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allanwparkes
Reviews
The Opposite Sex (1956)
Enjoyable but a missed opportunity
One day this story will make a great musical. But this isn't it. In fact, it's hardly a real musical at all. Which is strange, considering its female cast seem to be chosen according to their singing talents - and then don't use them! When Ann Miller appears on the train, surely that ought to have been the cue for a witty quintet along the lines of 'He got it coming'. But no. Nothing. When Charlotte Greenwood meets them at the hotel, that ought to have been the cue for a witty greeting song that commented on the set-up. But no. Nothing. Apart from June Allyson, all the songs (which are just 'background' stuff, not character-driven) are sung, ironically, by the MEN. And surely there were better composers around in the Fifties. Unfortunately, Jerome Kern had died a few years before. His music would have been the ideal choice with the witty words of Dorothy Fields. Even if it had produced no hits (like Centennial Summer) it might at least have been interesting. Wasn't Frank Loesser available? Even the choreography is limp. Couldn't they have got Jack Cole to at least enliven that interminable 'Bananas' number? As I said, this story has the makings of a great musical, but this is a sadly missed opportunity. Having said all that, it's still an enjoyable film. Worth watching if only to be reminded of the days when women wore FROCKS. Ah, the Fifties. Take me back to 58!
While I Live (1947)
fondly remembered film
I remember seeing this film on TV as a boy in the late 50s/early 60s and have never forgotten it. Very powerful with wonderful music. The image of a sleep-walking woman on the cliffs sticks with me after 40 years.Would love to see it again, but for some reason it isn't regarded as Classic enough for release on DVD. Why doesn't someone release the theme tune as a single with clips from the film on the accompanying video? It worked for 'Love is all around me'... Have sometimes toyed with the idea of writing to Total Film and submitting candidates for the Top 100 British films which they never seem to mention, such as this and some of the best George Formby and Gracie Fields films. When I was a boy they were often on TV. Why aren't they now?
Knock Three Times (1968)
general comment on TV series and book
I remember seeing some episodes of this when I must have been 18. A bit old for children's stories, but this was strangely compelling. I remember Hattie Jacques was in it, and there was a rather dark and menacing atmosphere to the story. There was a character who painted furniture on the wall and thought they were real. There was a spooky rolling pumpkin. And a Black Leaf it was somehow vital to find. All this stayed in my mind but I never came across the story elsewhere and couldn't even remember the name of the TV series. By accident a few years ago I came across a paperback of the book it was based on, and recognised the story from the synopsis. The name of Hattie Jacques' TV character isn't in the book (perhaps they changed it), but the story seems about the same. It starts like Enid Blyton but becomes much darker - perhaps the author was influenced by the horror of the 1st world war at that time.