SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Numerootno A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

tedg I've watched one of these now, so I won't have to watch the others, which I understand are much the same.I suppose there's a charm in these, but not enough for me. If you don't know Norman Wisdom, he's a small guy who plays something in the zone of Laurel Hardy and Charlie Chaplin with a hint of Jerry Lewis. The plot here is a small guy working for a small business who bests a big business (and its bosses). Some mild physical humor weighted toward falling down stairs.There is something interesting here though. The story takes us past quite a few men. Every one of them has a woman who gives little kisses and coos. All the bosses of course have cuties who act coy and chirp on cue. A working man has a more relaxed bird. All are pretty (after the fashion of the time). All have their breasts punched up and displayed as fully as possible.Except for one. The famous Mr Grimsdale, who is our comic hero's boss. At each crisis, Norman runs back to Mr. Grimsdale to repeatedly interrupt him in the embrace of his woman. The comic situation starts with her not being his wife — but none of these women are wives. What's comic here is her size. She must be 6 foot four. For many shots, she must be standing on a platform so that Norman's head is level with her breasts.I wonder why this is considered funny? Its clearly engineered. She's large but not bossy. She has no physical advantage. She's goods to be cuddled just like the other girlies we see. And its not a Margater Dumont deal. Her size alone is meant to be amusing.A visit to another world. I suppose it is no more puzzling than asking why we laugh when someone falls down stairs.Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

david-697 As a child I grew up with the movies of Norman Wisdom constantly showing on the TV. I watched them avidly. Sadly, as I grew older and more cynical, their flaws became noticeable. The unattainable girl, the sledgehammer pathos, which at times threatens to sink his movies, all these faults and more, became sadly apparent to my more cynical eyes (perhaps that says more about me as a person, then it does about Sir Norman's films).Yet despite all this, I still have a soft spot for old Norman (and it's not the Grimpon Mire!) and have fond memories of this, possibly his best movie. While there is still pathos (regarding his horse) it's thankfully present in very small doses. Even better, there is no love interest (or rather, no unrequited love interest). Instead we are given a very nice plot about a small, out-of-date diary, threatened by a huge, modern conglomerate, almost Ealing-like in its structure.The highlight is the opening twenty minutes or so, a near silent sequence where Norman and the ever-present Mr Grimsdale, struggle to get up while still half asleep. Some of the falls look very painful to me, but it remains a very well executed set piece.Adding to the fun is a very memorable score by Ron Grainer, which you can't help humming after listening to it!The only downside to this movie is a redundant golfing sequence, in which Sir Norman causes chaos dressed as a vicar! It quickly wears out it's welcome and seems to me to be a bit out-of place, feeling like something added at the last moment to pad out the film.

bob the moo Norman Pitkin works in a small, very basic dairy for Mr Grimsdale. Their quiet, horse-drawn existence is threatened by the expansion of a huge modern dairy (Consolidated Dairies) with a fleet of milkmen, some of whom are muscling in on Grimsdale's patch by breaking their bottles.. Norman sets out to ensure his dairy's survival – hilarity and much chaos ensues.I love Norman Wisdom but this is nowhere near his best. Here the plot is actually quite good but it's only used well once or twice. Instead we have several set piece scenes which were clearly thought up before the actual plot because they are almost crowbarred into the film. For example – the whole golf scene is very thinly inserted and things like the lawnmower scene and the fire fighting scene bear little relation to the story itself.This wouldn't be a major problem if it was very funny, however, like the scenes themselves, the comedy feels a bit forced and not natural in the way Wisdom's best routines are. The whole golf scene is forced and the lawnmower scene will have you asking why he didn't just let go of the thing. There still is plenty to enjoy – my favourite being a cowboy pastiche – but overall it is really just Pitkin falling down as much as possible with the plot forgotten.Wisdom looks old and well fed – a strange comment perhaps, but it offsets his usual image as a working class hero. Being in full colour doesn't help but he isn't the character he was 10 years ago. Chapman is OK but his extra material and love interest make him less enjoyable as a comedy character. Desmonde is the upper class fool as always but here the comedy almost demeans his talents. The upside of the film is that there is no wasted time for Wisdom to chase a pretty young ankle – we have no love interest.Overall this is enjoyable for die-hard fans and children. The reliance on physical humour is to the detriment of the plot and regularly feels forced and unfunny. It is sill amusing and I had a few laughs but this is many miles from Wisdom at his peak.

Davo123 'The Early Bird' just has to be THE Norman Wisdom film. From the marvellous opening sequence, to the finale, there is not a single dull moment. Of all of his films, this has to be his most popular.Norman plays a milkman for a local town dairy, his boss is the laid-back Mr. Grimsdale, superbly played by Edward Chapman. However, a large corporate dairy starts to muscle in on their patch, and Norman is soon pitted against a sneaky and unscrupulous Austin (Bryan Pringle). The laughs are soon flowing thick and fast as war develops.In many ways this film symbolises the changing times of the '60s when the pace of life speeded up, aptly summarised by the quote 'You can't impede the wheels of progress' from the film. As always, Norman manages to save the day, and dispense his particular brand of common sense. In this film, though, his victory is more by default than judgement.The film contains many classic moments, the sick horse, the apples, the 'shootout', the golf, the fire, and many more.Finally, I have often wondered if Benny Hill got his inspiration for 'Ernie' from this film?Definitely **** out of *****