Watership Down – BFI

Director: Martin Rosen
Screenplay: Martin Rosen
Starring: John Hurt, Richard Briers, Michael Graham Cox, Simon Cadell, Harry Andrews and Zero Mostel
Country: United Kingdom
Running Time: 91 min
Year: 1978

My fascination with the British Board of Film Classification should be a surprise to nobody who’s been reading my work for a while. Whether it’s a bizarre controversy they find themselves in, the video nasties boom of the 80s or a peculiar rating they assign a film, I’ve always had an interest in what goes on behind those doors. For most people, they won’t even think about the BBFC when watching most films. I say most films because, out of my 27 years on this Earth, regardless of the person, their background or interest in film, I’ve heard one question regarding the BBFC so many times, I’ve lost count. “How on Earth did Watership Down get a U rating?” 

For years, that question interested and excited me. Watership Down had been on my watchlist for years but I never got around to watching it, but hearing the horror stories of people who were traumatised by the film when they watched it at a young age sounded equally interesting and worrying. The film bro inside me who’d seen everything from John Waters’ Pink Flamingos to Gaspar Noé’s Irreversible would have no problem with a family film about rabbits, right? Right? Well, when the BFI announced that their previously cancelled UHD and Blu-ray release of the film was back on the schedule, I requested a copy so I could check this one off of the bucket list. 

Watership Down is an adaptation of the 1972 novel of the same name by Richard Adams, bringing that story to the big screen without shying away from some of the more adult and harrowing themes of the book. As previously mentioned, the film garnered quite the controversy for its U, suitable for all age rating given the film’s bleak tone, bursts of violent content and allegories to real world events such as the Holocaust. It’s a tough watch that even caught me by surprise due to how realistic the film was. Following a group of rabbits who leave their warren after Fiver, a rabbit plagued with visions of foreboding horror begs them to leave. Fiver sees the hills running red with blood, and this is entirely down to the fact that there’s a sign (which they can’t read) which states humans are coming in to build on their land. 

Immediately from the get-go, the film’s harrowing tone is on display, highlighting the trauma that Fiver has seen before, and his visions into the future showcasing humans repeating the cycle that results in the death of his fellow rabbits is a risk he doesn’t want to take. Alongside his brother Hazel (played excellently by John Hurt, may I add), an Owsla officer named Bigwig who abandons post after hearing the news and a series of other rabbits, the group set off to find safe haven, a tall hill where humans won’t come to harm them. 

One of the things I absolutely adored about Watership Down was the animation style. In an age where virtually everything is computer-animated, seeing a classic hand-drawn 2D animated feature felt like a breath of fresh air. There’s a scruffy nature to the animation that only enhances the experience, because you can see and feel those human touches all throughout Watership Down. To some people, this won’t be as mind-blowing as what the latest animated Spider-Man film does visually, but the comparison almost feels pointless given how they’re both going for completely different styles. 

It’s been debated for years whether or not Watership Down is a movie that children should watch, given the adult themes and content and while I could see somebody a little older, maybe eight or nine watching this and enjoying it, it wouldn’t surprise me if they came away as shocked as those watching it back in 1978 for the first time. It’s a challenging watch in many ways, given a lot of the abstract sequences that occur throughout the film, particularly in Fiver’s visions of the future. They’re animated in ways that can’t be referred to as anything other than horror. 

About halfway through the film, an Owsla officer finds the group of rabbits and describes the horrors that happened at the warren that Fiver, Hazel and the rest abandoned earlier in the film and it’s unbelievably disturbing. The sequence, in an abstract but unmistakable fashion highlights the warrens being caved in as the rabbits underground are all squished to death with no oxygen, no room to breathe and no way out. It’s truly one of the most disturbing sequences I’ve seen in a film in quite some time, far more affecting than most of 2024’s horror output, honestly. Another sequence in the film that really stuck with me was the Bright Eyes sequence, set to an original composition by Art Garfunkel. It’s a piece about death and plays after Hazel’s almost killed by a farmer. It’s an incredibly moving scene that I won’t be forgetting anytime soon, and it’s no surprise that Bright Eyes ended up being a chart hit, thanks to its inclusion in Watership Down. 

