I saw this movie when it first came out, and was amazed. So I was pleased to get this Criterion Collection DVD, to savor the movie again, and find out what some of the things I missed when I saw it, being young, and to see if some of the questions I had were answered.
Probably, too many will have no idea of the British school system to understand just how oppressive the system was for public school. And this showed the middle class of Britain, not the upper class. Students would go on to be military officers, etc. And there, public school is a different concept than in America.
The movie is an indictment of the class system in Britain, and in Disc 1, with the commentary, most of it is how Lindsey Anderson set about showing that indictment. Disc 2 is a bit light on material, but gives some more background from those involved. The film is mainly in color, but there are segments of black and white. Probably the initial reason was the lighting the entire chapel for color filming was beyond their budget. But that also led to other portions being shot in B&W, as it simply filmed better and portrayed things better. But those were more arbitrary. Due to commercial considerations, too much B&W would have been a negative.
This movie has a lot of homosexual overtones, but not sexuality. It is an all boys school, where discipline is ruthless, and the 'overlords/whips' have power they can exercise like no other. When Mick Travis (Malcolm McDowell) is beaten, it is for insolence, not for what he actually did. And after the severe beating, he shakes hands with the sadist who beat him, thanking him for what he did. But that beating triggers the action that results in the climax of the movie.
The movie on one level is timeless. But on another level, if one was ignorant of how the class system worked in Britain, one my not have great regard for the movie.
The movie was also released about the same time as Barbarella, and probably more will remember the opening of that movie than the end of this movie.
This movie is not simply about a small number of school kids that rebel against the system. It is much deeper than that. When a student first gets to that school, they are considered scum and as they are there longer, they work their way into more power, and the ability to treat others beneath them poorly. In an early scene, one of the whips tells the newer student to go and warm the toilet seat for him.
