Graham Moffatt Movies
- 1960
Based on a British TV comedy, this is the tale of a London couple who inherit a pub in the country, only to find that their troubles are just beginning. Someone doesn't seem to want to make their business a success, but their invention should stop all that nonsense. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
In this horror movie an Irish char woman must stop an insane inventor who is planning to take over the world with a monstrous-robot. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1950
A short story by Janet M. Smith was the basis for the equally short (52 minute) British programmer The Dragon of Pendragon Castle. The castle in question, a dank, foreboding affair, is owned by poverty-stricken nobleman J. Hubert Leslie. The old duffer has a pair of rambunctious grandkids, played by Robin Netscher and Hilary Rennie, who seeks a means to heat the bone-chilling castle. To that end, they invite a friendly fire-breathing sea dragon to enjoy their hospitality. Engagingly assembled, The Dragon of Pendragon Castle pleased many a British Saturday matinee audience in the early 1950s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1950
Barge worker Gordon Harker signs onto a suspicous-looking vessel as a crew member. Harker knows full well that the ship is being used by smugglers, and he intends to keep his mouth shut and do his job. But only until the opportunity arises for him to avenge the death of his best friend at the hands of his new employers. But the crooks get wise, and kidnap Harker's son and his pal David Hannaford (the "second mate" of the title). Tension mounts as Harker not only faces his own imminent demise, but also the deaths of those nearest and dearest to him. A literally explosive finale caps this British programmer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1949
A confirmed bachelor and a reclusive movie star tangle in this lively French comedy. The trouble begins when the bachelor vows to disprove the star's Garboesque claim that she wants to be alone. Saying that all women are alike, he sets out to seduce her. First he poses as a Realtor and offers to let her hide out in his lavish country estate. There he and she gradually get to know each other. Much to his surprise, she is quite sincere on wanting to be alone. When the woman discovers the "Realtor's" ruse she decides to teach him a lesson by promptly marrying him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stewart Granger, Jeanne de Casalis, (more)
While awaiting access to England's Technicolor cameras for their upcoming super-production Stairway to Heaven, the producer-director team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger dashed off a delightful "personal" project, I Know Where I'm Going. Young middle-class Englishwoman Joan Webster (Wendy Hiller) is determined to have the finer things in life, and to that end she plans to marry Sir Robert Bellinger (Norman Shelley), a wealthy, middle-aged industrialist whom she does not love. En route to the Island of Mull, where her future husband resides, Joan is stranded in a colorful Scottish seacoast town. Inclement weather keeps her grounded for a week, during which time she falls in love with young, insouciant naval officer Torquil McNeil (Roger Livesey). Ignoring the dictates of her heart (not to mention common sense), Joan stubbornly insists upon heading out to sea towards her marriage of convenience, but the exigencies of Mother Nature finally convince her that her future resides on the Mainland. A winner all the way, I Know Where I'm Going is full of large and small delights, including a wonderful sense of regional detail and endearing, three-dimensional characterizations (even the mercenary heroine is a likeable character). The film is easily one of the best of the Powell-Pressburger films of the 1940s, and arguably the team's all-time best romantic drama. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey, (more)
- 1944
In this sci-fi comedy, a nutty inventor and his loyal butler use his time machine to travel to Elizabethan times. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1944
Like the better-known (and more popular) A Canterbury Tale, Welcome Mr. Washington is a sometimes amusing, sometimes poignant dramatization of what happened when American troops "invaded" England during WW II. Dismissed as "overpaid, oversexed and over here," the Yanks face some hostility while trying to adjust to British manners and mores. But when a farming community finds itself dangerously short-handed at harvest time, the American GIs pitch in and help their British brethren in true "hands across the sea" fashion. Real-life American army lieutenant Donald Stewart is cast as the nominal romantic lead, his lack of professional polish all the more obvious in his scenes with the talented Barbara Mullen. The film is stolen by Peggy Cummins as a precocious teenager, some three years before Cummins was brought to Hollywood to star in Forever Amber (which, as it turned out, she didn't). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Mullen, Donald Stewart, (more)
