The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner

Made in 1962 by Tony Richardson, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner is one of the seminal films in the British New Wave. Set in a gritty midlands town (Nottingham), with a precise class distinction among its characters, the film examines the harshness and despair of life from the vantage point of a character that would seem to have no hope.

Tom Courtenay is Colin Smith, a teenager who has being shipped off to a borstal (sort of like a reformatory) after being caught in a robbery. (One of my few complaints about this film is the Courtenay, an weathered 25, seems far too old for the part). We follow Courtenay as he fits into borstal life, becoming the favorite of the governor (Michael Redgrave) because he is the fastest runner, and therefore is the best weapon in the upcoming competition against a public school.

Interwoven are flashbacks of how Courtenay got there. He's aimless, particularly after the death of his father and the subsequent arrival of his mother's boyfriend, whom he accuses of moving in before his father was cold. He and a mate court a couple of girls in a stolen car, and then take them to a seaside town for the night. Courtenay seems to have no interests or ambitions. He and his friend rob the office of a bakery and seem to get away with it, even being smart enough to hide the money. But a detective is on to him immediately (this wasn't quite clear--perhaps Courtenay had a record, otherwise it's not spelled out how he was fingered) but eventually the jig will be up.

While in borstal he enjoys privileges of being the governor's pet. There is a scene of satiric nature in which a reformer, full of new ideas, interviews him using word association--it reminded me of the scene in The 400 Blows when Antoine is interviewed and asked if he's ever had sex. Redgrave believes in old-fashioned ways, but realizes that these boys haven't had the opportunities of the boys they will be racing against.

The film builds toward the big race as the climax, and I won't spoil it here. Suffice it to say that it's as a film should be--unpredictable but inevitable.

This isn't a cheery movie by any regard, but a very well made and acted one.