London folies

Now that the full film is finally available on DVD, complete with the deleted scenes restored in the right order, the film is no longer to be seen as such a turkey. It lost money, embarrassed it's backer's, affected careers, and was badly directed by Wesley Ruggles, brought in at Sid Fields request. It still suffers from a missing laughter track in some sketches, and due to his sudden demise, few know Sid Fields huge reputation as a top comic. Rank tore the film apart in efforts to get it through the US censor system, added the cost of the rebuild of Shepperton to the bills, and restricted the distribution to the UK at first. The film is not bad, just disjointed in places, with a poor story line, but the musical numbers work fine. Sid Fields routines are flat because there is no audience roaring with mirth at his every prat fall and joke. The 1980's issue made things worst, with numbers chopped and altered in order, making it a mess from start to finish. But now restored, even the joke apology ending, and re-ordered, it works as a fine nostalgic look at a 1940's review show, in excellent colour, and now very pristine look. Kay Kendal said it ruined her career, yes, but because it stalled at the US box office, not because it was bad, after all it did good business in the UK when new. She had been slated for stardom before the film, and lots of publicity was given , that backfired when they could not sell it to the US distributors, leaving her career in limbo.

Interesting today mainly as a historical record of the Music Hall (Vaudeville to our American cousins), this is fairly slow and unfunny when not actually showing the performances.

Featuring Sid Field, a big star of the thirties and forties. He had a pleasant light singing voice but his act included a Golf Lesson routine not in the class of his namesake, W.C. Two-ton Tessie O'Shea, literally a big star, showed that she had lots of personality and there's an enjoyable Pearlie Kings act with `Any Old Iron?' etc.

Surprisingly in (pretty gaudy) colour.

Great Britain has made some really good movies over the years - comedies especially. Also war movies. BUT! their first venture into musicals, LONDON TOWN, was nothing short of a disaster. The acting was bad, the direction worse and as for the songs!! Diabolical. I class it just below THE ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES in my list of the worst movies of all time.

London Town is a must see for any other Greta Gynt fans out there. Her saucy madam with the chestnut hair is about as far removed from the icy blonde femme fetales she played in the 30s as can be! It took about half of the film before I really recognised her. Kay Kendall is also splendid in her role, as is a very small Petula Clark. Petula is Peggy, whose father is an out of work comedian. She plays a trick on the other comedian, so that he'll have to miss a night and give her father his big break. Watch out for Belgrave as well - he steals every scene he's in!

The movie is fairly light on plot, most of the time being made up with the stage numbers, some of which get a bit long (the golf one...good at first but soon I was dying!), but over all it's a lot of fun. I'm sure I could have though of a better ending, though!

Petula Clark stars as a young girl in this confused (post-modernist ?) musical, with a whole cast of down-on-their-luck stars producing a variety of songs on some very expensive sets that don't seem to _quite_ make sense.

There is evidence of much cutting, particularly in the 'gay' scene (well that's what it looked like to me) which cuts out and runs out of true, but also with the fact that the story is often incoherent and introduces unexplained new elements (such as 'The Amsted Way' ??).

The comedy act at the end is terrible, and the lead is as well.

Wildly expensively made in Technicolour, perhaps as an experiment ? (Maybe that's why J. Arthur kept in black & white for so long).