Set not in the 14th century milieu of Geoffrey Chaucer but in wartime Britain, A Canterbury Tale begins with rural justice of the peace Eric Portman adopting a "lock up your daughters" policy when the American soldiers are stationed nearby. To escape the arbitrary edicts of Portman, British tank sergeant Dennis Price, American GI John Sweet and shopkeeper Sheila Sim head down the road to Canterbury. Each of the principals finds their lives changed by the journey. In particular, Sweet (a real-life American sergeant, rather than the usual stereotyped "yank" common to British war films) encounters genuine romance. A product of the always adventuresome "Archers" (Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger), A Canterbury Tale contains some extremely creative cinematic moments, though it is the quieter scenes which work best. Esmond Knight narrates the film and shows up in a couple of amusing cameos. A ubiquitous presence on American TV, Canterbury Tale is available in two versions; the American release version, cut from 124 to 95 minutes and including several arbitrary scenes with Kim Hunter, is the lesser of the two. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Portman, Sheila Sim, (more)
- 1943
Released in the US as The Randolph Family, Dear Octopus was based on the internationally popular play by Dodie Smith. The story is motivated by the Golden Wedding anniversary of Charles and Dora Randolph (Frederick Leister, Helen Haye). As the relatives gather, each reveals his or her personal quirks and shortcomings. Caught in the middle is family secretary Penny Fenton (Margaret Lockwood), who has the unenviable task of sorting and smoothing out the family's many deep-set hostilities and jealousies so that a good time will be had by all. The basic premise of Dear Octopus is established early on; the rest of the film is variations on a single theme, albeit consistently amusing ones. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margaret Lockwood, Michael Wilding, Sr., (more)
- 1942
British radio funster Arthur Askey inherits British film comedian Will Hay's longtime stooges Moore Marriot and Graham Moffatt in Back Room Boy. Big-Hearted Askey plays a cuckoo scientist seeking peace and quiet in a Scottish lighthouse. No such luck: the house is being used as a rendezvous for Nazi spies. Beyond the presence of Marriot and Moffatt, one gets the impression that Back Room Boy was originally intended as a Will Hay vehicle, inasmuch as Hay's longtime scripters Val Guest and Marriot Edgar wrote the yarn. Young Googie Withers fares well in an a thankless leading-lady assignment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1941
In the late 1930s-early 1940s, diminutive British music-hall and radio comedian Arthur Askey enjoyed a popularity commensurate to that of Hollywood's Abbott & Costello; accordingly, Askey's earliest starring films were all box-office bonanzas. In I Thank You, Askey and his perennial straight man Richard Murdoch are cast as Arthur and Stinker, members of a nearly bankrupt theatrical troupe. To raise some much-needed money, our heroes hire on as servants for Lady Randall (Lily Morris), who'd been an entertainer herself before marrying into the Upper Crust. When Lady Randall learns of Arthur and Stinker's plight, she bankrolls a major stage production for the boys' fellow performers, leading to the inevitable big-production-number finale. Way, way down the cast list of I Thank You is distinguished Shakespearean actor Felix Aylmer, who was seen to rather better advantage as Polonius in Lawrence Olivier's Hamlet. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arthur Askey, Richard Murdoch, (more)
- 1941
