Du cognac pour Monsieur le Vicaire

The first of three aggressively light-hearted comedies attractively shot on location (this time it's the fictitious village of Brampton on the Kent coast) directed for Group Three by former documentarist John Eldridge before he died at the age of just 43.

Yet another British film of the period when postwar shortages invested smuggling with - as a judge dryly puts it - a "spurious aura of adventure and romance", the smuggler this time being a dashing young Kenneth More. But by far the most fascinating performance actually comes from Jean Lodge, plainly in reality haughty and high maintenance, but working jolly hard at being a jaunty good sport in the sort of role usually played by Dinah Sheridan.

James Donald, Kenneth More, and Jean Lodge are asked by a sailor with a foundering ship to head over to France and pick up something for him. It turns out to be brandy for smuggling. When they get it back to England, they find it's much in demand.... but somehow they can't get it off their hands.

It's a rather slow comedy, but that's because it's shot in the fields and towns and standing stones dotting the pleasant lands of the country, and the jokes punctuate the situations, rather than being the point of this amiable film.

It's a first starring role for Kenneth More, who's second-billed after James Donald. It was almost Audrey Hepburn's first lead, but delays in production ended with her replacement by Miss Lodge

"Brandy for the Parson" was the first film for Britains' Group 3, Ltd., set up to "encourage young film makers of talent and promise," and this lightweight comedy comes through via cast and crew on the "talent and promise" attributes, especially with the musical background written by John Addison.

Bill Harper (James Donald) and Petronilla Brand (Jean Lodge) are a young couple that, through a series of mishaps and accidents, get unintentionally involved in a brandy-smuggling (from France) racket.

Because of an accidental sinking of Tony Rackham's (Kenneth More)boat, Bill and Patricia take him across the Channel on their boat which, to their dismay, is soon filled with several kegs of brandy. It then evolves into a series of intentional and unintentional dodges trying to evade the Customs officials.

Brandy for the Parson comes out of Group 3 Productions and Southall Studios. It's directed by John Eldridge and adapted for the screen by John Dighton (The Man in the White Suit/Kind Hearts and Coronets) & Walter Meade (Scott of the Antarctic) from a story by Geoffrey Household. It stars James Donald, Kenneth More, Jean Lodge, Frederick Piper, Charles Hawtrey & Alfie Bass. Music is by John Addison and Martin Curtis is on cinematography.

Young couple Bill (Donald) & Petronilla (Lodge) find their yachting holiday turned upside down after a collision with Tony Rackham (More). For Tony is smuggling Brandy from France to London! And now that he has no boat, the young couple are obliged to help him. With the Customs Office on their tail and their destination seemingly miles and miles away, it will need a lot of fortune to go their way if they are to evade capture and stay out of prison.

No doubt about it, Brandy for the Parson is something akin to entering a time warp. But that is meant in the nicest possible way. Group 3 was a British company set up to give young film makers a chance in the industry, some of their 50s productions have finally made it on to DVD. The likes of Miss Robin Hood, The Love Match, Orders Are Orders, Make Me an Offer and this here smuggling caper, all encompass a British sensibility that makes them stand out on their own: well more that they can't be bracketed with the best of Ealing, Powell & Pressburger and the Boulting Brothers. They are film's that are rough around the edges but have a charming appeal that's unique to fans of British comedy movies from the 50s. With that in mind, they are not for everyone, and certainly not all of them are film's easy to recommend. But for those of a similar persuasion to myself there is much to enjoy.

Brandy for the Parson only runs at 73 minutes and does contain a cast worthy of a bigger production. Kenneth More is now the name actor on show, tho at the time of release he was secondary to James Donald, while Hawtrey, Bass and Piper are well known for work elsewhere. But it's a fine collective of actors regardless of budget. The film eases along without any need for exuberance, it's a solid premise that sees the innocent pulled into an adventure that they didn't court. The fun is not so much that they are fishes out of water, the entertainment is that they embrace the challenge and take it on with a stiff upper lip. Not to mention the number of characters they meet along the way who are only too eager to help our needy trio; regardless of knowing the truth or not. Away from the safe story and how it's knowingly acted, the work of Addison and Curtis is worthy of a second viewing. Addison's score is jaunty and completely in keeping with the pace of the film, while Curtis' photography brings to life a Devonshire harbour and captures some beautiful English countryside in a way that the great Jack Cardiff would have been proud of.

So easy on the eyes and ears, then, and also a film that is easy to warm too for those not expecting side splitting satire or farce. 7/10

I was tempted to give this review the alternative summary heading of "Lights In The Water Again"."Lights" was the pet name given to Charles Herbert Lightoller" ("Titanic's" second officer) by his colleagues.Kenneth More who played this role in the film ended up in the drink in "A Night to Remember"(1958) and here again he ends up there after a holiday couple James Donald/Jean Lodge ram his boat which also sinks.However the overriding theme was a forerunner of "Carry On Films" hence my summary title with a whole lot of improbable characters and situations.In the early post war years Britain was a very grey place in which to live, with food rationing, rigid control of foreign exchange and the excise duties levied on wines & spirits & luxuries bought from the Contintent.

Film makers, being rather romantic people at heart, have their sympathy with the smugglers who were given a rather heroic role.Other reviewers have mentioned "Green Grow the Rushes" & "Whiskey Galore" as two post war films which harped on this theme of romantic smuggling; after all Britain had a mountainous post war debt to repay (mainly to the U.S.A. which was not actually repaid until 1986).UK authorities had draconian laws against excise duty evasion, much to the chagrin of the general public.

The boy who played a cub was "a sixer". I could tell because I was a "seconder" cub in the 1950s."Sixers" had two stars at the front of their cap and led their patrol while "seconders" were deputies of the sixer and had one star there.The older boy scouts also helped to unwittingly transport the illicit cargo on the basis of "Bob-a Job".I kept smiling when Charles Hawtrey appeared as a dim laundry driver and the whole film appeared a softer, low key version of the "Carry On" films.This film predates the first in the series, "Carry On Seargant" (1958) by 6 years.I briefly noticed Wensley Pithey who played Inspector Charlesworth a 1950/60s TV detective.When the circus ponies (used for transporting the brandy)rested in a field there was a musical snippet of "The Post Horn Gallop", but how the principal characters obtained permission from the circus owners of the ponies was never quite revealed.

As usual in a farce about smuggling the authorities are always one step behind the smugglers but as there was also a moral code in films of this vintage, James Donald, Jean Lodge, Charles Hawtrey, Kenneth More and a local farmer have their comeuppance in court.However who paid their court fine was not made clear!I voted 6/10.