We’ve reached that time of year when Back to School sales dominate the stores. No longer can you enjoy the summer days without knowing that first period bell is about to ring. Why not appreciate the upcoming semester with a film about what happens when an elite academic environment teaches lessons in how to get away with murder? Unman, Wittering and Zigo takes place at an elite school that the very rich send their sons. You might expect this to turn into a classic tale of an institution turned a boy into a man before they became a war hero or a captain of industry. Instead, we’re given a film about how a bunch of boys transformed into a pack of sociopaths. The posh students prove they aren’t the teacher’s pet. Unman, Wittering and Zigo are the last names on a class roll of terror.
John Ebony (Deep Red‘s David Hemmings) arrives halfway through the year to teach at the Chantry School. The boarding school has 300 male students. The school doesn’t refer to them as boys since they are men. Ebony is the replacement for Pelham, a teacher who fell off a nearby seaside cliff when the mist got too thick. Ebony slides into Pelham’s life with the same desk and cottage. Ebony took the gig as he tries to get away from his corporate life. He sees this school as a great start for his academic career. He learns quickly that he will be tested more by his students. The students keep mentioning all the wonderful things Mr. Pelham did in the class. In the middle of his first class, one of the students says that Mr. Pelham did something they didn’t like and that’s why they killed him. Are they just giving Ebony the business? Or are they just confessing since Ebony can’t prove it? During their training to rescue people off the cliffs, a few students explain to the new teacher how they killed Pelham and got rid of the evidence. In their young minds, they’ve committed the perfect crime and can brag about it since their alibis are airtight. They also know the headmaster wouldn’t want the publicity that comes with a school filled with homicidal students. Nobody wants to reopen Pelham’s case. Ebony fears he and his wife (The Ruling Class‘s Carolyn Seymour) might not live to final exams.
Unman, Wittering and Zigo has a strong following in England thanks to the film, play and radio play. This is a film that would probably have a greater cult audience in America if it didn’t have a title that sounds like an international legal firm. Unman, Wittering and Zigo doesn’t quite run off the tongue. The title suggests that subtitles will be involved. But the film deserves to be mentioned with Lindsay Anderson’s If…. starring Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange) which had come out three years before. These are two films about how crazy things can get at a Boys English Public school can get. The students at Chantry School are a nightmarish crew of entitled brats that feel like teenage versions of the kids from Village of the Damned. Hemming is perfectly cast as the guy looking to get into teaching only to discover the nightmare of students and the reality of school administrators. Unman, Wittering and Zigo is the perfect back to school film. You should nab the Blu-ray while stocking up on No. 2 pencils and black & white composition books.
The Video is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The transfer is so solid. You get a clear picture of the ancient school and the nearby cliffs. The audio is LPCM mono. They’ve cleaned it up so you can hear the students whispering in the back of the room. The movie is subtitled.
Audio commentary by Sean Hogan and Kim Newman has them talk about how they still think the film is “owned” by playwright Giles Cooper. Newman brings up that the radio play was done as part of an anthology TV series in 1965. The tape is lost. It was also a play in 1967. He was astonished the play was read in posh schools. Neil Gaiman read it at his school. There’s talk about screenwriter Simon Raven’s sketchy ways. While mostly known as a novelist, Raven also contributed to the script for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. The two discuss English boarding school life.
Appreciation by critic, broadcaster and cultural historian Matthew Sweet (25:45) has him recount Rowan Atkinson’s spoof done at the Secret Policeman’s Ball. He mentions how the radio play and the film were part of a backlash against public schools in England. He gives examples of shows that hated the system. He gives us a biography of Giles Cooper, the writer behind the radio play. He suggestions that the last names of the kids are so bizarre to keep anyone from legally claiming the characters are based on them.
Unman, Terhew, Lipstrob and Mrs Ebony (30:13) interviews cast members Michael Howe, Michael Cashman, James Wardroper and Carolyn Seymour. Cashman is now in the House of Lords. The men recount playing students at the school. There’s quite a few fun moments between the kids and the director. They enjoyed working with David Hemmings. Seymour discusses her crucial scene at the end.
The original 1958 recording of Giles Cooper’s radio play (73:01) let you experience the audio theater version. Dim the lights an enjoy how they created the creepy school out from just a speaker. They illustrate the play with press photos.
Original trailer (2:12) lets us know this isn’t a feel-good film about teaching at an elite English boarding school.
Image gallery has almost 140 frames of posters, lobby cards, press photos, behind the scenes shots. They show off the globe they made to protect the camera when it was tossed off the cliff for the opening tumble shot.
Double sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Eric Adrian Lee
Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Kevin Lyons and Oliver Wake
Arrow Video presents Unman, Wittering and Zigo. Directed by John MacKenzie. Screenplay by Simon Raven. Starring David Hemmings, Douglas Wilmer, Carolyn Seymour, Hamilton Dyce, Anthony Haygarth, Barbara Lott, Donald Gee, David Jackson, Hubert Rees & David Auker. Running Time: 102 minutes. Rating: Rated PG. Release Date: August 22, 2023.
