Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

Play trailer Poster for Sunday, Bloody Sunday R Released Sep 8, 1971 1h 50m Drama LGBTQ+ Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
86% Tomatometer 29 Reviews 70% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Recently divorced career woman Alex Greville (Glenda Jackson) begins a romantic relationship with glamorous mod artist Bob Elkin (Murray Head), fully aware that he's also intimately involved with middle-aged doctor Daniel Hirsh (Peter Finch). For both Alex and Daniel, the younger man represents a break with their repressive pasts, and though both know that Bob is seeing both of them, neither is willing to let go of the youth and vitality he brings to their otherwise stable lives.
Watch on Fandango at Home Buy Now

Where to Watch

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Led by strong performances from its three leads, Sunday Bloody Sunday takes a sophisticated and groundbreaking look at the complexities of love.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View All (29) Critics Reviews
Margaret Hinxman Daily Telegraph (UK) For me, Sunday, Bloody Sunday is far and away the best film John Schlesinger has ever made: the surest, the truest, the most uncluttered. Jun 2, 2020 Full Review Derek Malcolm Guardian A most impressive achievement, superbly edited by its maker into a whole that is almost as satisfactory as its parts. Jun 2, 2020 Full Review Kimberley Jones Austin Chronicle Sunday Bloody Sunday is the song of those left behind, not the one doing the leaving. Mar 16, 2020 Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com …Gloomy yet glamorous, Sunday Bloody Sunday may depict sexual mores of a bygone era, but the situation is describes feels timeless in the hands of gifted film-makers… Rated: 5/5 Jun 15, 2023 Full Review Alan Jones Radio Times [G]round-breaking exploration of heterosexual and homosexual relationships. Rated: 4/5 Mar 16, 2020 Full Review Jose Solís PopMatters What's most surprising about Sunday Bloody Sunday is that Finch and Jackson only share one scene together, yet it's the power of the performances that carries the entire film. Rated: 6/10 Mar 16, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (104) audience reviews
Alec B Well acted to be sure and it does have that constant feeling of being totally honest. If anything keeps it from being great, its the almost repressive feeling of self importance in several scenes. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/20/24 Full Review Audience Member Glenda Jackson, and Peter Finch love the artist who is moving to New York. This threesome would not happen in 2023 when getting half of someone is not acceptable. That Jackson and Finch are willing to share Murray Head is because 1971 people didn't know how to get the full ball of wax. This is 50 years later when relationships are more demanding and very well defined. If a man wants both a woman and a man, It is very dangerous to both partners who may get diseases from one or the other. It just is not safe to have more than one partner. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review dave s Alex (Glenda Jackson) is a recently divorced woman coming to terms with job dissatisfaction and a traumatic childhood. Daniel (Peter Finch) is a Jewish doctor trying to hide his homosexuality from his community. In an effort to sooth their troubled lives, both manage to find solace in the arms of Bob (Murray Head), a free-spirited artist and a product of the ‘60s. John Schlesinger's Sunday Bloody Sunday is an interesting study of characters in crisis, buoyed by powerhouse performances from both Jackson and Finch. Admittedly, there isn't much in the way of a storyline and some of Schlesinger's directorial choices are odd (there are too many close-ups of irrelevant things – a key being inserted into a lock, for example), but it remains an intriguing period piece dealing with controversial relationships that were pretty much verboten at the time. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Well acted to be sure and it does have that constant feeling of being totally honest. If anything keeps it from being great, its the almost repressive feeling of self importance in several scenes. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review andres s Really great use of editing techniques and camera work. I love the attention to detail and cinematography. There's definitely a political and socio-economic awareness going on in this movie. Kids are smoking pot and it's ok because their parent are progressive? Uhh wtf? Lol. Beautifully chaotic and comfortable with how dirty things can be. It's got that gritty 70's feel to it that I like. Holy shit that beautifully pleasant scene at the park takes a terrible turn when the little blonde girl decides to run across the street all of a sudden, unfortunately killing the dog. That was so unexpected and pretty shocking. Hypnotic and psychedelic at times. It ended up being a pretty damn good decent movie. I was much more taken by it than the previous movie I watch today - ‘Throw Down'. The movie has an incredible real take and awareness on the things happening during that time. Everything seems very relevant and modern. I love the way they showcase everyday living for it's characters and the way their lives intertwine with one another. Polyamorous relationships are not for the faint of heart and I love the way they tackled this subject matter with such sensitivity. The movie went by fairly quick without even noticing and I found it thoroughly entertaining. I was pleasantly surprised at how interesting all the characters and their story lines were. John Schlesinger has a keen and creative eye when it comes to cinematography and shots. He has this almost childlike wonder and curiosity when filming things. I'd actually watch this movie again. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review delysid d i watched this entire 2 hour film, man i was confused. what is this??? Rated 1 out of 5 stars 12/17/21 Full Review Read all reviews
Sunday, Bloody Sunday

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

The Sergeant 20% 75% The Sergeant Watchlist The Boys in the Band 90% 87% The Boys in the Band Watchlist Satyricon 76% 75% Satyricon Watchlist Personal Best 74% 52% Personal Best Watchlist Lianna 82% 63% Lianna Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Recently divorced career woman Alex Greville (Glenda Jackson) begins a romantic relationship with glamorous mod artist Bob Elkin (Murray Head), fully aware that he's also intimately involved with middle-aged doctor Daniel Hirsh (Peter Finch). For both Alex and Daniel, the younger man represents a break with their repressive pasts, and though both know that Bob is seeing both of them, neither is willing to let go of the youth and vitality he brings to their otherwise stable lives.
Director
John Schlesinger
Producer
Joseph Janni
Screenwriter
Penelope Gilliatt
Distributor
Criterion Collection, United Artists, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Production Co
Vectia
Rating
R
Genre
Drama, LGBTQ+
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 8, 1971, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 16, 2008
Runtime
1h 50m
Sound Mix
Mono
Most Popular at Home Now