Uma Corrida Contra o Tempo

Having known my share of stuffed shirts, I was howling at the torture of John Cleese in this film. You know who all those stuffed shirts are, too: those who insist on a spotless, shiny, tidy room; who balance out their finances every day, it seems; who have carved a nice manageable life for themselves. What makes the comedy work, though, is that in spite of all the setbacks Cleese suffers, the movie doesn't take any sadistic delight in them. When the car, and Cleese, gets stuck in the mud, we all cringe at his predicament, and laugh along with him, since we'd probably be going through the same thing ourselves, but for the grace of God. No toilet humor, no toilet language. Just a madcap comedy of errors fit for all. Right!

Glad to see this film is building up a fan-base. Any references I've come across in film guides have been pretty dismissive, and it seems to have been rubbished on its release. I think "minor classic" is the perfect description for it: it's so pleasantly low-key, restrained and, well, English. It respects the tradition of farce and, despite the frenetic pace and the subject matter, retains a kind of gentle, even staid appeal. The race to get to the conference might be nail-biting but the sleepy English countryside, the apple-eating farmer, the scene of John Cleese soaking in a bath-tub, evoke a world of endearing laziness. A film for bank holidays, and perhaps more suited to TV than the cinema. A Fish Called Wanda has funnier moments but, on the whole, I think I prefer this.

Interesting that so many people have said they can watch it again and again. I've seen it four or five times and I'm planning on buying it on my way home from work today, then watching it over dinner. Don't know what made me think of it and look it up. Actually I saw it being given away free with a newspaper last week, that must be it. I wasn't going to add to a tabloid's circulation, though.

A much underrated comedy detailing the collapse of a stern, disciplinarian headmaster during a chaotic journey to deliver a speech at a convention of snobbish educationists.

Cleese begins in a very restrained way and is watchable and funny as he gradually descends into anarchic despondency. The pathos as he finally delivers his speech, in an ill-fitting (stolen) tasteless outfit, surrounded by the detritus of his dreadful day, is genuinely moving as well as funny.

Best line, from Cleese, as yet another possible means of reaching his goal emerges: 'It's not the despair: I can cope with the despair. It's the HOPE - that's what's killing me.' Almost the perfect motto for Scotland football supporters, you might say.

Probably alone in the world, I rate this movie superior to the overly foul-mouthed and Americanised Fish Called Wanda. A host of grizzled British character actors, including the magnificent Alison Steadman, keep things going.

I wonder what happened to the sherry glasses?

The secret of this comedy is its pacing. It shows the events of one working day in the lives of a range of people from schoolchildren to pensioners, whose course is hilariously skewed for them all by the obsession of the film's central character. It uses a traditional "obsessive tunnel vision" strategy of comedy - a character's failure to see the chaos he is causing in the lives of those who are unlucky enough to lie in the path between him and his goal.

Alison Steadman plays the sassy schoolgirl who does everything she can to help her headteacher achieve this obsession, tearing him between his drive for the peak of respectability orthodoxy and her less than respectable means to achieve this goal. The comic tension between the unlikely pair seems a hilarious pastiche of the sexual tension in most hero + heroine situations.

Americans may not immediately recognise the small-town England setting, which gives it a tone of Ealing comedy, but the film should greatly amuse viewers from any background.

Anything featuring the immense talents of John Cleese is automatically worth seeing, and this eighties comedy is certainly no exception. Aside from the great john Cleese, this film benefits from a great number of other positives, including a finely worked script; that manages to stay realistic and down to Earth despite the highly unlikely nature of much of the plot, and the highly farcical nature of many of the events; which bode extremely well with the lead star, as Cleese finds himself in his element in the role of the strict headmaster. Indeed, the major reason why this film works so well is down to the former Monty Python star, as he blunders his way through the film and somehow manages to retain and air of authority while doing so. The comedy styling is one of "it can't get any worse!", and it continually does; as constantly punctual headteacher, Brian Stimpson, finds himself in a world of trouble after missing the train to Norwich, where he is set to make a speech to a meeting of the best headmasters in the country. After acquiring the services of one of his sixth form pupils, he gets back on track to Norwich; but not without a number of problems.

The comedy comes by way of both gags, and the plot itself, which always manages to garner a laugh or two due to its superbly silly nature. Cleese is joined by a number of British stars, who all do well in their respective roles. Sharon Maiden stands out as Cleese's travel companion for much of the film; and somehow manages to look cute despite a truly awful hairstyle. Smaller British stars such as Pete Walker's muse, Sheila Keith, Alison Steadman and Eastenders' John Bardon, who would go on to star as Jim Branning in said soap opera help to liven up the supporting cast. The film does feel typically eighties, but stays away from the more silly side of the decade's cinema and many of the jokes bend more towards the intellectual side. The film is in very good humour throughout, and therefore offers an enjoyable time for its audience. Seeing John Cleese deliver an assembly towards the start will no doubt remind anyone that was schooled in England of that time, and Clockwise does a very good job of presenting it's plot and setting. Overall, this film comes highly recommended to anyone that enjoys fun films.