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  #341  
Old 25th July 2020, 07:50 PM
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Default Green Man.

The Green Man..(1956)
A wonderful Ealingesque comedy starring the great Alastair Sim as an assassin who gets called out of retirement to assinate Raymond Huntley*as Sir Gregory Upshott ..George Cole plays a hapless vacumn salesman who stumbles upon a murder plot when he goes to the wrong house to demonstrate his appliance (oh err)..., While the plot is not exactly Agatha Christie,it does have the feel of those early Hitchcock movies that he made in England before eloping to America,only with the emphasis on comedy rather than suspense...Like most British movies from the 1950s it has a top notch cast,with some great early appearance's from Arthur Lowe Captain Mainwaring of course,Arthur Brough ( probably best remembered for his role in Are you being Served as Mr Grainger) and Hammer film regular Micheal Ripper... Also making a fairly brief appearance is the brilliant Terry Thomas, playing his usual gap toothed playboy, very similar to his role in School for Scoundrels...It's a whimsical and fairly gentle comedy,that resonates with that very 1950s life in Britain...My only criticism is the terrible poster artwork.
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  #342  
Old 25th July 2020, 10:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Inspector Abberline View Post
The Green Man..(1956)
A wonderful Ealingesque comedy starring the great Alastair Sim as an assassin who gets called out of retirement to assinate Raymond Huntley*as Sir Gregory Upshott ..George Cole plays a hapless vacumn salesman who stumbles upon a murder plot when he goes to the wrong house to demonstrate his appliance (oh err)..., While the plot is not exactly Agatha Christie,it does have the feel of those early Hitchcock movies that he made in England before eloping to America,only with the emphasis on comedy rather than suspense...Like most British movies from the 1950s it has a top notch cast,with some great early appearance's from Arthur Lowe Captain Mainwaring of course,Arthur Brough ( probably best remembered for his role in Are you being Served as Mr Grainger) and Hammer film regular Micheal Ripper... Also making a fairly brief appearance is the brilliant Terry Thomas, playing his usual gap toothed playboy, very similar to his role in School for Scoundrels...It's a whimsical and fairly gentle comedy,that resonates with that very 1950s life in Britain...My only criticism is the terrible poster artwork.
Nice write up, Inspector.

Funny you mention School for Scoundrels because my dvd is a Studio Canal double feature with you've guessed it, The Green Man and School for Scoundrels.

Have you got the SC Vintage Classics blu of Scoundrels from 2015? Just wondered what extras were on it.
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  #343  
Old 25th July 2020, 10:31 PM
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Nice write up, Inspector.

Funny you mention School for Scoundrels because my dvd is a Studio Canal double feature with you've guessed it, The Green Man and School for Scoundrels.

Have you got the SC Vintage Classics blu of Scoundrels from 2015? Just wondered what extras were on it.
Yes I have the blu ray,nice 2k print,extras are sparse, mostly interviews with critics about the film,usual trailers and film still galleries...
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  #344  
Old 25th July 2020, 10:33 PM
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Yes I have the blu ray,nice 2k print,extras are sparse, mostly interviews with critics about the film,usual trailers and film still galleries...
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  #345  
Old 21st August 2020, 06:15 PM
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Default I'm All Right Jack

I'm Alright Jack. (1959).
It just goes to show that double dealing back stabbing and under hand deals in the world of trade and business are nothing new... Innocent and wide eyed Ian Carmichael, playing *Stanley Windrush, carrying on from the previous Boulting film Private's Progress,Windrush is looking for a job,and fails miserably at every interview. .Then along comes Dennis Price and Richard Attenborough,both of whom sporting dodgy moustache's and even dodgier business plans for Windrush and there Missile factories...A bona fide classic,the film is chock full of some of the best British comedy actors of the time...Of course the star of the film is the great Peter Seller's as Fred Kite,the Communist loving shop steward who takes Windrush under his wing,hoping to engraciate himself with the intellectual middle classes... Although Windrush is more interested in Kites daughter played by Liz Fraser*as Cynthia Kite...Coming up a close second is one of my favourite actor's Terry-Thomas,as the personnel manager,as always Thomas is playing to his strengths,as the lounging playboy type...Of course While it's a great movie,it does use language that some modern audience's may find offensive, mainly when referring to working with coloured workers and any one from the middle east...of course looking at it with modern eye's it easy to criticize... Other wise it's incredibly spot on when looking at the class system which was prevalent at the time...
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  #346  
Old 20th October 2020, 01:08 PM
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Default Drop Dead Fred

Drop Dead Fred...(1991)
Coming across like a more suburban version of Bettlejuice mixed with your usual teen comedy (although who this was aimed at I'm not absolutely sure,the humour is so low brow that a child of 6yrs old would find it beneath them),Rik Mayall is a Fred,Phoebe Cates imaginary best friend,who she has known since she was a little girl..
This to me seems like a really odd mix,Rik Mayall in a early 1990's black comedy with Phoebe Cates and Carrie Fisher...Its not the casting that seems bewildering,but the fact that Rik Mayall's brand of comedy seems at odds with the usual schmaltzy teen comedies of that time...And it has to be said that while Mayal does give an excellent comedic performance, doing a combination of his Young Ones and Bottom persona,you can tell he has had to dial it down a notch,otherwise he would of just totally taken over the film...What's also a nice surprise is that it has a strong female cast and lead,and Cates is sort of doing that didtzy nerd thing she did so well in The Gremlins movies...Overall a very watchable 90mins,and Mayall certain looks like he is having fun especially when playing opposite Phoebe Cates...But if your looking for a comedy that's a touch sophisticated, this ain't it,unless flicking boogeys is your thing.…
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  #347  
Old 21st October 2020, 03:41 PM
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Default Coffee town2013

