Once Upon a Dream

A silly but agreeable (and mildly risqué) piece of escapist fantasy that in the hands of Herbert Wilcox would have made a plusher but far less amusing vehicle for Anna Neagle, containing the germ of the idea that eight years later became 'The Passionate Stranger' and eight years after that 'Juliet of the Spirits'.

The second reviewer almost guessed the reason this film was made.The British government slapped an 85%tax on American films,as the country was broke.The Americans retaliated by banning export of new films to the UK.The government asked Rank to plug the shortfall.Rank charged Sydney Box to make around 50 films.This was one of them. There are 3 credited writers but it feels as if many more fingers were in the pie.It changes course as often as a destroyer on a zig zag course. As a result this film is supremely unfunny.Contributing to the £12million overdrat ammassed by Rank by 1950.

Guy Middleton is about to be discharged from the army. He sends his batman, Gilbert Jones, ahead to work as general dogsbody for his suburban home. Meanwhile, Googie Withers, whose clothing shop has just gone bankrupt, comes home to find this strange, efficient man in her home. She quickly comes to depend on him, but when Middleton shows up, tight, and goes to sleep instead of celebrating his homecoming, she dreams of a romantic encounter with Jones. After she wakes, she imagines the encounter was real, and troubles begin.

This British comedy plays like an enjoyable, if mild comedy from a Hollywood producer, with enough touches of Britain to give it a bit of distinction. Indeed, several aspects make it look as if Rank had the American market in mind; the music cues seems typical of American productions and the married couple have twin beds, standard in US production since the enforcement of the Code in 1934. There's little here to astonish the viewer, but if you have a taste for drawing-room comedy from this period, this polite, saucy effort should please you.

I'm a fan of Googie Withers so I was a little predisposed to this. It's a bit silly - her husband is away in service and sends a friend of his along to help out before his returns, she gets a little crush on the friend and has a dream about him which suddenly gets muddled with reality - but not annoying, and played out very well. Griffith Jones is superb as the accommodating Jackson and Guy Middleton amusing as the unknowing husband. There's also a token flower show with 'Auntie Agnes' who wins every year, ala Mrs. Miniver. And even if the best part is a dream, it surely is romantic! The first scene is hilarious as well, even if it has almost nothing to do with the rest of the movie until the very end. Seems a little disjointed, but a little risque British humour never hurt any film.

It's quite a simple story this, and rather amusing in a light-hearted sort to fashion too. Guy Middleton ("Maj. Gilbert") returns from the war a bit zonked. All he really wants is his pyjamas and a long nap! During the night, though, his somewhat underwhelmed wife "Carol" (Googie Withers) has a dream. Not about her husband, but about his handsome batman "Jackson" (Griffith Jones). The dream is so realistic that when she wakes up in the morning she cannot understand why "Jackson" is not showing her any attention at all. There is a strong supporting cast, and a degree of chemistry between Withers and Jones that keeps this slightly far-fetched, but nonetheless entertaining bit of fluff flowing as the hapless sergeant and her husband have to deal with her frequently erratic behaviour. It is a typical post-war feel-good film, that raises a smile and comfortably passes 90 minutes.