Shelagh Delaney's play was opened up by her and Richardson and it's one of Tony Gibbs' first films, 'the first movie that I ever sort of fell in love with'. You can see the nervy new wave style right at the beginning, then in his very long dissolves in the canal scene he's going for 'realism' and 'poetry' (to quote historian John Hill). Rita Tushingham is absolutely delightful in her debut, Dora Bryan fantastic as the mother (I've a feeling Fellini would have loved her), Murray Melvin great in early role, Robert Stephens foreshadowing reality in role as drunk.
You can also see it's a great bit of work from Walter Lassally who's using new faster film stocks to shoot natural and low light scenes, plus it sports a particularly strange score from John Addison which is absolutely of its specific time, giving the whole thing a strange air, like a Paul Thomas Anderson film.
I'd like to think that if such a film were released now it would be hailed as something fresh and original.
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