THE SMALL WORLD OF SAMMY LEE
RELEASED ON DVD FOR THE FIRST TIME ON BLU-RAY ON 14th
NOVEMBER 2016
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY
KEN HUGHES
STARRING
ANTHONY NEWLEY (Oliver Twist, Doctor
Dolittle) WILFRID BRAMBELL (A Hard Day’s Night, Steptoe and Son) JULIA FOSTER
(Dad’s Army, Alfie)
The
Small World of Sammy Lee based on a BBC television program is
set in London's Soho district, where a seedy milieu of strip clubs, billiard
halls, smoky Jazz clubs and East End markets lie.
Andrew
Newley plays Sammy Lee,
a strip-club compere who owes a large
amount of money to Fred (Kenneth J. Warren), a
bookie, which he must produce within the space of a day. He acts with
determination with the aide of his brother, Lou (Warren Mitchell),
who owns a deli.
In the midst of raising the money, under threat of
being beaten up by Fred’s lads he finds himself helping Patsy (Julia Foster) who shows up at the club he
manages ready to strip.
The film is shot in a most distinctive black and white by
cinematographer Wolf Suschitzky (Get
Carter, Ulysses).
In an interview Mike
Hodges, director of Get Carter is
asked what films influenced him, and he mentions Brighton Rock, along with lost gem, The Small World of Sammy Lee.
He says “I only
saw it once but I remembered it and I remember being impressed by it and
indeed, when I was asked to make Carter I sought out the cameraman, Wolfgang Suschitsky who had shot that
film in black and white and I thought he was the only person I would want for
my film.”
It’s a race against time, with Newley providing a seemingly
effortless, yet important performance as Sammy.
Patsy follows closely behind as he goes
about his sadistically humorous schemes amidst a graphic portrayal of a more
dingy side of 1960s Soho,
The Small World of Sammy Lee. was given an X certificate when it came out . No
film like it had been released before, and it was a coming-of-age film for the then
young star, Anthony Newley, whose
engrained Hackney hustling style fit the role perfectly.
It could
very well be the best pre-Mod Mod film in existence, directed by Ken Hughes (who would later find fame
with Chitty Chitty Bang Bang). Its
Music should also be noted.
“love coming cheap,” “money coming hard.”
The
opening sequence, for example, is accompanied by a most melancholic jazz track,
which speaks the light of Soho at that time, whilst echoing sensations of ‘the
morning after.’
The
composer Kenny Graham, like many a
Jazz mavericks was too ahead for the time. A true forward-thinker; and whilst
this film may not have reaped the rewards it deserved, likely because
its star was not known, it certainly did pave the way for programmes like The Sweeney. This lost gem of 1960s British cinema, however, is finally
given a re-release in the form of a brand-new
2k restoration, with extended special features including new interviews.
The Digital Film restoration was
funded by STUDIOCANAL in collaboration with the BFI’s Unlocking Film Heritage
programme (awarding funds from the National Lottery).
Special Features:
* New Interview with Julia
Foster
* New Interview with Mike
Hodges
* New Locations featurette with
Richard Dacre
Blu-ray Tech Specs: Running Time:
107min approx / Aspect Ratio: 1.75:1 / Region B / Black and White / English /
SDH Subtitles
DVD Tech Specs: Running Time: 103min
approx / Aspect Ratio: 1.75:1 / Region 2 / Black and White / English / SDH
Subtitles
Music
score:
The unreleased jazz score to the classic ‘60s Soho
underworld thriller, recorded in 1963 is now available for the first time ever
on vinyl, CD and download. The CDs come with an 8-page booklet and rare stills
from the film.
Writer c. Tremayne Miller
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