Not So Dusty

Just found this film on the Talking Pictures TV Channel, I thought I'd take a shufty at it.

There is an old saying from the North of England that my mum used to say, "I'm not so dusty well brushed" which meant "I'm not so bad as I seem/look".

Though I don't know if that's where the film title comes from.

If that is the derivation of the movie title it is not at all appropriate as it is so Dusty, it's covered in cobwebs so ancient is the material.

If this in not bad enough it gets worse when Bill Owen starts singing, and Lobelia gets her number later on.

I don't know who wrote the script but it's so corny the gags were doubtless nicked, from from one of the old music hall comics like Arthur Askey.

This is a remake of the 1936 film which starred and was co written by Wally Patch.What ever possessed anyone to produce this remake is beyond me.It is supposed to be a comedy but fails to raise a single laugh.It has a reasonable cast including Leslie Dwyer,Bill Owen and Dandy Nichols who are unable to salvage anything from this woeful car crash of a film.It is probably only of interest to residents of the Twickenham area from the 1950s.Towards the end the dust cart careers through the streets of the area allowing those who are familiar with the area to see how it has changed in the ensuing 60 years.Little wonder the British film industry was struggling at this time if all they were capable of producing was films like this.

Dusty and Nobby are a pair of dustmen who come into possession of a valuable book.

A standard British comedy of the time featuring television stars and up and coming actors of the day. The jokes are forced one-liners taken straight out of stage comedies and the plot is superficial to support the jokes.

As long as you are not expecting too much this is an enjoyable film with satisfactory performances. Dandy Nichols steals the show and gives us a taste of her talent which was particularly suited to Sit-Com's on television such as Till Death Us Do Part and In Sickness And In Health, both with Warren Mitchell.

Bill Owen and Leslie Dwyer are a couple of dust men -- trash collectors for the Americans -- who are given a book as a reward by an old lady. As soon as it vanishes, up pops an American who claims he's willing to pay five thousand pounds for an American collector. And so round it goes.

Directed by Maclean Rogers, he had directed an earlier version of this in 1936, starring the author of the piece, Wally Patch. The title may proclaim otherwise, but the situations, jokes, and performances are moldering, and Rogers is not the director to pull anything fresh out of anything. With Joy Nichol, Bill Shine, Dandy Nichols, and Tony Quinn.

NOT SO DUSTY is written and directed by the hard-working Maclean Rogers, who seemed to single-handedly prop up British B-movie cinema back in the 1950s. It's a remake of a '30s comedy about the escapades of a couple of unlucky bin men who come into possession of a rare book and subsequently are involved in plotting by various characters each attempting to win it for themselves.

Needless to say that the laughs are broad and dated in this film, with lots of humour that would be considered tired and predictable by modern viewers. Saying that, the naturalness of the jokes feels effortless in places and the good cast do very well at bringing their caricatures to life. Bill Owen in particular seems to be channelling the spirit of Compo in an early turn while Leslie Dwyer is ever impressive. The supporting cast includes plenty of familiar faces such as Dandy Nichols, Wally Patch and Roddy Hughes from the TOFF films, and child actor William Simons, later to become a mainstay of British TV for his role in HEARTBEAT.