Coffee Town,(2013)
A bit of a late entry in the slacker/stoner comedy genre,especially since Jay and Silent Bob pretty much cornered the market in that area...Coffee Town tells the story of Will played by Glen Howerton from Its Always Sunny In Philadelphia and AP Bio,as a website designer who runs his business from his local coffee shop,he mainly does this for free Wi-fi,and to hangout with his to friends Gino (Ben Schwartz) a cop who uses his authority to pick up women by frightening them with stories of local crime,and Chad played Steve Little who was in the brilliant Eastbound and Down with Danny McBride,who has to fake being a smoker so he can get the extra breaks so he can visit the coffee shop...Theres also Sam the coffee shop barista,who has dreams of being a rock star,played by singer Josh Groban,in a great role as Will's nemesis and rival for the love interest Becca (Adrianne Palicki)...Coffee Town is a marvellous combination of the comedy of embarrassment which was pretty prevalent after the success of The Office,(although its been around long before Ricky Gervais The Office) and a mild gross out humour (although pretty tame compared to most)...But most importantly it was bloody funny,anybody who enjoys It Always Sunny or Stephen Merchants Hello Ladies,or come to that Peep show,should enjoy this as well...
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Last edited by Inspector Abberline; 23rd October 2020 at 01:38 PM.
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  #348  
Old 22nd October 2020, 04:40 PM
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Default Bad news tour

Comic Strip Present Bad News Tour...
Alan Metcalfe aka Vim Vuego,was the lead singer of seminal British heavy metal band Bad News,with Colin Grigson on bass,Den Dennis rhythm guitar and Spider Webb on drums,this is the story of there unsuccessful rise to fame...This fly on the wall documentary,is a warts and all tale of there tour of Grantham, which would lead to in fight bickering and there demise,all caught on camera...As the band travel the long motorway journey to Grantham,they are interviewed and anylsed by top rock journalist Sally,who tries to find out what lies at the heart of this band,are they futuristic metal? or are they new billy romantics???...What we do know from the futage shown is the band in the tradition of great and not so great rock outfits, are constantly squabbling and fighting, although this mostly seems to be between Vim and Colin,with Vim constantly belittling Colin,(which is mostly due to the fact that Colin isn't a very good bass player and as Alan,sorry Vim keeps reminding Colin he is only in the band because of his brothers amplifier)... We also learn that Den Dennis has irritable bowel syndrome and really likes sausage's but can seldom afford them,and that Spider can do really long drum solo's,if anybody would let him,and also has a liking for school girls...The climax of this documentary is the run up to there I'll fated gig at Grantham,unfortunately due to some poor advertising only four people and a rather bemused dog (who got in for free,much to the dismay of Den),are there to witness the bands finest half hour...This is unfortunately not the end of the group's woes,as there fee of forty pound, has been with held due to poor ticket sale's... But in an unexpected twist,we learn that this was all arranged by the documentary crew to add some much needed drama to this I'll fated tour...Bad News certainly live up there name...
Bad News Bad News Bad News
For you and you and you and you and you
Bad News Bad News Bad News
For you and you and you and you and.....
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Last edited by Inspector Abberline; 22nd October 2020 at 11:21 PM.
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  #349  
Old 23rd October 2020, 06:02 PM
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Default monty

Monty Pythons And Now For Something Completely Different...(1971)
It always seemed that this was just dismissed as just a compilation of the best bits from the first two series, yet it was done to be a showcase in America, who had not yet seen the series...But I feel this stands the test of time, just as much as there other movies...And while it was filmed by Python director Ian Macnaughton for the cinema screen, its not particularly cinematic, but it does look good, especially when you consider the budget was only £80,000,and compered to other movies that year it certainly holds it own...But lets be honest its the jokes that matter and they are all here, well most of the well known ones any way....Parrot sketch, Nudge Nudge Wink Wink, Hell's Grannies and The Lumberjack song of course plus many more besides...What also stands out is Terry Gilliam's amazing animation, which must of looked amazing on the cinema screen, compared to its usual home on the television...I have to say that even after all these years Gilliam's animation still really freaks me out...I can only imagine what was going through his mind at the time, his fertile mind and the simplistic animation style ( I mean simplistic compared to Disney, but to me its weird and beautiful ) really match what Python were doing at the time, amazing how this pool of talent came together back then...Obviously its sad that we have lost Graham Chapman, Terry Jones and Neil Innes, because we will never see anything like this ever again....
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  #350  
Old 6th November 2020, 07:02 PM
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Default Help

Help (1965)
Ringo is being chased by an Eastern cult who need to get hold of a ring that Ringo is wearing,so they can make a sacrifice to there goddess...It's a bizzare story considering how there first movie A Hard Days Night (1964) had a more grounded documentary feel to it...But Help,is a great colourful musical comedy,that is influenced by the Marx Brothers tomfoolery mixed with a very British Goon Show style of absurdist humour...But if the comedy doesn't float your boat, It's still worth while watching,just for the musical numbers alone,this film is usually citied as the influence to the modern music videos and of course The Monkees television show.... But most of all it has that certain something you only get from British movies of the 1960s,Bedazzled (1967) and The Italian Job (1969) to name but two that just have the quintessential British charm.... Richard Lester directs the Fab Four yet again,and it was a real shame they never got to make a planned third Beatles movie, although Lester would work with John Lennon again on the equally odd movie How I Won the War*(1967) and would make the even more Goon Show like film ,The Bed Sitting Room*(1969) co written by Spike Milligan... Whether your a Beatles fan or just a fan of British movies of the 1960s,it's a fun if odd watch....
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