O Mordomo e a Dama

JM Barrie's 1902 play is still entertaining and insightful nearly twelve decades later and really well worth checking out if you haven't already. The cast is a talented one, with Kenneth More deservedly being the most well known name. Have a lot more of Lewis Gilbert's work to see but much of what has already been seen has shown him to be a more than competent director and deserving of more credit, 'Reach for the Sky' and 'Educating Rita' being two examples.

The same can be said for the undervalued and not seen enough 'The Admirable Crichton'. While it is not perfect and may disappoint those that prefer adaptations to be one hundred percent faithful (with Tweeney's expanded role sacrificing some of what made the play so bold in its day), it is a very good film on its own terms (which is a fairer way to judge in my view) with so many good things. Good to see it get a lot of appreciation here.

Will agree that the social status jump does happen too fast and comes out of nowhere to jarring effect, the one thing that required some disbelief suspension.

Also that the ending is on the flat side, too quick and too pat.

So much is great however about 'The Admirable Crichton'. More is perfectly cast, he has such a genial charm about him and was clearly enjoying himself. Even better is Cecil Parker, who in my mind steals the film and some of the best lines come from him, great prissy authority and hilarious comic timing. Sally Ann Howes and Diane Cilento are radiant in appearance and personality. Gilbert directs with class and slickness throughout, his high appreciation for More as an actor is evident in how well he directs him in particular. The cast interact with each other beautifully.

Furthermore, 'The Admirable Crichton' looks great. Loved the sumptuous colour photography and glossy but not too much so art direction. The music is suitably elegant and fits the tone of the story well. The script has great whimsical charm, great insight in social statuses and classes and many lines that induce genuine laughter. The pace is lively. The story is slight but never dull, charmingly quaint, easy to follow and never too silly (not easy to do considering the type of story). It is also to me one of not many stage play to film adaptations from this period to not feel stage-bound or where stage origins are betrayed, and the material is loyally adapted with enough freshness to avoid it from dating.

Overall, very good and undervalued. 8/10.

The 1957 version of the classic J.M. Barrie play -- yes, he wrote something besides Peter Pan -- benefits from its opening up, with a lot of shooting in Bermuda. Kenneth More is the butler who, when the yacht sinks, becomes the leader of the aristos by dint of his understanding that work must be done and how to do it; by the time they are unwillingly rescued, he's got the island organized and built up like a Buster Keaton set.

Cecil Parker plays his fuddy-duddy upper-class twit, but here clearly takes pleasure in playing against type in the scenes where he's Kenneth More's manservant. I thought it a bit odd that Diane Cilento played 'Tweenie' and Sally Ann Howes Parker's daughter; were I casting it, I would have switched those roles. Both ladies acquit themselves well. Martitia Hunt has a great small role as Lady Bracknell..... I mean Lady Brocklehurst.

A British comedy; A story about an aristocrat and his haughty British family, stranded on a desert island with their servants, set against the pressures of island existence which soon result in a reversal of social order. This is a handsome adaptation of the 1902 stageplay by J. M. Barrie., a delightful comedy, charming and fun. Kenneth More in his role as the butler who knows his place and enjoys his place is a bit too staid, but in his scenes with female company he works better. Diane Cilento as the maid Eliza is fine, as does Martita Hunt as the grand Lady Brocklehurst. Cecil Parker is brilliant as the Earl. The story is simple, not satirical, more gentle assault on the British class system. It is well photographed, colourful, with lots of humorous props. A touch of romance helped move the story along.

In 1904 the Loam house is one of the most prodigious in all England. The head butler of the household is Crichton, who knows his place and is keen to keep the staff downstairs despite his labour-voting master's support of the absurd idea of all men as equal. On a cruise of the South Seas the family and Crichton become ship wrecked and the social standards that once controlled the families are no more and the castaways soon realise the value of a useful man.

I watched this by pure chance and, judging by the number of votes on imdb against this title, it appears that few other people have sought this film out. This is a retelling of J.M. Barrie's role reversal comedy and, although not without it's flaws, it is quite an enjoyable and thought provoking tale. The plot is simple in that the film looks at the class system in the UK and switches it in a situation where practicality and leadership qualities mean more than birthright. Sadly in the UK we have historically had a class system that has decided from birth who you will be when you grow up – if you're father was a Lord then you shall be too and so forth. That is the situation here and it is amusing to it switched when the island has no such system and eventually everyone settles into one based on merit and ability rather than birthright.

The film has a few digs at the ruling classes in the final 20 minutes, showing them as pompous and perhaps not as honourable as they should be, meanwhile Crichton lives up to the character given him by the film's title. It is actually quite sad when the film returns to England because in this one man you do get to see the crushing and enslaving effect that the class system has on those born into the lower reaches of it. The comedy is rarely hilarious but is amusing throughout – especially before the social switch occurs. It may feel a little old fashioned now but it is pretty light and enjoyable. If it does have a flaw it is that the jump between social status is sudden and not phased in slowly – I know the film had limited time but it was a little hard to swallow all at once. Also, on return to England the film loses a little of it's sharpness and enjoyment value.

Moore is perfectly cast as the unflappable butler Crichton he is perfect but as someone who knows his place, but also convinces as someone whom is a born leader regardless of birth right. Parker plays Loam spot on and the support cast are all well played if a little unmemorable in the odd spot.

Overall this is a quaint little film that makes a very good point. Although we are a classless society by comparison to the events in this film, class and birthright still play a big part in deciding what you'll become in later life in the UK. This is an amusing film with still a thoughtful message.

Fabulous film with a moral to please all. Great cast, great story, great filming. One for everyone to enjoy and not as hammy as some of these older films. See it and judge for yourself !!