Terry-Thomas Movies
For the first three decades of his life, gap-toothed comic actor Terry-Thomas was far from a household name. The London-born performer worked as a clerk, meat salesman, pianist, bandleader, music hall comedian and movie extra before signing with the Royal Signal Corps upon the outbreak of World War II. His film career took off in earnest in 1949, and by 1955 Terry-Thomas was enjoying star billing in a series of officious, twittish roles. Occasionally a sympathetic leading man in such films as Man in the Cocked Hat (1959), the actor was far more effective in roles calling for easily punctured pomposity. Extremely popular in England, Terry-Thomas was comparatively little known in the U.S. outside of the art-house circuit until he starred in the Frank Tashlin-directed farce Bachelor Flat (1961). Though he'd been afforded opportunities to exhibit his versatility in British films, Terry-Thomas was typecast by Hollywood in such broad, unpleasant roles as the jingoistic J. Algernon Hawthorne in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963) and the caddish Percival War-Armitage in Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965). On a Tonight Show appearance in the late 1960s, the actor ruefully commented that, while he liked the money he was getting in Hollywood, he wished that his children could see him play a good guy for a change. After 1970, Terry-Thomas accepted whatever parts came his way, with the mediocre outweighing the worthwhile; he was last seen as Dr. Mortimer in a messy parody version of Conan Doyle's Hound of the Baskervilles (1978). Retiring to the Caribbean, he was forced to move back to London when his savings were depleted by his ever-encroaching Parkinson's Disease. The world at large was apprised of the actor's illness and reduced financial circumstance when he was featured on a network-TV documentary about degenerative illnesses. He spent his last painful years living off the charitable contributions of his friends and admirers. Terry-Thomas was the author of two autobiographical books: 1959's Closing the Gap and the posthumously published Terry-Thomas Tells Tales; his mid-1960s comedy record album Terry-Thomas Discovers America is today a much-sought-after collector's item. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1977
- PG
Beau Geste, the classic adventure story of a young man's dangerous journeys as part of the French Foreign Legion, becomes the subject of broad parody in this slapstick comedy. The original tale, best known to film lovers from William Wellman's 1939 classic, tells of several brothers who join the Foreign Legion after claiming responsibility for the mysterious disappearance of an invaluable family heirloom. Eventually, brothers Beau and Digby find themselves in conflict with their vicious commander, leading to a potential mutiny. The plot here is similar, with Michael York assuming Gary Cooper's role as Beau, and first-time director Marty Feldman co-starring as Digby. However, following the lead of former collaborator Mel Brooks, Feldman plays strictly for laughs, loading the story with jokes ranging from the satirical to the vulgar. A cast of notables keeps things lively, with Peter Ustinov and Ann-Margret mocking their own images as the sadistic commander and lusty Geste stepmother. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann-Margret, Marty Feldman, (more)
From Richard Lester, the director of 1980's Superman II and the 1964 A Hard Day's Night, comes this less-successful sequel to the The Mouse that Roared. The Prime Minister of the Duchy of Grand Fenwick (Ron Moody) is in a bind because he has no money to renovate his castle and there is a serious problem with his small country's main export, wine. The stuff tends to explode. So the Prime Minister asks the U.S. for aid to develop space research, knowing full well they are not going to give him money to remodel his castle. Once the U.S. grants a cool million to the country, Russia adds in a used rocket, and things start popping. Like it or not, the Duchy is suddenly involved in space research and contributing to the madness is the discovery that its unique wine makes good rocket fuel. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margaret Rutherford, Bernard Cribbins, (more)
- 1976