In this musical, the on-air rivalry between a married pair of American radio stars, each hosting a different show heats to boiling when they each have British evacuees on their shows. The wife gets a fellow who claims to live in a castle. A brouhaha ensues as he is believed to be the long-lost heir of a prominent lord. The trouble begins when her husband learns the truth about the supposed "nobleman." The wife doesn't believe her husband and so both set off for Merry Olde England to learn the truth. Many comical adventures ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This film is an adaptation of the Brandon Thomas stage perennial Charley's Aunt, starring bespectacled British radio comedian Arthur Askey. Since Askey's professional nickname was "Big-Hearted Arthur", and since another Charley's Aunt starring Jack Benny went before the cameras in 1941, the title was slightly altered for its limited American release. Otherwise, the story is the same as ever. Dizzy Oxford student Lord Fancourt Babberly (Askey) is persuaded to pose as his pal Charley Wyckham's elderly aunt, in order that Charley's and Jack Chesney's girlfriends will have a proper female escort when they come to visit. The charade is complicated by the presence of Jack's father and of one of the girl's guardians, Stephen Spettigue, both of whom are required by the plotline to "romance" the phoney aunt. Further gumming up the works is the arrival of the genuine Aunt, with Lord Fancourt Babberly's erstwhile lady love in tow. Charley's Big-Hearted Aunt was updated and expanded to allow for the characteristic verbal patter of the then-popular Arthur Askey. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1939
In this British comedy, the chief of a fire company has his hands full as he tries to organize his bumbling crew of firemen. Their last call resulted in the total destruction of the town hall. The chief is desperate to restore their reputation. When he learns of a conspiracy to steal the crown jewels, he and his men attempt to catch the thieves. The firemen sneak up to the tower of London and mayhem ensues until they use a chemical foam fire extinguisher to bring the crooks to justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1939
Matchless British comedy star Will Hay, he of the supercilious sniff and ill-fitting pince-nez, stars in Ask a Policeman, a follow-up to Hay's successful 1938 comedy-thriller Oh, Mr. Porter. Once again, the incompetent Hay is transferred to a place where he'll do the least amount of harm. This time he's an inept police sergeant, shipped away to a sleepy rural village where no crime has occurred for years. Bored out of his gourd, Hay, together with his perennial stooges Graham Moffatt (fat and cheeky) and Moore Marriott (toothless and senile), plots to "create" a crime wave by leaving a keg of brandy unprotected. They plan to arrest the first person who appropriates the keg and charge him with smuggling. Not surprisingly, the gleesome threesome runs afoul of genuine smugglers. As with most of the best Will Hay comedies of the 1930s, Ask a Policeman is top-heavy with behind-the-scenes talent: among the screenwriters were director Val Guest and frequent Hitchcock collaborator Sidney Gilliat. Best bit: Moore Marriot's rambling recitation of an ancient ghost legend. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Will Hay, Graham Moffatt, (more)
- 1939
Cheer Boys Cheer is a provincial British comedy with slight Romeo and Juliet undertones. Edmund Gwenn and Moore Marriott play rival brewery owners who detest the sight of one another. Not so their children--the son of one man, the daughter of the other--who fall in love. One glance at the film's title, and the viewer knows that boy and girl will not take poison in the end. For so modest an endeavor, Cheer Boys Cheer has a remarkable talent lineup: Edmund Gwenn, Moore Marriott, Jimmy O'Dea, Nova Pilbeam and Alexander Knox in front of the cameras, and Walter Forde and Ronald Neame on the production end. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1938
An "answer" to Paul Robeson's Sanders of the River, Old Bones of the River stars comedian Will Hay as Professor Tibbetts, a member of TWIRP ("Teaching and Welfare Institute for the Reform of Pagans"). Not especially suited to his job of bringing English education to native tribes in Africa -- as he arrives, he is still trying to learn the native language through phonograph record lessons -- Tibbetts quickly falls victim to a trick by a duplicitous native prince, involving sneaking a gin still into the country. Tibbetts makes his way to Kombooli High, where his students wear Eton collars with little else. (Tibbetts makes do with a mortarboard and safari shorts.) Things are proceeding reasonably well when the Commissioner takes ill with malaria, and Tibbetts is forced to take over his responsibilities. He travels upriver to begin his tax collecting chores (goats or rubber being perfectly acceptable in lieu of actual money), meeting two old cronies of his in the process and rescuing a baby from an untimely death by sacrifice. Unfortunately, Tibbetts and his pals make rather a mess of things and manage to roil up tensions that result in a native uprising, but things eventually come out alright in the end. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- 1938
