This Sporting Life
| This Sporting Life | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Directed by | Lindsay Anderson |
| Produced by | Karel Reisz |
| Screenplay by | David Storey |
| Based on | This Sporting Life by David Storey |
| Starring |
Richard Harris Rachel Roberts Alan Badel William Hartnell |
| Music by | Roberto Gerhard |
| Cinematography | Denys Coop |
| Edited by | Peter Taylor |
| Distributed by | Rank Organisation, Janus Films |
|
Release date
|
7 February 1963 (London, West End) |
|
Running time
|
134 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | £230,000 |
This Sporting Life is a 1963 British feature film based on the 1960 novel of the same name by David Storey, which won the 1960 Macmillan Fiction Award. It recounts the story of a rugby league footballer, Frank Machin, in Wakefield, a mining area of Yorkshire, whose romantic life is not as successful as his sporting life. Storey, a former professional rugby league footballer, also wrote the screenplay.
The film stars Richard Harris, Rachel Roberts, William Hartnell and Alan Badel. It was directed by Lindsay Anderson. The film was Richard Harris's first starring role, and won him a Best Actor Award at the 1963 Cannes Film Festival. He was also nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Rachel Roberts won her second BAFTA award for This Sporting Life and an Oscar nomination for best actress. Harris was nominated for the BAFTA that year as well. The film opened at the Odeon Leicester Square in London's West End on 7 February 1963.
Set in Wakefield, the film concerns a bitter young Yorkshire coal miner, Frank Machin (Harris). Following a nightclub altercation, in which he takes on the captain of the local rugby league club and punches a couple of the others, he is recruited by the team's manager, who sees profit in his aggressive streak.
...
Wikipedia