The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan

I have a poor copy that was probably made off the air. Despite the technical shortcomings, the film is a delight to watch. The staging of the various operetta's was done with taste and love. I watch it at least once a year and enjoy it each time. I only wish I could find a reasonable copy. It seems to have vanished.

I have never forgotten having seen this movie when others like The Red Shoes, Tales of Hoffman, the Alec Guiness and Peter Sellers comedies, Olivier performances in Hamlet and Henry V, were being received and cherished. The "Story of Gilbert and Sullivan" cast, script, and production values were as good, if not better than, the above mentioned. I have never understood how it didn't seem to get much attention for reproduction and reshowing in view of the fact that G&S productions are still being done in today's live performance theaters! Is it really too late to salvage and restore it for revival? Since it's action is largely in closeup, it's mono sound needs only to be upgraded to today's sound projection technology ... it will still be brilliant. I'll never forget the scene with Gilbert (the great Morely) riding in his horse cab during his customary opening night anxiety attack with the picture (and sound of the horse's hoof beats) superimposed over Martin Green (peerless Grossman) singing the Nightmare song ...matchless!! Please ... somebody ... rescue this film!!!

An enjoyable handsomely well-mounted production in Technicolor, there's actually far more music than story (under the baton of Malcolm Sargent). Not being an expert I can't comment on the quality of the arrangements but they're probably sufficiently clearly enunciated and long enough to please most serious Gilbert & Sullivan aficionados.

As Sullivan Maurice Evans is almost unrecognisable, as Gilbert Robert Morley only too recognisable; while the depictions of the tensions between them anticipates 'The Commitments'.

As usual the best performance is by Peter Finch as D'Oyly Carte, although like many of the men in the cast his singing voice is obviously dubbed.

Much was made of "Topsy Turvy" when it came out, but if it's G&S music you're interested in, there's no comparison. The Great G&S wins hands down. Wonderful Maurice Evans, even better Robert Morley, and plenty of operetta excerpts. Wish the film's color quality had held up better with time, and of course today's sound would be better, but this is still a joy to watch and listen to. Wish they had included Princess Ida and Utopia, Ltd., but you can't have everything.

Biography documenting the fraught and creatively tense relationship between master opera collaborators William S.Gilbert (played with aplomb by the portly Morley) and Arthur Sullivan (Evans). The film documents their collaboration from their first operetta in 1871, through to Sullivan's premature death at just 58, and Gilbert's subsequent knighthood early in the 20th century. Sullivan's growing reluctance to compose the light opera demanded of him serves as a constant bane upon which the collaboration with Gilbert (the lyricist) is often strained. When the pair eventually agree to part ways, those around them manage to cajole the pair together to resurrect their fragile partnership time and time again.

While the subject matter obviates the need for plenty of musical numbers, also present are colourful sets and vibrant exteriors of the Thames and English countryside, wry dialogue that depicts their egos humorously, and an attractive supporting cast that includes Peter Finch as the talent agent who masterminds the pairing, while stalwarts Dinah Sheridan and Wilfrid Hyde-White also feature prominently.

Rotund and expressive, the presence of Morley ensures that the tone is mostly comedic, and while it's a lavish production, the momentum is often lacking pace and I found the biopic sometimes tedious. Nevertheless, if you're a fan, there's ample excerpts of "Pirates of Penzance" or "The Mikado" (among others) to enjoy and perhaps discover more about the eccentric relationship 'endured' by the famed duo.