DVD Review: PRIMITIVE LONDON/LONDON IN THE RAW Double Feature

A few weeks ago, the wonderful Kino Lorber launched yet another sublabel after the fantastic Redemption line. The new line, Jezebel, handles some of the sexier titles that have little to do with horror, but plenty to do with exploitation. One of their initial releases is the London Mondo double feature from director Arnold Miller of London in the Raw and Primitive London. Made in 1965 and 1967 respectively, these two docs follow closely on the heels of the international mania created by Mondo Cane and attempts to fill that market locally in old Blighty. I have to admit, even though it seems like the films might be narrowing their focus a bit to much, it is clear that Miller knew which rocks to look under for the grungier stuff, and it pays off in spades.

Arnold L Miller was a prominent sleaze vendor in the UK in the '60s. In addition to these two films, he also directed Take Off Your Clothes and Live, Nudes of All Nations, Skin Game, Nudist Memories, and Frustrated Wives. It was clear that Miller had his ducks in a row when he decided to cash in on the Mondo craze, not unlike Russ Meyer who added his own Mondo Topless to the market in 1966.

The two films aren't entirely rehashed from one another, but they do share a lot of similar material. Primitive London, the first of the two on the disc, certainly spends a lot more time in the muck than the relatively uptown London in the Raw. Neither is BAFTA material, but if I had to choose a favorite, it would definitely be Primitive London.  This film features a more mature approach, and it appears as though some effort was made to create an interesting cinematic experience. If London in the Raw has a fault, it is it's haphazard editing, which smashes completely disparate scenes up against one another with no attempt to connect them thematically. It just seems really lazy.

I haven't got much to say about these films. They are jam packed with imagery often straight out of Mondo Cane, including a workout scene with housewives in a modern gym. However, they lack a thematic thread, in spite of their tenuous connection of being a trip below London's seedy surfaces. On the other hand, we get at least a dozen strip teases and some fantastic style to fall back on. As incomprehensible as these two films were, I enjoyed them thoroughly!

The Disc:

Kino/Jezebel have presented these two films on a single disc in this double feature. Seeing as how the pair don't run even close to three hours in total, there are no significant issues resulting from this decision. As a matter of fact, they look fantastic, certainly about as good as possible on DVD. There is plenty of 16mm grain evident and there are particularly strong colors throughout the film. This is a real steal from Jezebel.

I would be lax if I declined to mention the fact that BFI (who have a credit on both films), have released both of these film on region free Blu-ray as part of their stellar Flipside collection. I own those discs as well, and the quality is astonishing.

Part of the reason I mention that is the fact that while the BFI Blus have loads of extras and contemporary short films, Jezebel's disc has nothing in the way of extras.

These two films are incredibly fun, however, if you are looking to buy them, unless you are the double dipping type or haven't made the Blu-ray jump yet, I would give the BFI discs some serious consideration. That being said, if you don't mind DVDs and have an aversion of importing, these are DEFINITELY worth checking out!