Walter Slezak plays Dr. Coppelius in this misleading titled fantasy feature. Not a horror flick as one might assume, The Mysterious House of Dr. C is a respectable adaptation of Ted and JoAnna Kneeland's ballet Coppelia. The non-dancing Slezak plays a daffy but essentially decent inventor who creates a "clockwork girl," who comes to life in the form of lovely American ballet star Claudia Corday. As the life-sized doll Swanilda, Corday is paired with Caj Selling of the Royal Swedish Ballet. A few beguiling animated sequences add icing to this spooky but nonthreatening confection. Mysterious House of Dr. C was one of a handful of films produced by Samuel Bronston after his fall from grace as King of the Historical Epics (El Cid, Fall of the Roman Empire, et. al.) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Walter Slezak, Claudia Corday, (more)
Released in the U.S. as Your Past Is Showing, the British The Naked Truth is a wickedly funny satire of the tabloid-press industry. Dennis Price plays a scandal-sheet publisher named Nigel Dennis who lives high on the hog by blackmailing his wealthy targets. Several of Dennis' victims, including peer Lord Mayley (Terry-Thomas) and model Melissa Right (Shirley Eaton), plot to kill the extortion-grabbing publisher, to no avail. During a wild ride in a malfunctioning blimp, Dennis manages to accomplish by accident what his enemies have tried to do to him on purpose. Though second-billed, the real star of The Naked Truth is Peter Sellers as a smarmily "sincere" TV personality. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Sellers, Peggy Mount, (more)
- 1967
The Perils of Pauline appropriates the title and nothing else from the legendary 1914 Pearl White serial (and also bears no relation to the 1947 Pearl White biopic of the same name, which starred Betty Hutton). Pamela Austin plays Pauline, a young heiress who finds herself plunked into one peril after another: a typical dilemma has Pauline at the mercy of an adolescent sheik. Pat Boone plays Pauline's millionaire childhood sweetheart, who follows the girl throughout the world to declare his love but who always manages to miss her as she hops from country to country. The best performances are delivered by the supporting cast, including Terry-Thomas, Edward Everett Horton, and comic actor/cartoon voice-over expert Hamilton Camp. "Camp" in fact is the byword of Perils of Pauline, which is deliberately overacted and hoked up in the manner of the contemporary Batman TV series. Perils of Pauline was the pilot film for a projected weekly TV series that underwent several format changes (including one that would have featured Larry Storch as the top-hatted villain) before the producers gave up on the project altogether. The plucky Pauline is played by Pamela Austin, who'd risen to fame in the 1960s as the "Dodge Rebellion" girl in a series of popular car commercials. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pat Boone, Terry-Thomas, (more)
- 1966
Horace Quilby (Michael Bentine) is a sandwich-board advertising man who gets a tour of London and sees some of the city's most offbeat and outrageous characters in this situation comedy. British blonde bombshell (Diana Dors) co-stars. Watch for Michael Chaplin (son of Charlie) as a beatnik artist. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Bentine, Dora Bryan, (more)
- 1973
- R
Vault of Horror is the first sequel to 1972's horror hit Tales from the Crypt. It is also known as Tales from the Crypt, Part II. It continues it's predecessor's popular formula of using established stars in five witty short horror episodes. The first, "Midnight Mass," shows that having a vampire for a relative can be upsetting, to say the least. In "The Neat Job" a nagging neat-freak is neatly nullified. In "This Trick'll Kill You," a colonial overlord learns that it's not safe to steal magic tricks from natives. "Bargain in Death" exposes the greed of two insurance swindlers, and "Drawn and Quartered" takes "The Picture of Dorian Grey" one better. Among the stars appearing in these episodes are Terry-Thomas, Glynnis Johns, Curt Jurgens, Denholm Elliott and Tom Baker. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1966
In this sexy comedy an affianced woman decides to sow one last wild oat before becoming a devoted wife. She therefore dresses up in a slinky black number and goes to her company Christmas party. The shapely lass impresses both her boss and a sales manager for the cosmetic company. The manager then sends her a new dress and she goes to his hotel room to have a little lunch. When he makes a pass, she flees and returns to the party and spikes the punch. When her fiance shows up, they all kick him out. Soon the drunken party-goers begin cozying up to one another. The girl realizes she has gone too far and sets off the company sprinkler system to sober them up. Things are suitably dampened and the partiers begin getting rather glum until they hear that one of the employee's wives has given birth. Later, the troublemaker makes nice with her fiance and they leave. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1962
