My Beautiful Laundrette Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

My Beautiful Laundrette Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 6, 2018

Nominated for Oscar Award for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen, Stephen Frears' "My Beautiful Laundrette" (1985) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of the British Film Institute. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; archival Q&A session with Stephen Frears, Hanif Kureishi, Sarah Radclyffe, and Tim Bevan; the documentary feature "Typically British: A Personal History of British Cinema by Stephen Frears"; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

"You have to know how to squeeze the tits of the System"

A film like Stephen Frears’ My Beautiful Laundrette cannot be made in 2018. A director that becomes involved with a similar project would not only destroy his entire career, but seriously damage the reputation of anyone that openly supports it. This is the era of political correctness and common logic dictates that it is wiser to be a coward than to be a brave fool.

The film follows closely Omar (Gordon Warnecke), a young and handsome Asian man from south London with big ambitions. Omar’s alcoholic father wants him to go to college so that he can have better opportunities in life, but he begins spending time with his enigmatic uncle, Nasser (Saeed Jaffrey). There is a good reason why. Despite being an immigrant, Nasser has become a successful businessman and is admired by his elegant English mistress (Shirley Anne Field).

While working for his uncle, Omar meets Johnny (Daniel Day-Lewis), an old friend who has become the leader of a small neo-Nazi gang. There is an instant spark between them. The two begin seeing each other and eventually Omar hires Johnny to help him revamp an old laundrette which Nasser no longer wants to run. This angers Johnny’s gang mates because they are convinced that a “wog” should always strive to become a good servant.

Meanwhile, Nasser’s partner and right-hand man, Salim (Derrick Branche), who has been secretly dealing drugs and made a small fortune, decides to teach Omar an important lesson. But he is forced to improvise when Johnny’s mates disrespect him in front of the newly renovated laundrette.

My Beautiful Laundrette is a rude but painfully honest film. It was released during Margaret Thatcher’s era and it sees Britain not as its leader once promoted it, but as it was -- a country of extreme contrasts, full of dangerously disillusioned people.

What is unusual about My Beautiful Laundrette, however, is that it is also light, witty and strikingly uplifting. One can easily sense the static in the air, but unlike the 'kitchen sink' dramas from the ‘50s and ‘60s this film actually finds plenty of beauty and humor amidst the chaos and violence. In other words, instead of trying to force one to agree with its points, it allows them to gradually emerge in a sea of opposing views.

Without Hanif Kureishi’s brilliant script My Beautiful Laundrette almost certainly would have struggled to remain relevant during the years. Kureishi, who grew up in Bromley in south London, is a man who clearly understands that racism and discrimination have deep economic roots. It is not that skin colors are irrelevant, but economic inequality is very much what breeds the hatred that turns people against each other. Plus, the desire to reject one’s weak identity and imitate those who are responsible for its devaluation -- the same desire that has profoundly changed Nasser and Salim and has inspired Omar to follow their steps.

The cast is excellent. There is an outstanding chemistry between Warnecke and Day-Lewis that makes seemingly ordinary sequences look special. Branche and Jaffrey are equally convincing. Field leaves a lasting impression as well.

My Beautiful Laundrette was the first film Frears shot with cinematographer Oliver Stapleton. The two collaborated on seven more films, including the excellent Prick Up Your Ears and The Grifters.

My Beautiful Laundrette Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Stephen Frears' My beautiful Laundrette arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of the British Film Institute.

The technical presentation is disappointing. I don't know what type of master was used to source the release, but it has the basic qualities that typically define old masters created on older equipment. A lot of the nighttime and darker indoor footage where light is restricted for example has a tendency to break down quite dramatically and as a result depth and definition can suffer a lot (see screencaptures #1, 4 and 5). Shadow definition is actually frequently affected by the poor grain exposure and there is plenty of footage that actually looks quite flat. Overall density is also very inconsistent and anyone viewing this release on a large screen will see some pretty substantial image unevenness. The good news is that there are no traces of poor digital work. Color balance is also good, but the freshness of the primaries and solid nuances seen on the new master that Criterion used for the recent North American release of the film are missing. Unfortunately, this older master also has plenty of random scratches and white flecks popping up. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

My Beautiful Laundrette Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless audio track is very good. It is clean, stable, and promoting a very nice range of dynamic nuances. The music is also nicely balanced, though it should be said that the soundtrack does not have prominent role. There are no audio dropouts or digital distortions.

My Beautiful Laundrette Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for My Beautiful Laundrette. In English, not subtitled. (3 min.

• Q&A at the ICA - presented here is an archival Q&A session with Stephen Frears, Hanif Kureishi, Sarah Radclyffe, and Tim Bevan. The bulk of the information addresses the nature of the main relationships in My Beautiful Laundrette and its reception in England and the United Kingdom as well as its production history. The session was recorded in 1986. Audio only. (98 min).

• Gordon Warnecke on My Beautiful Laundrette - in this filmed Q&A session Gordon Warnecke recalls how he was cast to play the character of Omar and discusses his interactions with the rest of the cast and director Stephen Frears during the shooting of Mu Beautiful Laundrette. There are additional comments about the film's critical success. The session was filmed on December 15, 2015. In English, not subtitled. (25 min).

• Typically British: A Personal History of British Cinema by Stephen Frears (1994) - this documentary film focuses on Stephen Frears' career abd some of the British films and directors that influenced him during the years. In English, not subtitled. (77 min).

• I'm British But... (1990) - presented here is Gurinder Chadha's documentary about national identity and some of the dilemmas that British citizens of Asian ethnic origin faced during the '80s. In English, not subtitled. (30 min).

• Memsahib Rita (1990) - a short film directed by Pratibha Parmar. In English, not subtitled. (19 min).

• Booklet - a 32-page illustrated booklet with full film credits and essays by Sarfraz Manzoor, Sukhdev Sandu, Simran Hans, Michael Brooke and Alex Davidson.

My Beautiful Laundrette Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The BFI's Blu-ray release of Stephen Frear's My Beautiful Laundrette is quite underwhelming. While some of the bonus features that are included on it are likely to intrigue fans of the director and his work, the technical presentation of the film is mostly average at best. If you can play Region-A discs, consider picking up Criterion's release from 2015.