8 Ways Beatle Turned Producer George Harrison Saved British Cinema
7. George Gives British Crime Classic The Long Good Friday (1980) The Uncut Release It Deserved
"If I'd have known it was that violent, I never would have bought it" George said upon realising just how brutal and unflinching gangster drama The Long Good Friday was. Thankfully he did bring The Long Good Friday to the big screen, saving it from a horribly dubbed TV-only release after the film's post-production went sour at a different company. In doing so he granted Bob Hoskins his breakout film role and brought an unflinching crime classic to cinemas when its original producers wouldn't. The British Film Institute recognised it as one of the top 100 British films of the 20th century. However, in 1980 just 31 British films were made (which marked a mammoth 50% drop from the year before). By 1981 just 24 films were being produced the lowest since 1914. The industry was in turmoil as big studios struggled, paving the way for independents like Goldcrest, Merchant Ivory and George's Handmade Films a chance to really make their mark with passion projects. And they really did. Handmade's biggest hit was just around the corner
Despite a fear of using plastic cutlery and drinking overly milky brews, Dave is open to indulging in most other things at least once especially when it comes to movies and music.
10 of his favourite films are: Masaki Kobayashi's Hara-Kiri, Ingmar Bergman's Persona, Martin Brest's Midnight Run, Lawrence Kasdan's The Big Chill, Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves, Peter Medak's The Ruling Class, H.G. Clouzot's Les Diaboliques, Hector Babenco's Kiss of the Spider Woman, Fritz Lang's The Testament of Dr. Mabuse and Sidney Lumet's Network.