This long, 135-minute feature is divided into four different segments, three highlighting fairy tales and the first introducing the two Brothers Grimm. Wilhelm (Laurence Harvey) is the dreamer, and Jacob (Karl Boehm) is the practical one, and between them, some marvelous fairy tales develop. Seguing into the first tale about the "Dancing Princess," co-directors Henry Levin and George Pal -- also the producer -- allow their special-effects artists full rein. In-between dancing, the princess (Yvette Mimieux) falls in love with a charming woodsman (Russ Tamblyn). In the second story about the "Cobbler and the Elves," a Christmas miracle of dedicated labor helps the cobbler out when he most needs it. In the last story, a fire-breathing dragon threatens the kingdom until a lowly servant (Buddy Hackett) saves the day. One of the highlights of this production are the Puppetoons, and another is Cinerama -- three projectors working to create a three-paneled (sometimes visibly so), wide-screen panorama. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurence Harvey, Claire Bloom, (more)
- 1969
- G
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This slapstick comedy concerns the annual auto race in Monte Carlo and boasts an international cast of all-star thespians. Sir Cuthbert Ware-Armitage (Terry-Thomas) is the scheming villain and auto tycoon who will stop at nothing to win the car race. When Chester (Tony Curtis) wins half of the car company in a card game with the villain, a winner-take-all, race is proposed. Bourvil, Dudley Moore and Jack Hawkins also appear in this lighthearted comedy. Jimmy Durante sings the title tune of this pic that features several exciting stunt-driving scenes that ensue between the beginning and end of the international racing competition. The film is an obvious take off of Those Magnificent Men And Their Flying Machines but fails to live up to the quality of it's predecessor. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bourvil, Peter Cook, (more)
Produced in the wake of the all-star "comedy spectacular" Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, Fantastic Flying Fools (originally titled Blast-Off, and also released as Those Fantastic Flying Fools) is based very loosely on a Jules Verne novel. A 19th century British newspaper offers a prize to the first scientist who is able to construct and launch a rocket to the moon. Contestants from all over the world compete for the prize, including Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines cast members Terry-Thomas and Gert Frobe. Much of the slapstick is tiresome and derivative, but there is one cute closing gag involving villains Terry-Thomas and Lionel Jeffries and a Siberian chain gang. There's precious little of the spirit of Jules Verne in Fantastic Flying Fools, save for the woodcut illustrations which decorate the opening credits. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burl Ives, Troy Donahue, (more)
- 1965
- G
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Ken Annakin's large-canvas comedy Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines is set in 1910. In order to boost circulation of his newspaper, Lord Rawnsley (Robert Morley) offers 10,000 pounds to the first person who can fly across the English Channel. A huge number of hopefuls enter the contest, including the scheming Sir Percy Ware-Armitage (Terry-Thomas), who, with the help of his henchman Courtney (Eric Sykes), attempts to sabotage the other entries. There is also a love triangle featuring Orvil Newton (Stuart Whitman) and Richard Mays (James Fox) competing for the heart of Patricia Rawnsley (Sarah Miles). ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stuart Whitman, Sarah Miles, (more)
Producer/animator/special-effect maven George Pal made his feature-film directorial bow with the colorful MGM musical fantasy Tom Thumb (the title of the film was spelled in lower case in the opening credits, and in all studio publicity material). Russ Tamblyn stars as the teeny-tiny titular protagonist, while veteran musicomedy favorite Jessie Mathews and stellar character actor Bernard Miles portray Tom's normal-sized parents. Journeying to the Village, Tom is pounced upon by villains Ivan (Terry-Thomas) and Tony (a corpulent Peter Sellers), who intend to exploit our 5 1/2-inch-tall hero. In-between his misadventures with the villains, Tom helps to expedite the romance between young forester Woody (Alan Young) and the magical