Emil und die Detektive

John Williams is "Emil", a young lad who is the victim of a robbery whilst travelling on a train to visit his grandmother. Suspicious of the "Man in the Bowler Hat" (George Hayes) it falls to him and group of London street urchins to recover this quite substantial amount of cash. Some British cinema-goers may recall the Children's Film Foundation films, and this comes across very much as they do. Essentially for children, this adventure gives a collection of youngsters the chance to have some fun on screen and for the Saturday morning audience to join in. The oddly placed audio effects spoil it rather, but it is still a well produced little effort with a solid cast, a little scripted humour and Williams and Clare Greet as his grannie manage to keep this moving along quite well. Not really for the grown ups, but as an example of what kept us all amused almost a century ago, it is still worth a gander.

Emil (played by John Williams -- no relation) is sent by his mother to visit his grandmother in London. In the train, the Man in the Bowler Hat (George Hayes -- no relation) tells him a lot of tosh about London, and offers him a sweet. Emil accepts, and falls asleep. When he wakes, he discovers the six pounds his mother gave him for his keep are missing. He follows the Man in the Bowler Hat, and runs into a gang of kids. They proclaim themselves the Detectives and help him follow his prey.

It's the second movie version of Erich Kastner's story, and the first in English. Although it lacks the charm of the German version, it's a well-told kid's adventure story directed by Milton Rosmer, and the camerawork is excellent. It suggest a juvenile version of Hitchcock, with a lovely expressionist sequence as Williams fall asleep.

Kastner specialized in children's stories. Besides this one, there have been several versions of DAS DOPPLETE LOTTCHEN, best known in English as THE PARENT TRAP.

A classic story which needs little description of context and plot - the other reviewer has covered this. Good fun today although early dream sequence is surprisingly scary for its intended audience of the time and the footage of Emil flying round iconic London locations was a clear inspiration for some Mary Poppins sequences.

Also very interesting to watch it back-to-back with the 1931 German original (as packaged together on the 2013 BFI DVD release). The UK version is much more than a relocated remake - it attempts to be a near exact replica of so many elements. The music is reused, the dialogue is exactly the same underneath the translation, all the studio sets are designed to look identical and are filmed from the same positions, the characters all perform the same actions in the same sequence and wear almost identical clothes. The relocation from Berlin to London for the main story clearly prevents much scenic replication (although street furniture such as news-stand, outdoor café etc are used in identical fashion), and the early sequences in Emil's village contain the same motifs (eg windmill, formal garden round statue in park) to reinforce the replication. But if you watch the UK version in its own right, none of this recreation looks forced or artificial - which is probably a tribute to how well the German original was produced.

This film very much reminded me of the Ealing film Hue and Cry,particularly the way it exploited the London locations.Similarly the way in which the villain was trapped by a gang of children.Many German films were remade into English versions.So it is strange to see a dock in the police station,presumably this was copying thé scenery from thé German version.Some very surreal touches

Emil and the Detectives was first adapted for the screen in Germany in 1931, and was quickly followed in 1935 by this version made in England and then subsequently missing for many years - it eventually turned up in the collection of a film buff in the USA.

The story probably needs no introduction; Emil is sent to London to stay with his grandma and cousin Polly with six pounds in his pocket, by way of the train to Charing Cross. But first he encounters the mysterious and creepy man in the bowler hat, who is up to no good. And in London he seeks the help of a gang of children led by The Organiser and The Professor to right the wrongs.

With John Williams as Emil, Marion Foster as Polly, Bobby Rietti as The Professor, and George Hayes as the OTT villain, this film benefits from good London locations - surprisingly not changed much from 1935 - strong direction from Milton Rosmer, and a good dose of humour.

A little scary for very young audiences, perhaps, but very watchable and nicely restored by the British Film Institute.