Climb Up the Wall

I remember the Jack Jackson show very well and this film reflects his surreal sense of humour.Pre war Jackson led the dance band at the Dorchester Hotel.In the fifties he became a dj with his own innovative style.Glenn Mason was a singer and actor,who occasionally sat near me at The Arsenal.He played,as can be seen,for the very popular Show Biz XI,which once played at my local club.Craig Douglas had a brief period of success,and I still have one of his 45 rpm discs issued on the Top Rank label.Russ Conway was a pianist discovered by Billy Cotton and Libby Morris,a Canadian singer who used to live in Finchley.For me this was a very nostalgic film.

I caught this on TV recently and I cannot remember it when it was released (thank goodness). I was 15 in 1960 and very much into pop music but this film was even dated by then. Middle of the road lesser artists of the day. Sure, Russ Conway and Craig Douglas had a number of top ten hits but they appealed more to parents rather then teenagers. Jack Jackson was a reasonably good disc jockey but his humour was both corny and unfunny. I cringed rather than laughed at his so-called jokes. The only saving grace was the excellent version of "Frankie and Johnny"although I do not know the name of the band.

A mix of New footage and chucked together clips (The Goons from Down Among The Z Men, Elvis from Newsreel) with a terrible script and flat direction from Michael Winner. It's held together by Jack Jackson whom I personally never heard of and with his jokes I think I'm glad.

The reviewer that says the Frankie & Johnny by George 'Calypso' Brown is the only saving grace is right. Though the surprise inclusion is of a brief set of topless women!

Sadly the review wants 600 Characters of me so I'm doing what the makers did...filling the space with acres of rubbish till my running time runs out, Now.

This early Michael Winner film is not so much a movie, more a collage of light and not so time relevant musical comedy interludes and sketches. Most of the cameos are from people I don't recognise or have never heard of given I was born 18 years after the film's release date, but the plethora of names appearing as themselves would probably be more relevant to someone a generation above me, or to someone viewing this at its time of release. It's a curious film given its a musical of sorts, without a clear plot, but different, and arguably unique for its time, however never that entertaining. Fans of Peter Sellers may want to watch his short contribution, which is not more than a couple of minutes long, but it does offer something of relevance to a modern audience.

This review is only the sixth one for this film probably due to not all that many people having seen it and most have been unkind to it. It could drive viewers "up the wall" but if this had been an early film made by the Monty Python team it would be getting rave reviews as an early MP classic. It contains element reminiscent of Monty Python, The Young Ones and The Goons. Well worth a watch for its curiosity value alone.