Forest Queen (June Thorburn). Throughout, the special effects and oversized sets are first-rate, as are the "puppetoons" sequences featuring such delightful characters as The Yawning Man (voice by Stan Freberg). Written by several hands, the film's songs are hummable, if not particularly memorable. It is said that some children in the audience in 1958 were genuinely frightened by the more horrific aspects of the story (including the threatened execution of Tom's parents); it may be, however, that the adults were more scared than the kids. Incidentally, while most of Tom Thumb was filmed in MGM's London facilities, the special effects were produced in Hollywood, requiring Russ Tamblyn to do a lot of travelling. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Russ Tamblyn, Alan Young, (more)
- 1958
An uneven but at times hilarious slapstick comedy, Too Many Crooks features an inept gang of four would-be criminals who manage to botch every job they plan. After a few dismal failures they try to rob the wealthy, philandering Billy Gordon (Terry-Thomas) and fail again. Unwilling to let go of a good resource when they see it, the gang decides to kidnap his daughter, drug her, put her in a coffin in a hearse, and take off to their safe hideaway in a mad, mad dash. The plan amazingly succeeds except for one minor detail -- they have kidnapped the tycoon's wife, and he could not be happier. The offended spouse sees red at her philandering husband's attitude and sets the stage for revenge. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Cole, Brenda de Banzie, (more)
- 1968
It's Your Move (Uno Scacco Tutto Matto) stars Edward G. Robinson as MacDowell, a dilettante criminal who masterminds a fantastic bank heist. MacDowell exploits the fact that his butler's niece Monique (Maria Grazia Buccella) is the exact double of the bank president's secretary. Hiring three additional "doubles" for the bank's employees, MacDowell goes about the task of comically kidnapping the "originals" right under the noses of the bank directors. He then schemes to rob the joint while making it seem as though no money has changed hands. Confusing? Most American distributors thought so, which may explain why It's Your Move never received a US theatrical release. This French-Italian coproductions is also known as Mad Checkmate and Checkmate for McDowell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1968
This light romantic comedy is set during the November 9th power outage of 1965 that darkened New York and much of the East Coast. Margaret (Doris Day) is a theater actress who storms out on her architect husband, Peter (Patrick O'Neal), when a pretty female reporter spends too much time interviewing him for Margaret's liking. Later, Waldo Zane (Robert Morse), an embezzling business executive, has car trouble while fleeing his company. Margaret's house is nearby, so he sneaks in, and, after taking a drink of her elixir, he falls asleep beside her by mistake. Naturally, her husband soon appears, and comedy ensues in cases of mistaken identity and scheduling mix-ups. Columnist Earl Wilson makes a cameo appearance as does director Hy Averback. Steve Allen plays the radio announcer, Jim Backus a car dealer, and Pat Paulsen deadpans his usual facade in his role as a train conductor. Though this romantic comedy came out a couple years after the infamous New York City-wide blackout, it is based on French playwright Claude Magnier's production Monsieur Masure, which was written in the '50s. The actual power failure resulted in a population explosion exactly nine months later, and over double the average number of kids started school in 1971 as a direct result of the darkness. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Doris Day, Robert Morse, (more)
- 1965
You Must be Joking? draws its laughs from an Army endurance test. Over a 48-hour period, five officers in the British army-including American transplant Michael Callan-must wend their way through a maze, retrieve a hood ornament from a Rolls Royce and steal a lock of hair from beauteous pop singer Gabriella Licudi. There's a big prize in store for the officer who finishes the test first, and since the other contestant include such middle-aged huffers and puffers as Lionel Jeffries and Denholm Elliot, it doesn't take a Rhodes scholar to figure out who the victor will be. Director Michael Winner was still in his "mad mod" period when he lensed the wacky goings-on of You Must Be Joking? His Death Wish pictures of the 1970s were in 1965 as remote as another galaxy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Callan, Lionel Jeffries, (more)