Owd Bob is a remake of the silent film of the same name, which in turn was based on a story by Alfred Olivant. Dominating the storyline is crusty Scottish farmer McAdam (Will Fyffe), who carries on several simultaneous feuds with his neighbors. McAdam is particularly antagonistic towards young David Moore (John Loder), newly arrived from Derbyshire. It's bad enough that Moore is sweet on McAdam's pretty daughter Jeannie (Margaret Lockwood); but when Moore enters his sheep dog Owd Bob in an annual contest that has always been won by McAdam's prize pooch Black Wull, it's too much to bear. An unexpected tragedy softens McAdam to the extent that he finally accepts Moore as a worthy son-in-law. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Will Fyffe, John Loder, (more)
- 1938
Beloved British comedian Will Hay plays Benjamin Twist, a disgraced school master who goes to an agency to apply for a job heading up a reform school for difficult boys. The agency mistakenly believes he is a Mr. Benjamin, a tough prison warden, and he is assigned to one of the country's nastiest prisons. Arriving drunk at his new job, Benjamin is mistakenly assumed to be a prisoner, christened "Convict 99" and put in a cell. There he meets Jerry the Mole, the prison's oldest resident, who has been working on an escape tunnel for years. Benjamin's innocence is soon discovered, and he takes over as warden, instituting some humane reforms. Unfortunately, he soon becomes the victim of a scam involving prison funds perpetrated by the real Convict 99 and Benjamin -- accompanied by those prisoners who are on his side -- must track down the crook and find a way of returning the money to the bank. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- 1937
Sixty-nine-year-old George Arliss at first seems an unlikely casting choice for Dr. Syn, the 18th-century clergyman-cum-pirate created by novelist Roger Thorndyke. But Arliss never backed down from an acting challenge in all his 50 years of stage and screen work; if he wanted to play a pirate, he'd by gum play a pirate and have the audience firmly on his side all the way through (it turned out to be his final movie appearance). The film begins with the supposed death of the notorious Dr. Syn, then flashes forward to the coastal village of Dymchurch, where the kindly vicar (Arliss) is actually the allegedly deceased buccaneer, still operating his smuggling activities. Director Roy William Neill, better known for his American-made Sherlock Holmes films, keeps things moving at a fast clip. Dr. Syn was remade with Peter Cushing as Captain Clegg in the 1962 Night Creatures, then by Disney that same year as Scarecrow of Romney Marsh, with Patrick McGoohan as a considerably cleaned-up Syn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Arliss, Margaret Lockwood, (more)
- 1937
In this musical, a plucky London newspaper journalist boards a transatlantic ocean liner in hopes of interviewing a prominent Hollywood starlet. She is followed by a Scotland Yard inspector who is looking for the jewel thief he knows is on board. Unfortunately, the inspector doesn't know the actual identity of the thief and his prime suspect becomes the hapless reporter who also finds herself pursued by a determined gangster who has made the same assumption. Before the boat docks in New York, the reporter is kidnapped and forced to work for the gangster's boss. Fortunately, the inspector finally discovers the thief's true identity and brings her to justice. The plot is based on a Dwight Taylor story. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jessie Matthews, Olive Blakeney, (more)
- 1937
Remember the 3 Stooges Movie Maniacs, in which Curly, Larry and Moe are accidentally put in charge of a movie studio? Apparently, Britain's "Crazy Gang" remembered the Stooge film as well, since the same plotline pops up in Okay for Sound. Originally three separate comedy teams organized for a single act at London's Palladium in 1935. The Crazy Gang was the rough equivalent to Hollywood's Marx Brothers, though their particular brand of insanity was distinctly British. Billed as "studio disorganizers," our six heroes -- Jimmy Nervo & Teddy Knox, Bud Flanagan & Chesney Allen and Charlie Naughton & Jimmy Gold -- are mistaken for a group of wealthy investors and are given full run of the studio owned by the ulcerated Goldberger (Fred Duprez). The boys manage to disrupt the super-production directed by bombastic German filmmaker Guggenheimer (Meinhart Maur), and to chase away the real investors, all the while performing their peculiar stage specialties. Okay for Sound was the first of five hilarious Crazy Gang vehicles produced between 1937 and 1954 (the team would remain intact until 1962!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jimmy Nervo, Teddy Knox, (more)
