Something in the City

Easily the best of the three Richard Hearne films I have seen recently. Hearne is not so burdened by the Mr Pasty character and turns in some enjoyable slapstick but thankfully without the pathos. A likeable gentle story and good support from Garry Marsh

"William Ningle" (Richard Hearne) who stopped working seven years ago has been continuing to leave his home (and wife) each morning. Once outdoors, he transforms from the pinstripe-suited City gent into a dishevelled looking pavement artist on London's Trafalgar Square. When the son of a newspaper tycoon seeks to wed his daughter, the father (Garry Marsh) decides to check on the suitability of his potential in-laws and so Hearne must juggle his twin persona to stay ahead of his pursuers - which, by now, also includes the police looking for a missing person... Once it's navigated the rather clunky opening scenes this film picks up speed quite quickly and although the humour - slapstick at times - is pretty gentle, it is still quite a fast paced little comedy with decent efforts from Marsh, George Merritt - as the totally befuddled police inspector - and a fleeting appearance from Dora Bryan making for a fun 75 minutes.

William Ningle (Richard Hearne) has a double-life. While he heads to work each day dressed as a typical middle-class working man, he hasn't actually worked at the office in years. Instead, he changes chothing and sells paintings he has created on the street. He's successful enough that his family never notices...and he works hard to keep the pretense. However, one day through some misunderstandings, he is assumed to have been murdered...and the guy who supposedly did it is the street painter...himself! How does he extricate himself from this mess?

The story idea is original and very clever. My only big complaint is sometimes the film took gags and drug them out WAY too long...such as the clock or the fainting bits. So, comic timing is NOT the film's strength. And, the story itself goes on a bit too long. But it is a very likable movie and one that is worth seeing. I cannot help but wonder how much better the British company Eeling could have done this same story, as their films were a bit more polished and well-timed. Still, it is enjoyable and is a nice time passer.

For those old enough to remember the UK's 'Mr Pastry' TV series of the late 50's-early 60's, this film will come as a welcome surprise and a reminder of a once popular star of British family culture. Richard Hearne, star of that long-vanished show here plays Richard Ningle, a mild-mannered family man pretending to work in an office all day while in fact he is an 'art dealer' each day - out begging on the side of a busy London thoroughfare. Complications ensue when his daughter announces her engagement to a snooty couple's son, the father of whom promptly dispatches an investigative reporter to check out the status of Ningle.

None of this is of very much import: what matters here is the physical comedy and treasured screen presence of Hearne whose structured physical comedy (as opposed to the musical-hall slapstick variety more common elsewhere in British cinema) is a delight. Hearne's droopy, pale 'tache is arguably as much a signature of his persona as Harold Lloyd's glasses or Chaplin's cane, and at the moment when it appears in the film (to usher in Ningle's alter-ego 'Artie') this watcher, at least, enjoyed a small frisson which must have also been enjoyed more strongly by contemporary audiences.

A good deal of the running time of Something in The City is Taken up with physical comedy, as Ningle or 'Artie' escape from various pursuers, and for the most part this is successful. Indeed Hearne's natural grace and movement, his use of props and situations, avoidance of cheap laughs and his lack of bumbling through the various narrative mishaps occasionally reminded this viewer of Buster Keaton. There's plenty of comic support too, notably a very young Dora Bryan as an increasingly exasperated cafe waitress. The comedy is lightly done and ultimately the whole thing is something of a delightful fantasy.

Hearne disappeared from our screen too soon and his memory is faint now (The comic mantle he left was perhaps passed on to figures such as Harry Worth then Michael Crawford for new generations). We are lucky to have this film to see now as a reminder of once what was, and how good it was. The picture and sound is perfectly acceptable. Look out for a brief appearance by Stanley Baker as a young police constable at the end.

An enjoyable remake by director Maclean Rogers of his own 1937 quota quickie as a vehicle for Richard Hearne.

Aided by attractive photography by Brendan Stafford - both on location and in the studio - Hearne's athletic prowess as an alter ego strongly resembling Mr Pastry is well displayed.