| The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner [Region 2] |  | Director: Tony Richardson
Actors: Michael Redgrave, Tom Courtenay, Avis Bunnage, Alec Mccowen, James Bolam
Category: DVD
Buy Used: $19.99
Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 225930
Format: Pal
Language: English (Original Language)
Region: 2
Discs: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Running Time: 104 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5035673005118
ASIN: B000089ASP
Theatrical Release Date: October 8, 1962
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com
A bleak, but powerful 1960 British film that ranks as one of the most important United Kingdom imports of the decade. Director Tony Richardson (Tom Jones) tells the story of a rebellious social misfit and petty thief played by Tom Courtenay (The Dresser) who is picked to run on the track team at a reform school for boys. He finds he must balance his spirit and desire to win with his anger and frustration at the life he has led. At times a wrenching character study with no easy answers, Courtenay's performance is a touching portrait of a young man and the journey he takes as he tries to run not only for an unclear future, but from a past he cannot forget. A film indicative of the working class expressionism that came out of England in the early 1960s, Richardson's films stands alone as a downbeat, but insightful story of one man's struggle to determine who he is. --Robert Lane
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| Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...
A prayer for the wild at heart kept in cages January 5, 2009
Mick Kelly (USA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This here half forgotten 1962 masterpiece, shot in gorgeous B&W, is a trad gem worth discovering again. "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner" was one of the key "angry young man films" of its era, but its raw power & stark beauty still resonate today.
The wonderful Tom Courtenay plays the title character, Colin Smith, a working class kid whose life is up the junction & then some. Following a string of petty crimes, Colin is thrown in the clink - British reform school - only to have the penitentiary wankers coddle him, as they are banking on Colin's athletic prowess to win a cross country race against a prestigious school. However, our noble laddie has different plans altogether:
"I'm going to let them think they have me house trained, but they never will, the [...]. To get me beat they'll have to stick a rope around my neck."
A timeless work of art & an ending that is indeed one of cinema's greatest moments, I cannot recommend it enough. So go seek this film out, hitch hike a ride if you have to, punch a guy in a Prada suit, I don't care...just get yer mitts on it, buddy.
The Emptiness of the Working Class Future December 26, 2007
Randy Keehn (Williston, ND United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Tony Richardson and Allan Sillitoe have combined again for another great movie about the British working class. The trouble with this and other such movies about this subject is the emptiness it conveys. Growing up in America is decidedly different although there will be many who would dispute that. However, what comes across clearly in movies such as this, "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning", "Look Back in Anger" and others is that there is no hope for the young working class to raise their status. It's the factory line or the unemployment line and the disdain of those who seek more out of life is its' own punishment. The case of Tom Courtney's character is an example of a young man with little options. He eventually discovers (as did the Richard Harris character in "This Sporting Life") that success in sports (at least in the 1960's) did not provide a bridge to crossover. The movie ends intentionally akwardly as our anti-hero realizes the futility of efforts. Along the way, we are treated to an outstanding combination of writing, acting, directing, and film editing. This is a classic movie of its' genre but it is a genre that leaves one empty.
One note about the music; I recognized the tune that kept appearing in the film. I eventually connected it to a haunting piece that I had heard before in "Chariots of Fire" (talk about the opposite side of the tracks!). No, it wasn't THE tune from "Chariots" but I tried to find the title to the tune which emerged vocally as the reform school's song but was unable to with the limited credits. I wondered whether or not the producers of "Chariots of Fire" put that tune in their movie as a tribute to "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner".
 Still powerful and relevant December 14, 2007
F. J. Harvey (Birmingham England)
Tony Richardson is today a relatively neglected director but back in the 1960's was responsible for as many good and important British movies as anyone else in UK cinema-as per Tom Jones ,A Taste of Honey ,The Entertainer ,The Charge of the Light Brigade .This is for me his key work and is a superior example of the "angry young man"movement in movies .
Tom Courtenay plays Colin Smith, a poorly educated youth sent to Borstal - a sort of British youth reformatory -for robbing a baker's shop.The Governor of the institution (played by Michael Redgrave )believes in the rehabilitative powers of sport ,believing it builds character and is quick to notice Smith,with a whippet like physique and reserves of stamina , possesses considerable ability as a cross country runner .He encourages this and in particular his participation in the annual cross country competition with a prestigious private school for the sons of the priviliged in the area.He promises Smith special privileges if he competes in and wins the race .Smith agrees and the movie than traces his training regime and folows him on his runs across the land around the Borstal -there is some striking monochrome photography of the countryside here .During these runs Smith reflects on his life and we are given flashback sequences tracing the influences on Smith that have lead him to this point in his life .
On the day of the race he easily outclasses the competitors from the rival team -including a pre-stardom James Fox-and produces a startling act of defiance against "the system" -his revenge if you like against the forces he beleieves have brought him to this point .
Tom Courtenay announced himself as a major actor with this movie and if Redgrave is less impactful it is only because the audience expects great things from this consumate actor ;they are two fine actors giving outstanding performances,
The stark photography of Walter Lasally adds much to the movie as does the adaptation of his own short story by Alan Sillitoe
I do not share Mr Sillitoe's belief that criminals are victims of any "system" but even so I do applaud this powerful and still pertinent movie
Gold Medal August 14, 2007
Shaun Anderson (Nottingham/Hereford, England, UK)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The British New Wave which was inspired by the location work, documentary style and class concerns of the Free Cinema movement was very much the dour, dreary and depressing side of British cinema in the 1960's. British cinema however finally began to express itself with a uniquely national tone not seen since the documentary movement of the 1930's. Whilst Hammer provided the colour, glamour and unbridled sexual passions of the day, the productions of Bryantston, Woodfall et al were furious indictments of social inequality. These films were many, but the canon generally now consists of recognised classics such as "Saturday Night, Sunday Morning", "A Taste of Honey" and "This Sporting Life." For me "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner" remains the pinnacle of this movement. It is a dismal story of escape, alienation, consumerism, capitalism, tradition and conformity. But director Tony Richardson isn't afraid to lighten things up, usually by speeding up the action. Although we empathise with the plight of the central character, we join him at the films conclusion in a moment of victory, perhaps the only one he will ever experience. Whilst our mind wills Colin to win the final race, a race which has all sorts of metaphorical and symbolic value due to it being a competition against public schoolboys, out heart wills Colin to refuse the road of conformity and tradition. Colin ultimately doesn't let us down, unlike the system that has produced him. This film is beautifully shot, with pitch perfect performances, and a soundtrack which contains a particularly ironic rendition of "Jerusalem". Lindsey Anderson would take the lesson of this film to its logical, revolutionary and bloody conclusion in "If" a few years later, but "If" lacks the humanity, heart and subtle touch of this film.
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner June 28, 2007
John Farr
One of the best of Britain's Angry Young Man films, Richardson's expressive drama hinges on the complex psychology of Colin, an uneducated but cunning youth still smarting from the recent death of his father. Richardson builds tension by cutting between the restrictions and tensions of reform-school life and Colin's recollection of events leading up to his arrest and detention. Courtenay ("of "Billy Liar" fame) gives a haunting performance in the title role, and Redgrave is masterful playing a cold rehabilitator obsessed with winning a trophy. For a powerful expression of working-class disaffection, go the distance with "Runner."
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