I don’t want to give away everything about the film, as it’s a truly phenomenal piece of cinema that I advise everyone to watch, as long as you think you can handle the content and have a pair of tissues ready. If it’s not obvious by this review, I utterly adored Watership Down and found it moving, beautiful, harrowing and terrifying in equal measures. BFI’s new release of it is astonishing, and I’ll dive into the transfer, bonus features and what comes with it below but whether you’ve seen the film before or you’re like me and have been meaning to watch it for years, I strongly recommend picking this release up, or at the very least, seeking the film out. It’s one of the greatest animated films ever made, but one that I’m going to have difficulty running back to time and time again, given the nature of the film.

Film:

Watership Down released on the 25th November via BFI on Limited Edition 4K UHD and Blu-ray. I viewed the UHD release. The 4K restoration is absolutely stunning and given how rare it is to receive animated films like this on the format, it made the experience all the more surprising. The Dolby Vision HDR grade is gorgeous, making all of the vibrant colours pop and resulting in an astonishing picture. Audio wise, the original stereo mix has been remastered too and that track sounds fantastic too. The score in the film is treated with the utmost care and like the new transfer, the audio sounds unbelievably great. A/V wise, it’s virtually flawless. The following extras are included.

• 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Newly recorded audio commentary by film and animation experts Catherine Lester and Sam Summers
• Vintage audio commentary by director Martin Rosen and writer and filmmaker Chris Gore (2003)
• Defining a Style (2005, 12 mins): short featurette about the film’s aesthetic
• A Conversation With the Filmmakers (2005, 17 mins): archive featurette in which director Martin Rosen and editor Terry Rawlings discuss the production history of the film
• Storyboard comparison (2024, 15 mins): four scenes with accompanying original storyboards
• Super 8 version (1978, 28 mins): original UK Super 8 digest release of Watership Down
• Nepenthe Super 8 footage (1977, 3 mins): footage shot by Arthur Humberstone, one of the senior animators on Watership Down
• Designing Watership Down (2024, 4 mins): a gallery containing some of the materials related to Watership Down courtesy of The Arthur Humberstone Animation Archive
• Trailers and TV spots
• Once We Were Four (1942, 9 mins): a bunny quartet face an onslaught of badgers, bombs and birds of prey in this black comedy masquerading as a nature film, directed by Mary Field
• Rabbits or Profits? (1969, 15 mins): public information film providing a potted history of rabbits in the UK
• Bolly in A Space Adventure (1968, 5 mins): a short Halas & Batchelor animation about the adventures of Bolly and his friends on imaginary planets, featuring animation by Tony Guy, animation director on Watership Down
• Make Believe (1948, 17 mins): Anson Dyer tells ‘The Tale of Ronnie Rabbit’ in this documentary showing the various stages of making a cartoon bunny
• Newly created optional English descriptive subtitles
• Newly created audio description track for the blind and visually impaired
• Double-sided poster featuring the original UK quad and the 2024 rerelease artwork
• A set of four postcards featuring images and sketches from the film
• Perfect-bound book featuring writing by Jez Stewart, Catherine Lester, Nigel and Klive Humberstone, Angela Morley, Charlie Brigden, Lillian Crawford, Vic Pratt, Tim Coleman, Caroline Millar Tony Dykes and Michael Brooke

To say that the BFI went above and beyond with this release would be a huge understatement, as it’s packed to the brim with bonus features. 

Starting off, there’s two audio commentaries, one archival track and one recorded exclusively for this release. The archival track features director Martin Rosen and writer/filmmaker Chris Gore and it covers the typical topics you’d expect from a director’s commentary. Gore is a good host, asking Rosen a variety of interesting questions and it ends up being a solid listen. This one’s ported over from an old Australian DVD and to my knowledge, is making its UK debut on this disc. The second track features film and animation scholars Catherine Lester and Sam Summers and it’s a great, laid-back and insightful track. Both have a history with Watership Down, as detailed in their opening comments and they offer a commentary track that’s packed to the brim with information about the themes and the production of the film. Both tracks are great listens, offering two unique listening experiences and I can easily recommend them to fans of the film.

