What's Good for the Goose

1969
R
1h 45m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

A middle aged banker picks up two young free minded women on his way to a banker's convention and falls head over heels for one of them.A middle aged banker picks up two young free minded women on his way to a banker's convention and falls head over heels for one of them.A middle aged banker picks up two young free minded women on his way to a banker's convention and falls head over heels for one of them.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.0/10

391

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

User reviews25

Featured review

5/10

Unusual time capsule of its era

WHAT'S GOOD FOR THE GOOSE is an unwieldy little comedy effort, shot in Southport of all places, and starring Norman Wisdom in a very different role to those earlier in his career. Although this is a comedy, there's no slapstick from the rubbery star here; instead, he plays a rather sad individual, a guy who's having a mid-life crisis and subsequently falls in love with the teenage Sally Geeson.

There were a lot of May to December films coming out around these years but WHAT'S GOOD FOR THE GOOSE is one of the oddest. It's not really what you could call an entertaining movie, as it just sort of floats along aimlessly for a very long time. What it does provide is an eye-popping time capsule of late '60s fashions and attitudes, with the 'free love' movement in particular explored in depth.

Wisdom remains a likable character throughout and Geeson isn't bad either in an early role. The film was put out by Tigon, a company who typically specialised in cutting-edge horror fare, and written and directed by none other than Menahem Golan years before he founded Cannon.

Trivia
In the UK version of the film, Sally Geeson wears a bra in the hotel bedroom scene. In the German version, she is topless.

Goofs
Boom mike visible just before the lift arrives.

Alternate versions
To receive 'U' certificate in 1969 the UK theatrical release was cut by the BBFC and removed all topless shots of Nikki in the bath, plus additional cuts to Nikki and Bartlett's bedroom scene, shots of hippie youths kissing and necking, and Bartlett discovering Nikki and a male lover in bed together (an even shorter version was later prepared for a 'U' VHS certificate and received heavier cuts, but got a 'PG' rating). The 1986 Krypton video release (as "Girl Trouble") was a 15 minute shorter print (possibly the 'U' certificate version), and the 1999 video/2007 DVD releases both feature the original cut 1969 'U' certificate version (but with a modern 'PG' rating).

Connections
Featured in Talkies: Talking Pictures with Sally Geeson (2019)

Soundtracks
What's Good for the Goose (Theme Song)
Sung by Norman Wisdom
Music and Lyrics by Reg Tilsley and Alan Blaikley (as Howard Blaikley) & Ken Howard (as Howard Blaikley)