic. Daniel Hirsh played by the late Peter Finch is a gay doctor and Alex Greville (Glenda Jackson), a divorced working woman are both in love with the same man, a self-absorbed sculptor, Bob Elkin (Murray Head). Instead of keeping the affairs a secret, Bob chooses to have Daniel and Alex be perfectly aware that the other exists which leads to ruminations on the nature of love, sex and relationships in a society which is built upon class distinctions and fractured lines.
This was a groundbreaking movie at the time for the way it dealt openly with a homosexual relationship and the kiss between the two men. The film nonjudgementally approaches the loneliness of the characters by presenting a social commentary on the exiting system. In fact the movie received for Academy Award nominations including best director and best actor and best actress.
In its slow and meandering way the movie is a character study of three different people who are not all that interesting. What stops the movie from being a festival of boredom is the fluid direction and the incredible performances of the leads and the frankness dealing with homosexuality. Because the characters are treated as almost individual case studies, there seems to be a bit of disjointedness in the script. The main question that is never answered is how Bob came to be involved with two people who are so completely different and why, if Alex is at odds with sharing him, stays with him nevertheless. More intriguing is the relationship of Bob and Daniel but this is not fully explored either especially concerning the age difference between the two men.
The film covers ten days in the lives of the characters as Elkin plays the elusive lover who can't understand why his lovers are at odds with each other. His attitude seems to be that each of them should feel lucky that he even spends time to give them sexual pleasure.
From what I have read about the film, it seems that the movie is based upon an episode in the director's own life and it is a highly stylized film that becomes more involved in the sex scenes than in the development of the characters. It also deals with class issues and British economy but it never really gives the romantic situations a greater meaning than just romance.
The liberal sexual attitude of the film was years ahead of its time as it presented homosexuality as no big deal. It also showed how loneliness can drive people into a relationship against one's better judgment especially when a person knows that it has not much chance of working.
Now let's have a look at that famous kiss that shocked the moviegoers of the time. It wasn't just a peck but a drawn out affair that made history. It is reported that when questioned about it, Finch, a staunch heterosexual said,"I just closed my eyes and thought of England".
There are two memorable scenes in the movie. The first occurs when Elkin and Alex are babysitting and the interactions between adults and children are hilarious. The other rang closer to home. When Hirsh attends a bar mitzvah, his overbearing relatives try to set him up with a nice Jewish girl.
Considering the age of the film and the fact that the director and Finch are now dead and Jackson sits in Parliament, the movie has held up unbelievably well. What it did more than anything else was present a look into the lives of a trio of people who were trying to grab hold of something they don't have.
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An adult film in more ways than one.
This is an excellent film about realistic adult relationships and the compromises we have to make to make relationships work. When the film was released in 1971 however the homosexuality certainly could overshadow the underlying complex but brutally honest story.
I think the best way to review the film is to concentrate on the 3 main characters, all played so very well by a super cast.
Alex, played by Glenda Jackson, is a business woman in her 40's having an affair with a bisexual artist, Bob, who is in his late 20's or early 30's. Bob leaves her at the first hint of conflict or trouble or confrontation to join his Jewish physician lover, Daniel, played by Peter Finch. Daniel asks for relatively little and offers an oasis of thought and tenderness for Bob.
This seems to torture Alex so much that she can't stop from allowing her feelings of rejection and fear of abandonment from driving Bob off the next time they meet. Most telling is her conversation with her mother where she challenges her mother and father's relationship. The father is a cold multi-millionaire that long ago ceased to be involved in a passionate relationship with his wife. Alex's mother confronts her back that she expects to have "it all' in a relationship and defends her marriage with 'you don't think it is anything but you are wrong." Alex is extremely bright and verbal but in many ways a spoiled woman. Yet to be fair, how many people can share a lover? It is possibly one of the most difficult tasks in the world for most and can be so traumatic that the constant worry destroys the relationship.
Bob, the bi-sexual artists, does not have to commit to either Alex or Daniel or to anyone. He is handsome, young, talented, intelligent, and articulate. He is ambitious and sees clearly what he gets from both relationships. He doesn't have to commit so he doesn't. Both lovers, Alex and Daniel, indulge him and adore him. From his perspective he realizes he does not have to choose between them and he enjoys various aspect of both of the relationships. Why should he make a choice? Does he stop seeing Daniel so that Alex will stop obsessing and fretting? I sympathized with Bob. He was indulged and pampered and knew it.
Daniel, the Jewish physician, was superbly played by Peter Finch. This portrayal of a man living multiple identities was extra special. Daniel is the talented and dedicated physican who takes calls from patients night and day. He is wise and learned and compassionate. He listens to opera in a sophisticated garden home - serene and reflective. Yet he is fully engaged in the Jewish community in which he was reared. The scenes of his nephew's Bra Mitzvah convey his strong heritage and roots to the Jewish community. Daniel, more so that with Alex or Bob, conveys the concept of living different identities. Daniel recognizes he is part of the Jewish community, part of the medical community and the patients they see, and part of a same-gender loving community which exists more behind doors that in the open in 1971. Whereas Alex remains tortured most of the film, Daniel ends the film with a speech directly to the camera about the limitations of all relationships,the compromises we have to make in all relationships, and the responsibility to extract from each human experience as much joy and meaning as is possible.
We have a choice in life, we can accept or reject compromise. Both paths have rewards and hardships. This is really the theme of the film.
After 34 years, this film has retained its power, since its power resides in depiction of honest lives and honest situations.
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Interesting British Drama
"Sunday, Bloody Sunday" was one of the most acclaimed adult dramas of the early 70s, and one of the first major films to address gay relationships. Murray Head stars as a young hippie in simultaneous relationships with physician Peter Finch and businesswoman Glenda Jackson. Finch and Jackson know about each other, and they even share some mutual acquaintances. Needless to say, even though Finch and Jackson are completely enamored of the young man, they're also both frustrated with his inability to give more or commit himself. The film explores these relationships over a tumultuous week.
The film was directed by John Schlesinger as his follow-up to the Oscar-winning "Midnight Cowboy." It's a solid drama of obvious interest for its early, relatively non-judgmental depiction of a gay relationship. Of note, the relationships are handled with sensitivity but are also interesting and complex. The Penelope Gilliatt-penned script (her only film) is top-notch and received numerous awards (National Society of Film Critics, Writers Guild of America) as well as an Oscar nomination.
Finch and Jackson turn in very good performances, which were rewarded with Oscar nominations. Although Murray Head's performance is often criticized for being bland, I think that his cipher-like qualities works well here; you're not supposed to fully understand exactly what Jackson or Finch see in him. Although it's reflective of its era, the film holds up fairly well. Overall, "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" is an interesting exploration of adult relationships - straight or gay.
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Location location location
The film is quite dreary - a man trying to decide if wants to poke or be poked. But the location shots are suberb. Part of it is filmed in Pembroke Square, London W8, a gorgeous and very bohemian part of London. Definitely the place to be, live or be seen, or at the very least - have seen.
Watch the film for the background footage alone - and don't pay too much attention to the ins and outs of the story - if you see what I mean.
