You Must Be Joking!

Quite a lot of old movies don't live up to their animated credits. Not this one, even though they were the work of Bob Godfrey.

In 1968 Andrew Sarris rated Winner higher - among The 'Oddities, One-Shots and Newcomers' - in 'American Cinema' than Stanley Kramer ('Miscellany'). At the time Sarris seemed not to have seen (and probably never bothered to catch up with) this low budget but very funny imitation of 'It's a Mad Mad Mad World' from a mildly satirical script by the author of 'I'm All Right Jack'. It was also Michael Winner's last film in black & white, in those very far off days when even he couldn't help making a decent film.

Energetically shot entirely on location (94 in all) in and around a very wintry looking London and then frenziedly cut together (NERD NOTE: Winner's used of hard-edged wipes probably seemed very 'nouvelle vague' at the time but were actually a common feature of quota quickies thirty years earlier). It depicts a world in which audiences would have known the significance of plaster flying ducks and Trechikoff's 'Green Woman', now as impossible to revisit as the planet Jupiter itself. Shot by '2001's director of photography and featuring a Who's Who of British supporting actors past and future, most of them on good form, with Bernard Cribbins the victim of a hilarious running gag; English actor Lionel Jeffries playing a mad Scotsman would however probably offend today's politically correct sensibilities.

(In smaller parts, James Robertson Justice looks incongruous as a supercilious librarian who makes no attempt to keep his voice down; while the ubiquitous Marianne Stone looks even more striking than usual forging signatures in a collar & tie.)

This really is an unsung little gem that is well worthy of general release. From start to finish, it is a fast paced film with some excellent scenes involving a superb cast. A feast of British comic actors with American star, Michael Callan, thrown in for good measure. Everyone performs well, and they look like they had a whale of a time making this movie. Special mention must go to the one and only Terry-Thomas as the army phsycologist, who even manages to reprise his famous "hard cheese" retort! Lionel Jeffries is outstanding too, and there's great support from Bernard Cribbins, Denholm Elliott and Wilfred Hyde-White. To anyone who enjoys fun-filled, brisk, British comedies, this is not to be missed.

I saw this film at the cinema when it first came out and was not able to catch up with it again until I watched a recording that I had made of it this morning. It had been on Talking Pictures several weeks ago.

Despite some of the other reviews that I have read, I found it to be a great film, with some good comic formulas - a sort of British answer to "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", with different twists and plot devices.

If none of the film critics of the time found this film funny, I remember the cinema being "standing room only", with the audience rocking with laughter.

Some of the actors in the film probably were not particularly well known in 1964, but by today's standards, it had nearly as many actors and actresses in cameo performances as "Around the World in 80 Days". I remember half- expecting Norman Vaughn to take out a box of chocolates and say: "Roses Grow on You!".

The only thing that seemed to disappoint most of the audience - especially the girls - was where, in the end, the lead actor went off with the beautiful French singer, instead of his loyal English girlfriend. Maybe there was a reason for such an ending, which was probably misunderstood by cinema audiences at the time.

Of course, the acting honors would have gone to Lionel Jeffries as the Royal Scots Guards Regimental Sergeant Major, dressed throughout the film in a regimental kilt, swapping his bearskin helmet for a mismatching cloth cap.

It is debateable as to whether the British could make a film like this nowadays. With so many stars in cameo performances, the production would go way over budget; and the part where Graham Stark plays a drunken pilot of a charter aircraft would not be politically correct for today's audiences.

On a sad note, it is a pity about Patricia Viterbo, who played the part of the beautiful French singer, Sylvie Tarnet. It was a shame for such lovely actress to be taken at such an early age. She would have had such a glittering career ahead of her.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I wish I could give it 12, but 10 out of 10 will do for now.

It's somewhat strange how this cheery and pleasing film has been almost totally forgotten today - perhaps in part despite its 'Swinging London' ethos that it was filmed in black & white?

Michael Winner's 1960s films were noted for their vivid and lively style, and it's a pity that when he moved to Hollywood in the early 1970s he seemed to lose that style and his films became defined by being dour, downbeat and often quite nasty.

Back to YMBJ, acting standouts include Lionel Jeffries who steals the film with his funny performance just as he did a few years previously with 'The Wrong Arm of the Law' and Terry-Thomas in a small but typically very amusing performance.

The film's finale is a bit messy and incoherent, but otherwise the film is full of good fun and laughs.

"You Must Be Joking!" Is a film about 5 Men, all from different armies, going on a scavenger Hunt throughout Britain for 5 different items, and is sort of similar to the movie "It's a mad mad mad mad world". The film was funny at some points and was also fun to watch. It is a bit vague on explaining the plot in the beginning though. All of the acting was good, and I enjoyed Lionel Jeffrie's acting the most. Some of the scenes were a bit bizarre, but these bizarre moments weren't necessarily bad. All the scenes range from average to good. Overall, it was a fun and nice movie to watch. I'd give it 6/10.