Anyone who knew Lindsay Anderson will have some stories to tell about this extraordinary British film-maker and most difficult of men who inspired intense loyalty and sometimes repaid it with less than grateful behaviour. Few knew him better than Malcolm McDowell, an actor whom Anderson made a star in If..., and who in 2004 created a oneman stage show in which he detailed his memories of his tetchy but generous mentor.

Mike Kaplan, whose friendship with McDowell began on Stanley Kubrick's Clockwork Orange and who produced The Whales of August, Anderson's last film, records McDowell's show with modest skill and mixes his anecdotes with well-chosen archive footage.

The result is fascinating, revealing McDowell to be a much finer actor than some of his recent films might suggest and Anderson to be not only a great film and theatre director but a character it is impossible, if you knew him, to forget.

The apology implied in the title was to Alan Bates, a nice man and a fine actor whom Anderson had been rude about and was told had been deeply hurt by his curmudgeonly words.

It sums up almost everything about Anderson, and McDowell's retelling of the somewhat grudging letter saying sorry could hardly be better. It evolves into an assessment of himself and the world which is both funny and revealing.

Definitely a film to cherish as an In Memoriam to an exceptional artist and a man who you couldn't help liking even at his most insufferable.