The Sandwich Man

I enjoyed this film very much - in a simple-minded sort of way. It's a very strange mixture of different types of comedy, in fact you could guess that the "script", such as it is, was written to fit whichever film and TV actors Micheal Bentine could persuade to do turns for him.

There are some longeurs, especially a sequence about a heavy-handed motorcycle cop, but never mind because a few minutes later another famous face pops up to amuse us. My favourite characters were the Sikh jazz musicians ("De Sihkers" - groan !) and Norman Wisdom's Irish priest, who tries to instruct a group of boys about gymnastics. Half the fun is in realising that in today's politically correct world, characters like these would never reach the screen - more's the pity. Incidentally, I can imagine Spike Milligan coming up with both the above stereotypes, so maybe the falling out between him and Bentine was more to do with personalities than material.

This film seems to have been made entirely on location around London (and I spotted Tolworth Tower in the escapologist sequence, which is near where I grew up), and you can tell it was made in a great hurry with very little money.

But who was the intended audience? Surely in 1966, at a time when adult cinema-goers were getting used to more sophisticated and subversive films, this one couldn't have held much appeal. In fact its resemblance to the Children's Film Foundation shorts (also funded by the Rank organisation) makes me think that this was intended to be shown at "Saturday morning picture shows" for kids. There is nothing here that a child couldn't understand (though I'm not so sure about the comment,"He's buying me a black jacket, not a red one ! He's kinky, not a communist!"). And what on earth are those wrestlers at the very end all about ???

This film is now available on DVD, curiously in 4:3 picture ratio - is this the only print available ? and it's 90 minutes of innocent fun. If you're still not sure what sort of comedy it is, think:

The Beatles' film "Help". The TV silent classic "The Plank". "Some mothers do 'ave 'em"

Recommended

Bentine was right when he said it suffered from poor editing.

His character was the connecting thread on which to hang various short sketches or skits, some better than others.

Bentine's character is mostly a bystander to the action, mainly cut shots showing his reaction to what's going on, which is a shame as he's not really given a chance to shine.

A bit of a strange little comedy, this. It's extremely episodic in nature, a string of slightly connected sketches centred around a sandwich man who wanders the streets of London and encounters various bizarre characters and situations along the way.

Some of it is good, but the bits that aren't funny tend to outweigh those that are. Some of the highlights include Norman Wisdom attempting to navigate his way around a gym and Bernard Cribbins appearing as an amateur photographer. There are also a LOT of familiar faces, mostly in one-scene cameos: Diana Dors, Ian Hendry, Harry H. Corbett, Ron Moody, Terry-Thomas, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Burt Kwuok, Dora Bryan. It's almost a who's who of the British comedy scene in the 1960s.

Sadly, the film's distinctive lack of plotting, Michael Bentine's rather insipid lead character and the proliferation of dated humour make THE SANDWICH MAN rather difficult to sit through these days, although nostalgia buffs might enjoy seeing the spacious and relatively traffic-free London of yesteryear.

If one was reviewing The Sandwich Man by the head alone and not the heart, then 5/10, possibly even 4/10 might be in order, here.

Being mid 40's, I can just recall Michael Bentine on TV when I was very young. These must have been repeats of his BBC shows 'It's a Square World' and whilst he appeared funny and weird, the material was, obviously, above me.

Now, on UK Gold, comes 1966's The Sandwich Man. As others have said, it's a time capsule of swinging London and its rainbow of colourful characters. From Dora Bryan to a real who's-who of every comic actor that even I'd heard of and have enjoyed and been brought up with. They're like an extended family!

Though many hang their heads in shame these days, the playful way that white actors played ethnics is a part of the package and it was FAR more innocent and affectionate than most folk ever realise. It's actually part of our television and film heritage, so enjoy and accept it for what it was THEN.

As my subject line says, the script definitely takes second fiddle, to the point where I wonder if there actually was one, or at least stuck to! And, the gags now have been so overdone and are so familiar through countless Carry On's and similar comic vehicles, that, really, they barely raise a titter these days. However, the idea of Bentine wearing a sandwich board and going round the locations, catching up with his friends is a good one and I have to admit, the Park scenes, toward the end, with the escaped sit-on mower was actually really funny and his final 'escape' will surprise you - it did me!

Still, I had fun watching it, looking out for the stars of yesterday and comparing a largely lost London with our society today.

This film was a strange choice for Michael Bentine, who had made a reputation for himself as a crazy, surreal comedian with a penchant for elaborate mechanical sets in TV programmes like It's A Square World. This gentle comedy, in which he takes a back seat and merely links a number of set pieces by prominent British actors and comedians of the 1960s is out of character, but nevertheless warm and enjoyable. Inevitably the humour has dated over the years, but it remains a valuable document of life in London as it became "swinging" and a chance to see many well-known artists who went on to greater things, and a few who didn't. To be enjoyed as a time capsule now, rather than cutting edge comedy.