Patricia Hayes Movies
Comic British character actress Patricia Hayes specialized in playing shrill Cockney women and though her career spanned 70 years, she primarily appeared on television, where she earned the most acclaim from playing Edna the Inebriate Woman, for which she won an Academy Award from the British Academy of Film & Television Arts in 1972. Hayes made her feature-film debut in 1942, appearing in two films, 48 Hours and When We Are Married. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1949
We're not sure, but the character of "Skimpy Carter" must have had some sort of following in Britain. Why else would a whole movie--Skimpy in the Navy--be built around this thinnish character? Music hall star Hal Monty plays the title role, playing an ex-soldier who becomes a sailor in order to seek out buried treasure. Monty and his pals Max Bygraves (later a stellar comedian in his own right) and Les Ritchie search and dig to and fro, all for the love of heroine Avril Angers. 84 minutes of forgettable songs and shapeless slapstick later, Skimpy emerges triumphant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1946
Though it pales in comparison to the Royal Shakespeare Company's epic staging of the original novel in the early 1980s, this compact adaptation of Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby is most entertaining on its own terms. Derek Bond plays the title character, a resourceful young Britisher forced to protect his family against the demonic machinations of his wicked Uncle Ralph (Cedric Hardwicke at his most odious). Cast out into the cold cruel world, Nicholas Nickleby deals adroitly with friend and foe alike, eventually coming full circle to mete out just desserts to his unspeakable uncle. With only 108 minutes' running time at his disposal, screenwriter John Dighton (later a mainstay of the Ealing Comedies) was forced to eliminate several of the novel's 52 highly distinctive characters and intricate subplots. There is evidence that there was even more cutting after the film was completed; for example, the tatty touring theatrical troupe managed by the delightfully pompous Vincent Crummles (Stanley Holloway) appears only in a series of abrupt vignettes, while Crummles himself is confined to a mere handful of lines and gestures. Still, many of Dickens' colorful characters are vividly realized, especially the unfortunate, mentally challenged Smike (Aubrey Woods). When released in America, Nicholas Nickleby was pared down to 95 minutes, with surprisingly little damage to the continuity. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jill Balcon, Derek Bond, (more)
- 1946
American first lady Eleanor Roosevelt's impending visit to a tiny English country village is the motivation of the Anglo-American coproduction Great Day. As the villagers prepare for their prestigious guest, all sorts of internal squabbles and personal foibles rise to the surface. The story concentrates on embittered WW1 veteran Captain Ellis (Eric Portman), whose insecessant drinking and sponging is a source of embarrassment for his long-suffering family. The Captain's daughter Margaret (Sheila Sim) is on the verge of entering into a wealthy but loveless marriage so that she can rescue her mother (Flora Robson) from her father's excesses. In the Lesley Storm stage play on which this film was based, Captain Ellis comes to a bad but not entirely undeserved end; the film allows him a last-minute reprieve, as well as a chance to change his ways before Mrs. R. shows up. A moderate hit in England, Great Day sank like a stone when released in the US by RKO Radio. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Portman, Flora Robson, (more)
- 1944
British stage star Jessie Matthews, who lit up the silver screen in England during the '30s, returned to the screen for her first starring vehicle in five years in Candles at Nine. Adapted from Anthony Gilbert's novel Mouse Who Couldn't Play Ball, it's a haunted house/mystery film along lines that intersect with Gaslight, Rebecca, and a dozen lesser influences from the same genre. Matthews plays Dorothea Capper, a plucky, unpretentious chorus girl who suddenly inherits 100,000 pounds (easily the equivalent of several million dollars in the British economy of the early '40s) from an eccentric great-uncle whom she never even knew. The problem is the disappointed would-be heirs, who would like her out of the way -- one of whom tries to take care of that matter before she even goes to claim her inheritance. The estate itself, called Brakes, is a pretty forbidding place, especially as maintained under the housekeeper Miss Carberry (Beatrix Lehmann), who likes shadows (as opposed to Dorothea, who loves the sunlight). So not only must she contend with the rivals, but with Miss Carberry as her diametrical opposite in just about every way possible, hating the fact that Dorothea is now the mistress of Brakes. And neither the heroine nor the audience can be certain that detective Bill Gordon (John Stuart), who is trying to protect her, is quite up to the job. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jessie Matthews, John Stuart, (more)
- 1944
Based on the Eric Ambler novel entitled "Epitaph for a Spy," this is the story of a medical student on the Riviera during the Summer before WWII begins. A refugee from Austria, he has been photographing wildlife. When the film he develops contains secret installations, he must prove that he is not a German spy or be deported. With the police and help from a romantic interest that pops up along the way, he has to try to flush out the real spy to clear himself. Critical reviews were mixed, though Mason did an admirable job on his character. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Mason, Lucie Mannheim, (more)
- 1943
In this weird crime drama the murder of a ventriloquist is solved by a midget who goes undercover as a dummy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1943
Adapted from the stage hit by J. B. Priestly, When We Are Married is a barbed satire of smug British conservatism. Set in turn-of-the-century Yorkshire, the story concerns three middle-aged married couples, who tend to look askance towards anyone who does not come up to their high moral and religious standards. These pecksniffs are especially critical towards those who advocate a break from the repressive sexual taboos of the era. Imagine their dismay, then, when all three couples discover that they're not legally married. Their efforts to hide this fact, and their eventual comeuppance, provides several hearty laughs. When We Are Married remains a favorite of the British repertory circuit, due to its large number of colorful and well-rounded characters. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lloyd Pearson, Raymond Huntley, (more)
- 1942
Released in the US as Forty-Eight Hours, Went the Day Well? is a solidly constructed wartime melodrama. Actually, the film covers 72 hours in the life of the small British village of Bramley Green, which serves as the focal point for an attempted German invasion. Immediately upon parachuting in the community, vicious Nazi officer Ortier (Basil Sydney) makes contact with local Fifth Columnist Oliver Wileford (Leslie Banks), using the film's British title as their password. Fortunately, Democracy is preserved when postmistress-telephone operator Mrs. Collins (Muriel George), picking up on a simple clue inadvertently left behind by the well-disguised Germans, alerts her neighbors of impending danger. The British home guardsmen and German soldiers seen in the film were drawn from the ranks of of the real-life Gloucestershire Regiment, who volunteered their services for this patriotic morale-booster. The episode screenplay of Went the Day Well (based on Graham Greene story) was unified by the direct-to-camera narration of the town gravedigger, a device deftly borrowed from Our Town. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leslie Banks, Basil Sydney, (more)