Two archival featurettes are included, A Conversation with the Filmmakers and Defining a Style. Both produced in 2005, A Conversation with the Filmmakers features interviews with director Martin Rosen and editor Terry Rawlings as they cover the process of bringing the film to life. Defining a Style features interviews from some of the animators and artists who worked on the film as they reflect on their experiences bringing Watership Down to life and the distinctive style that the film has, as the title suggests. These run for a collective 29 minutes and they’re worth watching.

The storyboard comparisons run for around 15 minutes and show four key sequences in the film, with the storyboards in the bottom right corner for comparison purposes. It’s an interesting watch that fans will be delighted by.

A Super 8 digest version of the film is included, running for 28 minutes and showcasing a condensed version of the film. It’s an oddity that the BFI didn’t have to include on this release, but I’m delighted that they did. Also included is 3 minutes of Super 8 footage shot by Arthur Humberstone, an animator that worked on Watership Down. It consists of footage of the animators working on the film set to music. 

Designing Watership Down is a brand new four minute piece featuring Arthur Humberstone’s work on the film, taken from his animation archive. It runs for four minutes and is an interesting watch.

Two trailers, both the original theatrical trailer and one for the new restoration are included, as well as two TV spots.

A section entitled Treasures from the BFI National Archive houses four short films that, as the BFI say, are ‘connected by theme, iconography or personnel to Watership Down’ and it’s an interesting selection to say the least. Once We Were Four runs for 9 minutes, was directed by Mary Field and follows four rabbits, Donald, James, Charles and Clifford as they deal with wildlife and violent humans. It’s a comedic piece that has an absolutely bizarre ending, which I won’t spoil here. As an educational film, it’s a bit of a failure but it’s still strange enough that I’d recommend giving it a watch. Rabbits or Profits? runs for 15 minutes and is an educational piece about the history of rabbits in the UK and the damage they can cause crops and grassland. It’s a total condemnation of rabbits as a species, talking about the dangers of keeping them as pets on the off-chance they escape, multiply and eat your crops. The narrator legitimately says “the only good rabbit is a dead rabbit” which was wild to hear. Still, it’s a well-made piece with a horrifying message. Worth a watch as a curiosity. Bolly in A Space Adventure runs for 5 minutes and is an animated piece featuring animation from Watership Down’s animation director Tony Guy. It follows the titular Bolly who takes an adventure to a new planet. It’s another strange one, but features some great animation and looks brilliant. Finally, Make Believe runs for 18 minutes and showcases the process of creating a cartoon bunny. It’s the most interesting of the four shorts, containing animation that reminded me of Who Framed Roger Rabbit? but this was filmed forty years earlier. The best short, easily. 

I wasn’t provided with the postcards, poster or other physical goodies but I was sent a digital version of the 40 page book included with the release and it’s a great read. Featuring multiple essays about the film, as well as one for each of the short films, it’s packed with fantastic writing, as well as technical information about the release, stills, archival material and more. Jez Stewart’s piece serves as an introduction to the film and offers a brief history on its production, while Catherine Lester’s essay dives into the notorious history of children watching the film due to its U rating by the BBFC and being traumatised by it. Caroline Millar’s essay talks about the differences she had viewing the film at a young age and watching it almost 40 years later. Tim Coleman talks about how the film operates within the classic ‘Five Stages of Grief’ while Nigel and Klive Humberstone write a touching piece about their father Arthur, a senior animator on Watership Down. Angela Morley dives into the iconic music for the film, while Charlie Brigden focuses on one composition in particular, Bright Eyes. Lillian Crawford gives an overview on Richard Adams, the writer of the Watership Down novel. I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of the essays and think they’re absolutely worth your time if you pick up the limited edition. 

BFI’s release of Watership Down is a phenomenal package, with excellent extras to supplement the feature, an utterly phenomenal UHD transfer and audio mix, an array of great physical goodies that collectors will be delighted with and from all accounts, is the definitive version of Watership Down on physical media. If you’re a fan of the film or want to check it out for the first time, I can’t recommend this release enough. A must-buy.

Disc/Packaging:

Where to watch Watership Down