THIS SPORTING LIFE

Review: A Yorkshire coal minder Frank Machin picks a fight in a club and finds himself being recruited for a rugby team. Despite him rising as a star on the field, he starts finding that it isn’t equalled in his personal life. He tries to woo his widowed landlady in hopes of finding a reason to live.
Director: Lindsay Anderson
Actors: Richard Harris, Rachel Roberts, Alan Badel, William Hartnell, Colin Blakely, Vanda Godsell, Jack Watson, Arthur Lowe, George Sewell and Leonard Rossiter
Year: 1963
Genre: Drama and Sport
Conclusion: 5/5
Lindsay Anderson’s first feature film. It was Richard Harris’s performance in this that led him to become a star in movies. I did think after watching this that Albert Finney could have played Richard Harris’s part although apparently, Albert Finney was offered the part but turned it down. There are some remarkable and unforgettable scenes of confrontation. I have to say that this is one of the best British films to have been made. At the Cannes Film Festival in 1963 Richard Harris won for Best Actor. At the Bafta Awards in 1964 Rachel Roberts won an award for Best British Actress.