John Dighton (1)

This came highly recommended by a friend although our copy was free with a relative's newspaper. Glad we didn't pay for it, really.

Black and white, starring Alec Guiness who plays just about every part, and does extremely well. But the plot is extremely far-fetched, and the ending rather predictable. Slapstick humour that left us rolling our eyes more than laughing.

Worth seeing once, as it's a classic, but we probably won't bother again.

Happy fairy tale of princess meets pauper and falls in love. With Gregory Peck as the pauper, who wouldn't fall in love? Leaves you feeling introspective.

An estranged descendant of a Duke murders his relatives for an inheritance.

It's only occasionally funny enough to get a laugh, although it is consistently entertaining otherwise. Alec Guinness plays eight roles (all of them fun characters), and I might not even have guessed they're the same person if the blurb (and the opening credits) hadn't pointed it out.

It's easy to recognise in this film the origins of the St. Trinians' film series, but in a more niaive styling. The plotline is fairly simple, and Messrs Sim, Rutherford, Middleton, Grenfell, and Wattis showcase their acting styles in a precursor of many past and future roles - if you are seeking new experiences of their acting capabilities, look elsewhere. A film of its time, which will offer little interest to those whose appreciation is not whetted by the grindstones of nostalgia. As a show more footnote, George Cole, later to feature as Flash Harry in St Trinians, here has an uncredited cameo as a Department of Education caretaker.
The concluding scene of the film has Margaret Rutherford's character suggesting to Alastair Sim that they could seek to take advantage of a scheme encouraging cultivation of groundnuts in Tangayika - a reference to an ill-conceived government initiative which floundered in the early 50's. A topical joke long lost to the modern viewer. show less