Norman, O Quebra Galho

The irrepressible Norman Wisdom goes "Up in the World" from poster hanger to window washer at a lavish estate, and the estate is lavish indeed as the film's exteriors were shot at the magnificent Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire. Norman again tangles with his old nemesis, Jerry Desmonde as the estate manager, and finds a new foil in a spoiled young heir, Michael Caridia. Although Norman never falters, the film does. An extended soccer match wears on, and an involved kidnapping plot has few gags. However, the finale's Marx-Brothers-like mayhem leaves an elegant hall in shambles, as befitting the ever-bumbling Mr. Wisdom.

"Up in the World" is formula Norman, which is not all bad. Norman is fired over and over; he sings the title song, one of his own composing; and he falls for a young housemaid, who is in the mold of the young ladies Norman always falls for. Michael Ward, who played a fussy photographer in "Man of the Moment," amusingly returns as a fussy uncle here, and Lionel Jeffries pops up in a funny cameo. Mr. Wisdom never lets us down; whether dangling from a window, fooling around in a queue, or doing battle with Jerry Desmonde, his comic talents are pitch perfect. If only the movie had been worthy of him. However, lesser Wisdom is better than no Wisdom, and "Up in the World," while not a great classic, is acceptably entertaining.

I thought this was one of Wisdom's very best outings as a hapless window cleaner caught up in a kidnap plot. It has far more story to it than other similar efforts the actor would go on to make, and his camaraderie with the supporting cast is what makes this zing; I particularly enjoyed his developing friendship with the spoilt young lord. The slapstick is very funny too, which helps immensely.

This is another "fish out of water" Norman Wisdom comedy, where he plays a window cleaner at a lavish, huge country estate. He is the new target of the mischievous child Sir Reginald and generally causes havoc with the other people. There is a sub plot about kidnapping Sir Reginald, something that his family always seems frightened about. Norman eventually agrees to take Sir Reggie to London to a nightclub to see a magician. Norman even wreaks havoc there. Norman Wisdom is a good physical comedian and he plays this role rather well. In this film he is the star, with his pratfalls and sight gags. There is a love interest but thats very secondary to Norman's mishaps. If you like Norman Wisdom, slapstick comedy, British comedy or just plain silliness, you should watch this as well as other Norman Wisdom comedies. It doesn't hurt to laugh.

"Up in the World" is the first Norman Wisdom film that I've ever seen (I'd never even heard of him until watching it, although it sounds like he was a fairly famous comedian in his day). If this one is any indication, then the rest of his movies must be a hoot. What I mean is that "UITW" nearly made me die laughing. It casts Norman Wisdom as working-class Norman, who gets a job as a window washer for some rich snobs. Employed by them, he proceeds to do the sorts of things that we most often associate with Insp. Clouseau and Gilligan, all the while riling the stuffy owners; that whole sequence when he interrupts the meeting is very likely to make you hoarse from laughter. But when some thugs try to kidnap the son, he has to take charge.

One thing that I should identify is that I watched this movie dubbed in Russian and I still laughed my head off. You literally don't need to know what they're saying to have a good time, you just need to see what Norman is doing. I guess that having him develop a relation with the maid did give the movie a humanizing aspect, but the truth is that you could watch "UITW" with the sound off and still get belly laughs. I definitely recommend it.

I am a huge fan of Norman Wisdom but not I have to say of his singing, though to be fair his voice is reasonable. The problem I have is that I don't like musicals, or films that have music injected into them.

Norman Wisdom became very popular in Britain and many of his films, insisted on featuring his singing as well as his comedic talents. As far as I am concerned if that was the case, that could have been easily accommodated. By simply having Norman Wisdom sing the songs over the films credits, at the beginning and end of the film. Leaving the entire film to be free from musical numbers, and simply being a comic film. Which is why I've marked this film down, from the usual high rating that I'd normally give one of his films.

I heartily recommend this film to anyone with a funny bone that needs tickling, you don't have to even know who Norman Wisdom is to laugh your socks off. This is a riotous madcap adventure where Norman's character has to contend not only with a precocious spoilt brat Sir Reginald (Michael Caridia) but also have to work under his Nemesis Major Willoughby (Jerry Desmond).