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Posted: **Thu Aug 08, 2019 4:57 am**

YOUNG WINSTON
(Richard Attenborough, 1972)
Release date: 28 October 2019
Limited Blu-ray Edition (World Blu-ray premiere)

Richard Attenborough’s renowned, star-studded historical biopic follows the early years of one of Britain’s most beloved and controversial figures – Winston Churchill.

Writer-producer Carl Foreman (High Noon, The Bridge on the River Kwai) was approached by Churchill himself, who suggested his own book, My Early Life: A Roving Commission, would make a good film. The result is a lavish and beautifully detailed drama, with Simon Ward in the lead role, detailing Churchill’s service as a cavalry officer in India and the Sudan, as a war correspondent in the Second Boer War, and his election to Parliament at the age of 26.

Forman and Attenborough assembled a sterling cast in support: Robert Shaw, Anne Bancroft, Jack Hawkins, Ian Holm, Anthony Hopkins, Patrick Magee, Edward Woodward, and John Mills add weight to Attenborough’s vision of the man and the myth.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES:

• High Definition remaster
• Two presentations of the film: the original theatrical cut and the roadshow version containing unique footage
• Original mono audio
• Reflections of a Director (2007): an archival interview with director Richard Attenborough
• A National Hero Brought to Life (2007): an archival interview with actor Simon Ward
• Interview with stunt double Vic Armstrong (2019)
• Interview with special effects artist John Richardson (2019)
• Interview with make-up artist Robin Grantham (2019)
• Interview with assistant director William Cartlidge (2019)
• Interview with second assistant director Brian W Cook (2019)
• Original theatrical trailer
• Image gallery: on-set and promotional photography
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by Sergio Angelini, an overview of contemporary critical responses, archival articles, and film credits
• Limited Edition of 3,000 copies
• All extras subject to change

#PHILTD047
BBFC cert: PG
REGION FREE
EAN: 5037899071625

Posted: **Mon Sep 16, 2019 10:23 am**

Full specs confirmed:

Posted: **Sat Oct 19, 2019 5:27 pm**

Young Beaver.

Posted: **Mon Oct 21, 2019 5:13 am**

MichaelB wrote: ↑
Sat Oct 19, 2019 5:27 pm
Young Beaver.

I see what you did there.

Posted: **Mon Apr 24, 2023 10:49 am**

This was surprisingly good. Attenborough’s artistic vision already seems pretty well solidified (which makes sense over twenty years into a career) with many of the central aspects of Ghandi and Cry Freedom present. It even has interview segments looking forward to the reporter protagonist of the later features.

The big difference is Churchill himself who for his disadvantages in life stands clearly apart from Ghandi and Biko. It makes sense then that Young Winston often seems a passive observer of his own life merely at the stage of being formed by colonial realities and British perspective. For the first half the real stars are Shaw and Bancroft as his parents. These are dynamic and flawed people defeated by their own ideas of what is right. Foreman’s script is comfortable loving a Torrie and also documenting the most salacious variant of his downfall.

The second half of the film, really only an hour, is less interesting dealing with Churchill’s attempts to become a person through military service. Despite Ward’s strengths as an actor Churchill is intentionally too implacable a character to become truly alive.

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47 Young Winston

47 Young Winston

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