''Bronco Bullfrog'' is a 1969

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film directed by Barney Platts-Mills. It was Platts-Mills' first full-length feature film.

Plot

The film follows the fortunes of a 17-year-old, Del, and his group of friends. As the film opens, four youths (Del, Roy, Chris and Geoff) are seen breaking into a cafe in Stratford, East London, but they only get away with about ninepence and some cake, and it is clear that they are hardly master criminals. Back at their hut on waste ground they mention Jo, known as 'Bronco Bullfrog' (for reasons which are never explained), who has just got out of

Borstal A Borstal was a type of youth detention centre in the United Kingdom, several member states of the Commonwealth and the Republic of Ireland. In India, such a detention centre is known as a Borstal school. Borstals were run by HM Prison Service ...

. Once Del and Roy (Chris and Geoff are hardly seen again in the film) meet Jo in a cafe, they link up with him to carry out a bigger robbery. Meanwhile, Del meets Irene, a friend of a cousin of Chris's and they start a relationship despite the disapproval of Irene's mother and Del's father. The remainder of the film follows Del and Irene as they attempt to escape their dead-end lives.

Cast

* Del Walker as Del Quant * Anne Gooding as Irene Richardson * Sam Shepherd as Jo Saville alias Bronco Bullfrog * Roy Haywood as Roy * Freda Shepherd as Mrs. Richardson * Dick Philpott as Del's Father * Chris Shepherd as Chris * Stuart Stones as Sergeant Johnson * Geoffrey Wincott as Geoff (as Geoff Wincott) * J. Hughes Sr. as Del's Uncle * Mick Hart as Grimes * Ken Field as Dave * Marguerite Hughes as Marge * E.E. Blundell as Landlady * J. Hughes Jr. as Parker

Production

The film was largely

improvised Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

and had a cast of non-professional actors to add to the gritty realism of the film. The film was also turned down by

Bryan Forbes Bryan Forbes CBE (; born John Theobald Clarke; 22 July 1926 – 8 May 2013) was an English film director, screenwriter, film producer, actor and novelist described as a "Renaissance man"Falk Q. . BAFTA. 17 October 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2013 and ...

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Princess Anne story

A 2010 Guardian article noted a story about Princess Anne connected with the film's release. In November 1970, a group of 200 members of the Beaumont Youth Club in Leyton jeered Princess Anne, with some throwing tomatoes, as she was going to see the London premiere of '' Three Sisters'' instead of ''Bronco Bullfrog''. A week later, Princess Anne did go to see the latter at the Mile End ABC. Sam Shepherd claims that he was arrested by police for attempting to kiss the princess's hand. Shepherd would later write to Princess Anne to apologise.

Accolades

The film has been described as "Mod poetry" and a "masterpiece". However, the film became obscure after its cinema run, and was only shown twice on television between 1969 and 2010. In the mid-1980s, the master negative was disposed of in a rubbish skip but was retrieved by an employee of a film laboratory who placed it in an archive.

Theatrical Re-release

In Spring/Summer 2022 the film was released in independent cinemas across the United States by a NYC based boutique film label seventy-seven. A new HD version of the film opened the ninth

East End Film Festival The East End Film Festival was one of the UK's largest film festivals. It ceased all operations on 4 March 2020. The owner, Alison Poltock, explained that "the push to provide a more mainstream commercial offering is not for us." Founded in 200 ...

on 22 April 2010, prior to its re-release in summer 2010.

Home media

Previously, the film has been released in the BFI Flipside series dual format edition (DVD and Blu-ray), with other films (such as 1975's ''Seven Green Bottles'', and Platts-Mills' 1968 film ''Everybody's an actor, Shakespeare said'') as extras.

Certification

When submitted for home release, the film was originally given a 12 certificate in 2004 but this was changed to a 15 certificate in 2010.BBFC page for Bronco Bullfrog
see "Related work" section The change is believed to come from the appearance of the taboo word ''

cunt ''Cunt'' () is a vulgar word for the vulva or vagina. It is used in a variety of ways, including as a term of disparagement. Reflecting national variations, ''cunt'' can be used as a disparaging and obscene term for a woman in the United St ...

'' in graffiti in a very brief clip that the censors could have missed originally.

References

External links

Director Barney Platts-Mills website
* * {{Screenonline title, id=1231325, name=Bronco Bullfrog
Information about the film
from Modculture.co.uk 1970 films 1970s coming-of-age drama films 1970s crime drama films British black-and-white films British coming-of-age drama films British crime drama films British teen drama films Films directed by Barney Platts-Mills Films set in London Films shot in London Skinhead 1970 directorial debut films 1970 drama films 1970s English-language films 1960s British films 1970s British films