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Lindsay Anderson's If.... on Blu-ray in April from Masters of Cinema

19 February 2014 [updated 8 May 2014]

Eureka! Entertainment have announced the release of If...., Lindsay Anderson’s quintessential tale of rebellion and winner of the 1969 Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Legendary director Lindsay Anderson expanded on the social outrage and intense character focus of his debut This Sporting Life with this combustible tale of teenage insurrection. Winner of the 1969 Palme d’Or at Cannes, If.... was a popular triumph and instantly recognised as a classic.

A caustic portrait of a traditional boys’ boarding school, where social hierarchy reigns supreme and power remains in the hands of distanced and ineffectual teachers and callously vicious prefects. But three junior pupils, led by Mick Travis (played by Malcolm McDowell in the role that would catapult him to becoming one of Britain’s most iconic actors), decide on a shocking course of action to redress the balance of privilege once and for all.

Packed to bursting with its director’s customary passion and experimentation, If.... remains one of cinema’s quintessential tales of rebellion, a radical snapshot of late 60s’ change, and one of the towering achievements of British film in any era.

Described by Camus in his review of the previous Paramount DVD as "a classic British movie with so much more on its mind and heart than a simple reading," If.... will make its UK Blu-ray debut on 21st April 2014 by Eureka! Entertainment as part of the Masters of Cinema series at the RRP of £17.99.

UPDATE: The release has now been put back to 9th June 2014.

Extra features will include:

  • Audio commentary with film critic and historian David Robinson and actor Malcolm McDowell

  • New video interviews with producer Michael Medwin, writers David Sherwin and John Howlett, editor David Gladwell, production manager Gavrik Losey, camera operator Brian Harris, and actors David Wood, Hugh Thomas, Geoffrey Chater, Philip Bagenal, and Sean Bury

  • Three short films by Anderson: Three Installations (1952), Thursday’s Children (co-directed with Guy Brenton, 1954), and Henry (1955]

  • Two U.S. trailers for the feature

  • 56-page full-colour booklet containing new writing by David Cairns; a new interview with actor Brian Pettifer; a self-conducted interview with Lindsay Anderson; notes on the three short films; and rare and archival imagery

You can read Camus's review of the film and the previous DVD here.

Here's a trailer...

 

...and a clip from the film...