Take a Girl Like You Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Take a Girl Like You Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 25, 2019

Jonathan Miller's "Take a Girl Like You" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage trailers for the film; new program featuring actress Hayley Mills; new program featuring production manager Denis Johnson Jr. and assistant director Joe Marks; archival program featuring director Jonathan Miller; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated booklet featuring a new essay by Melanie Williams, an overview of contemporary critical responses, archival articles, and film credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Well, Miss Bunn, do you get it now?

Can you imagine a world in which men and women always told the truth? I’ve tried a couple of times, and I never really liked what I began to see. This world would be such a cynical place that men and women will be left with no other option but to declare romance a total fraud. All relationships will then be determined by two simple factors -- physical attraction and financial status. Obviously, without romance there won’t be marriages either, only shallow arrangements where those that choose to spend the rest of their lives together will do so strictly for practical reasons. Finding a partner will be almost exactly like shopping for a car -- you’ll simply want and look for the best bang for your buck.

Jonathan Miller’s one and only film for the big screen, Take a Girl Like You, is essentially the flip-side of all those period romantic films that James Ivory directed over the years. Indeed, it is defined by a degree of comic cynicism which rejects just about everything that Ivory and his cinematic characters valued, from chivalry and tact to attentiveness and style. However, while doing so it also fully discredits the ‘progress’ that the era from which it emerged promoted.

At the center of the film is a hilarious romantic relationship that exposes a wide range of misconceptions about the two sexes in ‘70s Britain. A very young Hayley Mills plays a school teacher from the North who arrives in London to start her career and find a proper gentleman to marry, but quickly begins an awakening process that leaves her feeling a lot like a fish out of water. Miss Mills has a particularly difficult time with fellow educator Patrick Standish (Oliver Reed), who likes her and looks like the type of proper bachelor a girl would want to have a relationship with, but behaves like an opportunistic playboy that should be avoided at all costs. Her heart tells her that he is the special one, but her mind warns her that he is a risk that she can’t possibly have in her life. The heart of course prevails and Miss Mills allows Mr. Standish in her life, and then immediately begins making compromises that lead her to ponder whether the type of romance she wants is just a fantasy. Naturally, Miss Mills’ frustration does not remain unnoticed, so Mr. Standish vows to relieve the pressure by helping her have her very first sexual intercourse, which he considers an essential part of any meaningful romantic relationship.

I am unfamiliar with the novel by Kingsley Amis that inspired the film and therefore cannot comment on whether some sort of a unique style was retained. However, it is pretty obvious to me that the cynicism in the film is carefully managed in a way that makes it awfully easy to identify the flaws behind the supposedly liberating logic that Reed’s character employs to transform the object of his desire into a ‘modern girl’. Of course, not only does he fail, but his frustration with her slow progress validates all sorts of asinine clichés that the Swinging Sixties introduced which at the end expose him like a narrow-minded loser that feels comfortable only in the company of equally shallow characters.

The quick jabs at the era’s flexible political standards would have been even more effective if the various contrasts throughout the film were a bit subtler, but they are not off the mark. For example, Noel Harrison plays another modern playboy with deep pockets who openly supports the Labor Party but only because its candidate has promised to cancel a project that threatens to devalue his property. John Bird is the ambitious candidate but his love for socialism is put on hold each time he enters the area’s most prestigious restaurant.

The film is funny but it is easier to praise as a good time-capsule than as a wonderful comedy. Also, it’s got a surprisingly excellent soundtrack from Stanley Myers, who a few years later will score Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter.

Take a Girl Like You Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jonathan Miller's Take a Girl Like You arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

The release is sourced from a remaster that was prepared by Sony Pictures in the United States. I don't know when, but it is easy to tell that it is not a recent job that matches the high quality of the studio's new 4K remasters. On the other hand, it is a very good remaster with strong organic qualities that does not have a lot of areas where significant improvements can be made. I projected the film and basically the only limitations that emerge are with smaller nuances that a higher resolution master will improve. For example, in wider panoramic shots (see screencaptures #12 and 14) there will be better ranges of nuances, plus in certain areas where shadow definition isn't optimal and there is noticeable black crush there will be additional improvements that will strengthen depth (see screencaptures #11 and 15). The rest I like a lot. Grain is exposed rather nicely and there are no traces of questionable management work that makes other older remasters from the studio's vaults look disappointingly flat (see As Good as it Gets). Colors are stable and never appear unbalanced. In fact, I like the existing ranges of nuances a lot. Image stability is excellent. My score if 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Take a Girl Like You 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 track is excellent. The audio is clean, stable, and with a strong range of dynamic nuances. Frankly, it never feels dated or lacking any key qualities. It handles the dialog with great easy and whenever Stanley Myers' music makes an appearance its flow is terrific. It is easy to tell that the audio has been remastered.

Take a Girl Like You Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

NOTE: All of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray release are perfectly playable on North American Blu-ray players, including the PS3.

• Trailer One - a vintage theatrical trailer for Take a Girl Like You. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Trailer Two - a vintage theatrical trailer for Take a Girl Like You. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Isolated Music & Effects Track - presented as an LPCM 1.0 track.

• Make Film Like You - in this new program, production manager Denis Johnson Jr. and assistant director Joe Marks recall their interactions with Jonathan Miller, and discuss some rather interesting rumors about the financing of Take a Girl Like You, the casting choices and the quality of the characterizations, the lack of production hurdles, etc. In English, not subtitled. (8 min, 1080p).

• Now and Then: Jonathan Miller - this archival program was created by Canadian broadcaster Bernard Braden on October 18, 1967. It covers such topics as censorship in television, the type of content that terrifies children, the manner in which certain films (Bonnie and Clyde) can alter the viewer's sense of reality, the responsibilities that a filmmaker has when creating a film, etc. In English, not subtitled. (42 min, 1080p).

• A New Era Revisited - in this new program, actress Hayley Mills recalls her interactions with Jonathan Miller and the rest of the cast members during the shooting of Take a Girl Like You. There are some very interesting observations about Oliver Reed's personality. In English, not subtitled. (14 min, 1080p).

• Image Gallery - a collection of vintage promotional materials for the film.

• Booklet - a limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by Melanie Williams, an overview of contemporary critical responses, archival articles, and film credits.

Take a Girl Like You Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sincerity and cynicism frequently overlap in Take a Girl Like You and make it quite obvious that a genuine romantic relationship requires a healthy dose of mystery. Imagine the alternative: the two sides immediately discard the part where they do all of the exploring and learn about each other and move straight to the part where they declare what they are after, and then carefully calculate their moves to get the most out of their 'relationship'. Romance? Forget about it. If it actually lasts, this would be a straightforward arrangement of endless formalities. Jonathan Miller's film finds plenty of humor in the evolution of romance in Britain during the 1970s, but a lot of its outrageous situations are actually a fact of life now. It is pretty sad because plenty of the 'progress' that the two sexes have made and celebrated since the 1970s has actually devalued their relationships to the point where many are in fact incompatible with romance. Indicator/Powerhouse Films' new release is sourced from a solid remaster that was prepared by Sony Pictures, and is Region-Free. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.