Top of the Form (film) explained

Top of the Form
Director:John Paddy Carstairs
Producer:Paul Soskin
Story:Anthony Kimmins
Val Guest
Leslie Arliss
Marriott Edgar
Starring:Ronald Shiner
Music:Ronald Hanmer
Cinematography:Ernest Steward
Editing:Alfred Roome
Studio:Paul Soskin Productions
British Film-Makers
Runtime:72 minutes
Country:United Kingdom
Language:English
Gross:£143,000 (UK)[1]

Top of the Form (also known as Fair's Fair) is a 1953 British black-and-white comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Ronald Shiner, Anthony Newley and Harry Fowler.[2] [3] The film draws inspiration from Will Hay's 1937 classic Good Morning, Boys.[4]

Plot summary

This story explores a bookmaker Ronnie Fortescue, who becomes headmaster of a boys' school, and of his and his pupil's adventures in passing examinations and on a subsequent free trip to Paris. Once in Paris, headmaster and pupils become embroiled in gambling casinos, and in a plot to steal the French Crown Jewels.

Cast

Production

It was made at Pinewood Studios near London with sets designed by the art director Maurice Carter. The film earned billings of £143,000.[5]

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Good Morning, Boys was possibly crude and to some distasteful, and its success depended on Will Hay. Ronald Shiner, though a popular comedian whose presence will no doubt ensure the film's box-office success, is far from being another Will Hay, and the film consequently remains crude and distasteful. The comedy, poorly scripted, is slow and unfunny, and depends mainly on slapstick and slap and tickle."[6]

The Radio Times called it a "misfiring Ronald Shiner vehicle... Less amusing than [Will] Hay's St Michael's outings and less anarchic than the St Trinian's romps, this efficient but underwhelming caper is all too typical of its director, John Paddy Carstairs".

TV Guide hailed "An entertaining comedy."[7]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference. Sue. Harper. Vincent. Porter. 41. 2003.
  2. Web site: Top of the Form . 1 May 2024 . British Film Institute Collections Search.
  3. Web site: Top of the Form (1953). https://web.archive.org/web/20161030002918/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6b8acd28. dead. 30 October 2016.
  4. Web site: Top of the Form – review - cast and crew, movie star rating and where to watch film on TV and online. Radio Times.
  5. https://books.google.com/books?id=UyYTDAAAQBAJ&dq=vincent+porter+sue+harper&pg=PA386 BFI Collections: Michael Balcon Papers H3 reprinted in British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference By Sue Harper, Vincent Porter p 41
  6. 1 January 1953 . Top of the Form . . 20 . 228 . 57 . ProQuest.
  7. Web site: Top Of The Form - TV Guide. TVGuide.com.