Mort d'un prof?

I came across this obscure and barely released film by chance,intrigued by it's synopsis. And like it happens with every buried treasure it was a revelation. Director John McKenzie, and cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth, skilfully made this film into a close knit mystery with a bit of a disappointing ending which doesn't hurt the overall impression.

David Hammings is a new teacher at a boarding school who gets to teach a class from hell. Not by violence, but by sinister mind games,and subtle or not so subtle threats, they creep him into playing their game. What will happen is there to be seen. There is no need to explain why they are so twisted, there can be many reasons, and the boarding school system with it's rigid rules can be one of them, but than again, it may not be.This movie is not on DVD and it probably will never be, but mystery film buffs, if you come across this gem, be sure not to miss it.

The great David Hemmings ("Deep Red") stars as John Ebony, a former advertising man who's taken a new job as teacher at a secluded, coastal boys' school. His "form", or class, is Lower 5-B, and they're an unruly lot who don't take kindly to being told what to do. They also all tend to stick together. One of their first orders of business is informing John that they in fact murdered the man whom he replaced. He must "toe the line" regarding his treatment of them, or he WILL be sorry.

This wonderfully sinister, creepy sleeper has languished in obscurity for far too long. Based on a play by Giles Cooper, and directed with style by John Mackenzie ("The Long Good Friday"), it tells a compelling story with a nifty premise. It's easy to get hooked and wonder where it will take you; even though the answer to the burning question facing John is no great surprise, it's still devastating when you think of the reason *why* the murder of Mr. Pelham was proposed in the first place.

"Unman, Wittering and Zigo" (the title refers to the last three names on the roll call, although Zigo is always mysteriously absent) is able to get fairly explicit (there is some sex and nudity, but no real gore) while also not overplaying its hand in the portrayal of these very manipulative, self-serving students.

Well acted by all concerned, and infused with a great rural British atmosphere, this is one film worth checking out for the uninitiated - or re-discovering, if it's been a while since you've seen it.

Eight out of 10.

The movie opens with the arrival of a replacement teacher at a British boys' school. Mr. Ebony (David Hemmings) attempts to establish authority by threatening to hold Saturday classes as a punishment for unruly behavior. "It isn't a good idea, sir," young Mr Cloistermouth (Nicholas Hoye) warns him placidly, adding, "Mr. Pelham tried it once, sir. And that's why we killed him, sir."

Did they? They're a creepy bunch. Even the incessantly repeated honorific "sir" begins to feel sinister, though it is never said sarcastically. These boys keep up appearances. So are they capable of murder? It's plausible, and it certainly got this viewer's attention.

As others have noted, the idea resembles "Lord of the Flies," an allegory about human nature, where prepubescent boys degenerate to savagery to survive on an isolated island. But in "Unman," the boys are almost grown, and itching for freedom from the oppressive regimentation at the school. A few leaders emerge, the rest follow, and they coerce Ebony into helping. He complies, in part, because no one in charge believed him when he reported that the boys confessed to throwing Mr Pelham off the nearby cliffs. The Headmaster doesn't even believe him after he produces evidence in the form of Pelham's bloody wallet, which the boys gave him, lest he doubt what they're capable of.

Being neither British nor male, I can't speak to the authenticity of a public school where the coolly composed Headmaster (Douglas Wilmer) has such resolute faith in hidebound methods that he will not even hear dissent. Indeed, when given the bloody wallet, his reaction is to fire Ebony. Like "Lord of the Flies," it could also be considered an allegory, but in the end it feels more like a callow indictment a rigid educational system, minus mature insight.

Brooks?"Blackboard Jungle" in which Glenn Ford's wife is assaulted by the young guys.Anderson?"If" with its strict school and religion and sport as vectors of alienation.Vigo? (Check the name;it cannot be a coincidence;besides Zigo is always away during the whole movie)"Zero de conduite" the granddaddy of all these students rebellions.

With such references,the miracle is that "Unman,Wittering and Zigo" is a thoroughly original movie,what we usually call a sleeper.Extremely suspenseful,frightening without any special effect,it sustains interest till its last pictures.David Hemmings gives a good performance of this nice teacher ,literally under his students'thumb.What is really fascinating is the way they subdue him,the very polite way they speak;the story is implausible,but its implacable logic makes our blood run cold."We have killed your predecessor" they say to a first bemused teacher "It's a perfect crime".Hemmings 's character is completely lonely in his chic school where nobody wants to believe him ,not even his wife."We took you in hand" his students keep on repeating him.

SPOILERS:Once again,the punching bag subject comes to the fore;it makes sense that such a character should be the instigator of the crime .Being an outcast is ,to some,unbearable,and out of despair,he'd do anything to become part of the group.But what's bred in the bone comes out in the flesh:during the terrifying scene at the gym,this boy is once again humiliated .Although ,they treated their pal like a dog,they have lost their strange leader and they become children again,crying children in the last sequence.

"Unman ,Wittering and Zigo" is a disturbing movie;to the art teacher who tells him he ultimately solves the mystery,Hemmings answers :"but what can explain their behavior?"And as they carry their dead companion,the students walk hostilely towards the headmaster and his old fossils:the true rebellion has only begun.

It's a very peculiar movie, which perhaps could only have been fully explained in semi-supernatural terms, although it never takes that step. The later sequences where murder seems entirely possible (particularly as they terrorize Seymour) are very unsettling. The movie is also a pretty effective exploding of the public school upper-crust ethos, depicting the boys as determined to get good university scholarships (perceived by them as the next thing to a divine right) while doing as little work as possible. That aside, it's not very ambitious or enormously distinctive - the portrayal of the school beyond the class itself is pretty vague and Hemmings' specific strategy - focusing on finding the ringleader - is fairly indistinctly plotted. Leonard Maltin's review refers to the actual killer's identity being revealed after closing credits but that wasn't the case in the print seen here (quite a let down, actually). The movie should surely have reached further into metaphor or broader meaning or SOMETHING. But even so, it kept me watching until 3.15 am one morning.