The Small World of Sammy Lee Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

The Small World of Sammy Lee Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 9, 2017

Ken Hughes' " The Small World of Sammy Lee" (1963) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive new video interview with actress Julia Foster; exclusive new video interview with director Mike Hodges; and new featurette with film historian Richard Dacre. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The player

There is a brand new interview with Julia Foster on this Blu-ray release in which she places Ken Hughes’ The Small World of Sammy Lee in the same group with such ‘kitchen-sink’ classics as Tony Richardson’s The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner and Karel Reisz’s Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. She is absolutely right. The Small World of Sammy Lee is every bit as raw and powerful as these films are and it functions as an equally invaluable time-capsule.

Sammy (Anthony Newley, Doctor Dolittle) is a fast-talking small-time player who works as an announcer in a sleazy striptease club somewhere in Soho. He earns decent money there, but not enough to cover the losses from his gambling debts. Now a few have become so big that creditors from all across the city have warned him to start paying them what he owes.

After a string of broken promises that he is getting ready to deliver the cash (checks are not accepted), Sammy is finally given an ultimatum from a shady bookie with whom he has been doing business for years -- pay the 300.00 quid that you owe at the end of the day or prepare to have your face disfigured. Realizing that this time the invitation to pay off his debt is different Sammy begins working on a few quick deals that would get him the money he needs, but after a couple of forced errors loses his cool and comes to the conclusion that perhaps it is time to finally leave London.

Hughes adapted his own TV play Sammy (1958) but added a substantial amount of new material to the script for the film. Additionally, in the film Sammy’s hectic movement while trying to gather the money he owes very quickly emerges as a key element of the narrative and Soho actually becomes an important character in it as well. So while the core of the story remains the same, the film dramatically expands it and in the process introduces brand new relationships.

There is a part of the film that channels a very obvious noir vibe -- the violent finale, in particular, easily could have appeared in a number of classic American noir films from the 1950s -- but there is social sincerity in the narrative that transforms it into something very different. Indeed, instead of emphasizing the stylization that is typically responsible for the memorable atmosphere that the great noir films are known for, the intent here is exactly the opposite -- shoot Soho as it is and allow its unfiltered atmosphere to give the film its identity. The concept is unusual but the end result is very convincing. On one hand there is Sammy, the seemingly doomed player who is quickly running out of options, and then there is the real Soho where countless other colorful characters (more players, strippers, drug addicts, and criminal types) are trying to coexist and get rich quick. It is probably the best ‘kitchen sink’ noir film ever shot.

Sammy’s relationship with Patsy (Foster), the beautiful provincial girl that comes looking for him but ends up working in the striptease club, feels slightly underdeveloped, though it is not difficult to understand why for a substantial period of time he remains cold and unmoved.

Hughes worked with cinematographer Wolfgang Suschitzky, who is probably best known for lensing the classic gangster film Get Carter.

The Small World of Sammy Lee Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.75:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ken Hughes' The Small World of Sammy Lee arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal.

The release is sourced from a brand new 2K restoration completed by StudioCanal and the film looks marvelous in high-definition. There are a few areas where some very light softness can be seen -- though primarily by folks with very good eyes -- but it is very clear that any such extremely small fluctuations that may occur are inherited. The majority of the well-lit close-ups typically have great depth and clarity is outstanding; the darker and indoor footage also does not convey distracting black crush. The grayscale is managed well and as a result there are quite nice ranges of healthy grays and whites and solid blacks. There are no traces of compromising sharpening adjustments. Lastly, image stability is very good. My score is 4.75/5.00. (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).

The Small World of Sammy Lee Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

Most viewers will likely be surprised to hear how strong the lossless track is. To be clear, depth and fluidity are truly outstanding, while the jazzy score quite easily alters the atmosphere when needed. The dialog is also stable, clean, and very easy to follow. This tells me that the audio has been fully remastered.

The Small World of Sammy Lee Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interview with Julia Foster - in this new video interview, actress Julia Foster (Patsy) recalls her interactions with director Ken Hughes before and during the shooting of The Small World of Sammy Lee (with some excellent comments about his unorthodox working methods) and discusses her character and the profound impact the film had on her career. The interview was conducted exclusively for StudioCanal in 2016. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• Interview with Mike Hodges - in this new video interview, director Mike Hodges (Get Carter, Croupier) explains what makes The Small World of Sammy Lee a special film and discusses the old and seedy Soho where it was shot. The interview was conducted exclusively for StudioCanal in 2016. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Locations Featurette with Richard Dacre - in this new featurette, film historian Richard Dacre discusses some of the key similarities between Ken Hughes's original play and the film it inspired and the more memorable locations in Soho where the film was shot. (A our of these locations is included as well). The featurette was produced exclusively for StudioCanal in 2016. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

The Small World of Sammy Lee Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Ken Hughes' The Small World of Sammy Lee is exactly the type of film I would expect the folks at StudioCanal to restore and bring to Blu-ray -- a true British gem that would not have made it to the home video market if their Vintage Classics series did not exist. I had not seen the film before and to be honest I think that it is near perfect, so it is quite the discovery for me. (Apparently, a lot of critics and moviegoers that saw it during the 1960s thought otherwise). It blends 'kitchen-sink' realism and some noir aesthetics, and the end result is fantastic. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.