DbcultAccessing Vault...
6.9/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.9/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Lyons Mail remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like old British films that feel like they were filmed inside a cardboard box, you’ll be fine here. It is definitely for people who enjoy stage acting captured on screen. If you need pacing that moves faster than a Victorian carriage, stay away.
Watching The Lyons Mail is a bit like visiting an attic. Everything is covered in a layer of dust and sounds a little hollow. John Martin Harvey is clearly the guy holding the whole thing together. He plays both Joseph Lesurques and the villainous Dubosc. The split-screen effects are ancient, obviously, but they have a certain jagged charm to them.
There is this one scene where he’s arguing with himself, and the seam where the two shots join is so clear you could drive a truck through it. It’s distracting, but I found myself grinning anyway. It’s honest work, even if the technology wasn't quite there yet.
Everything here feels very "proscenium arch." The actors are constantly projecting to the back row, even when they’re standing two feet from the camera. It makes the dialogue feel a bit stiff, almost like they were reading from a scroll.
Speaking of the dialogue, it’s mostly just people explaining why they are angry. There isn't much subtext. You don't have to guess what anyone is feeling. They just shout it at you.
It lacks the visual invention you see in something like Kino-pravda no. 23 - Radio pravda. This is a film that wants to be a play, and it’s perfectly content staying that way. You can almost smell the greasepaint in every single frame. I kept waiting for someone to trip over a prop because the sets feel so flimsy.
It’s not a masterpiece, and honestly, it’s a bit of a slog in the middle. But for about eighty minutes, it’s a decent enough time capsule. Just don't go in expecting anything modern. It's a relic, and it knows it. 🎞️