FOT Forum

The Best Show on WFMU => Dear Tom => Topic started by: pupscout on December 21, 2007, 02:01:57 AM

Title: ealing films
Post by: pupscout on December 21, 2007, 02:01:57 AM
my school recently showed a series of ealing films, and i remembered you recommending some of them to kids during the netflix rearranging segment. i had to work every tuesday, though, so i missed all of them except the lavender hill mob. it was one of the funniest movies i've seen, so i was wondering if you had any suggestions on where to go from there, or maybe if you would just talk about ealing a little bit.
thanks,
hannah
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on December 21, 2007, 08:04:36 AM
Just watch everything Alec Guinness is in.  You'll be glad you did.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Chris L on December 21, 2007, 08:59:24 AM
Just watch everything Alec Guinness is in.  You'll be glad you did.

Except Star Wars.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on December 21, 2007, 10:21:14 AM
Every Ealing movie, that is.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: pupscout on December 21, 2007, 08:21:33 PM
i've checked out kind hearts and coronets, but i was also wondering about movies like whiskey galore and the non-guiness ealing films. lavender hill mob definitely convinced me i would like to watch all the guiness ealing films, although after kind hearts i'm not sure which ones to pursue.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on December 21, 2007, 08:48:46 PM
Whisky Galore (aka Tight Little Island, I believe) is likable.  A Run for Your Money had charm (but then I'm a sucker for a Welsh accent).  Passport to Pimlico is very nice.  But it's the Guinness films that really shine; watch them all and be happy.  (It's not an Ealing comedy, but I'm also partial to the bittersweet The Last Holiday; I cannot imagine the travesty that the Queen Latifah remake must be.)

If you want to go beyond the comedies, check out Dead of Night and, if you have a romantic bent, The Captive Heart.

And you might also want to branch out to the Boulting Brothers:  I'm All Right, Jack (a young Peter Sellers, Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas), Lucky Jim (Ian Carmichael again, and one of the few movies my father has sat through and enjoyed more than once), etc.

I envy you watching all these for the first time.  You have larks ahead of you (which reminds me:  you can also catch Guinness in David Lean's Great Expectations, a lovely film indeed; for that matter, he's Fagin in Lean's Oliver Twist.  And speaking of Lean, you really shouldn't miss Blithe Spirit, in which Margaret Rutherford does a star turn as a very hearty medium.  Boy, I do love me some British film, don't I?).

P.S.  Michael Powell!!!
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: pupscout on December 21, 2007, 09:54:29 PM

I've only seen two of Michael Powell's films, but they were both fantastic. I am excited to get started on all of these films, thank you Sarah!
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Jason on December 29, 2007, 07:39:47 PM
Whisky Galore (aka Tight Little Island





Or the remake, Heroin Galore.
[youtube]
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Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on December 29, 2007, 07:45:49 PM
I love how they re-created so faithfully the soft, slightly fuzzy black-and-white of the original.  And that Gordon Jackson is in it.

The heroin reminds me of the cocaine in Rare Birds, which is also salvaged from the sea.  Or what is called "sea hash" around here: bales of hashish dumped overboard that have on occasion washed ashore here or on Campobello across the channel.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Andy on December 29, 2007, 10:09:40 PM
what is an "ealing film"?
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on December 30, 2007, 12:17:01 AM
Don't know if you're serious.  Just in case you are, here's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ealing_Studios) a link to the Wiki entry on the subject.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Tom Scharpling on December 30, 2007, 12:58:06 AM
Sarah's got this thread locked down tight. I'll second almost everything she said - Whiskey Galore is fun but not the most important thing to see. You're better off looking for anything Alec Guinness, then slide over to some Terry-Thomas.

Tom.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Andy on December 30, 2007, 01:39:47 AM
I thought it was going to be films about fishing for eels.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on December 30, 2007, 09:28:00 AM
I thought of telling you that, Andy, and then decided against it.  Ealing comedy is serious business, after all.

Tom, I've been feeling bad for answering pupscout's question, given that it was addressed to you.  It's a subject I care about so I got carried away.  I'm glad my presumption didn't offend.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: samir on December 30, 2007, 07:54:34 PM
As a north Londoner, I fully endorse the Ealing comedy.

In addition to those mentioned, Ladykillers is worth a look-see, too.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Matt on January 08, 2008, 04:28:19 PM
I don't have much to add here, but I watched Kind Hearts and Coronets a couple of nights ago.

I liked it. I liked it a great deal.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Andy on January 11, 2008, 08:55:27 AM
I saw ladykillers, but I thought tom hanks performance was a little uninspired
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Shaggy 2 Grote on March 15, 2008, 03:22:26 PM
I rented Whisky Galore last night and literally could not stay awake.  I was worried that I was missing something, but having gone back over this thread, I guess I picked the wrong one.  If I am missing something, someone please explain it to me.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: dvdv on March 18, 2008, 12:18:36 AM
I rented Whisky Galore last night and literally could not stay awake.  I was worried that I was missing something, but having gone back over this thread, I guess I picked the wrong one.  If I am missing something, someone please explain it to me.

Try Kid Hearts or Lavendar Hill Mob maybe.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Sarah on March 18, 2008, 08:05:01 AM
You chose one of the weakest offerings, Jasong.  Perverse of you.  Whisky Galore is at best a mildly entertaining romp for completists.  Stick with the Guinness if you want to be impressed.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: Shaggy 2 Grote on March 18, 2008, 09:56:39 AM
Good to know.  I will share that with my wife, who is routinely bemused with me for inflicting weird stuff on her that I discovered via WFMU.
Title: Re: ealing films
Post by: masterofsparks on March 18, 2008, 10:10:54 AM
I like The Man in the White Suit a lot, so that one is worth a watch as well. I think The Ladykillers is still my favorite, though.