Climbing High

Climbing High is a British attempt to make an American style screwball comedy and while it has a few amusing moments it will never threaten something like My Man Godfrey or It Happened One Night. It was Michael Redgrave's second film and a bit of a let down from his debut in the Alfred Hitchcock classic The Lady Vanishes. But it did have the distinction of introducing Redgrave to Carol Reed who had been doing a lot of light fluff at the time. A year later Reed and Redgrave teamed to direct and star in The Stars Look Down which was Reed's first critically acclaimed film.

Michael Redgrave plays a young rich playboy who like in so many American films of this accidentally runs into Jessie Matthews who is not knowing where the next job is coming from. Redgrave's been linked in the society columns to titled woman Margaret Vyner. She'd dearly love to marry him because while she has the title, he has the pound sterling. He's not really interested in her, especially after he sees Matthews, but not thinking it's worth the time and trouble to issue denials to the tabloids. And he gives a fictitious name to Matthews because of the tabloids and her impression of him through what she reads there.

Not to say there aren't a few good scenes and some real laughs like Redgrave turning on a wind machine full blast at a modeling shoot that Matthews is at, or later he and Matthews humoring lunatic Francis L. Sullivan who just escaped the rubber room. But the whole premise of this one is more silly than funny. If Redgrave just told Matthews who he was it would have solved everything. But then there wouldn't be a picture.

One should also make note of American Noel Madison in the cast who plays an advertising executive, who plays it Madison Avenue style for the British public. Usually Madison was featured in gangster films in the USA. Also Torin Thatcher is here as Matthews stern brother who wants to get the guy who wronged his sister. Last but not least is Alastair Sim who plays Matthews Communist friend who will turn capitalist if it suits him on occasion, but with a tear for Lenin.

Climbing High is an amusing enough film, but doesn't come close to American screwball comedies of the time.

This is a very confusing comedy.

The main plot line revolves around Michael Redgrave, unhappily engaged to a society lady, who falls for a lingerie model played by Jessie Matthews and her overbite. Much to-ing and fro-ing, playing of masquerades lead to the conclusion everyone expects, but the alarms and excursions are strange indeed.

We have Alastair Sim doing a tremendous job as a poverty-stricken, bitter comic communist, but we also have a loony who is obsessed with opera-singing. His second appearance is completely inexplicable.

Enough of the original plot shows through for the storyline to just about hang together - even if only with the assistance of a suspension bridge for the disbelief - but there's an awful lot of "what the...?" likely from an attentive viewer.

Odd entertainment.

Reviwers have been sniffy about this light madcap comedy, starring Jessie Matthews as a penniless lingerie model in a West End advertising agency and Michael Redgrave as an amiable young man about town with a huge Mercedes convertible. He is meant to be marrying a manipulative penniless aristocrat, after him only for status and money, but after knocking our Jessie down twice falls for her instead. The climax unites key characters in the Swiss Alps for final tomfoolery and pairing off.

Nice cameos for Basil Radford as Redgrave's pal, Torin Thatcher as Jessie's Canadian brother, Noel Madison as an American ad man. Alastair Sim as a Communist model who doesn't believe in working under capitalism and Francis L Sullivan as an escaped madman who thinks he is an opera singer. He and Jessie duet hilariously in old standards like "Maritana" and "Il bacio", so we hear her delightful singing even if we don't get any dancing.

It is all enjoyable fluff, free of any social or political content, meant only to amuse. Not Jessie's greatest picture, but she is still entrancing as ever.

I could only give this farcical "comedy" 4/10 compared to the 5.2 on IMDb.com.I agree with the previous user comments and tuned into this film after searching on Michael Redgrave hoping for a similar experience to "The Lady Vanishes" (1938).As usual in Britsh comedy/farces there is a lot of running around, characters misunderstanding names and highly improbable sudden scene changes like when you are suddenly catapulted from London, England to alpine Switzerland.I must give a mention to Mary Clare, familiar to me from playing the baroness in "The Lady Vanishes" and the landlady in "A Girl Must Live" (1939).Here she plays Lady Emily Westaker who is trying to marry off her daughter, Lady Constance (Margaret Vyner), by any means to Michael Redgrave who plays a playboy who nearly runs Jessie Matthews over and almost immediately attempts to seriously woo her.It was at this point reality was left far behind.I had only ever heard Jessie when I was young playing Mrs Dale the wife of a doctor in "Mrs Dales Diary", whose memorable line was "I'm worried about Jim".I understand Jessie could sing and the producers contrived to give vent to her singing voice albeit in a strange farcical setting when Francis L Sullivan, playing an overweight opera loving madman, accosts Jessie and only lets her go when she shows her singing ability.

Basil Radford made an appearance playing Michael Redgrave's best friend, and for once he didn't have his partner Naunton Wayne in tow.Basil did films on his own like "The Galloping Major".The funniest scene was pure slapstick when the speed control of a wind machine in the advertising studio is set to maximum and mayhem inevitably results.It was strange seeing Alastair Sim playing a purposely out of work communist and showing his torso!Another actor not lost on me was Torin Thatcher who played Bentley Drummle in the acclaimed 1946 version of "Great Expectations" in David Lean's classic film.Comedy could be rather infantile in the 30s.

With the exception of a couple of films in the forties and fifties this was the last film produced by Gaumont British.It was the biggest production company in the UK but closed down in 1938.It ran into money troubles and closed down production.This was supposed to be a musical directed by Donnie Hale.Alas all the music was taken out and what we are left with is a sad epitaph to her starring career.Unfortunately this is a sad imitation of the screwball comedies then popular with Hollywood.Michael Redgrave is unsuited to his role .As for Alistair SIM and Francis Sullivan all one can say is,bizarre.