The Good Old Days (film)

The Good Old Days
Max Miller (left) in the film[1]
Directed byRoy William Neill
Written byAustin Melford
John Dighton
Story byRalph Smart
Produced byJerome Jackson
StarringMax Miller
Hal Walters
Kathleen Gibson
CinematographyBasil Emmott
Music byBretton Byrd
Production
company
Warner Brothers
Distributed byWarner Brothers-First National Productions
Release date
  • June 1939 (1939-06) (UK)
[2]
Running time
79 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

The Good Old Days is a lost 1939 British historical comedy film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Max Miller, Hal Walters and Kathleen Gibson.[3][4] It was written by Austin Melford and John Dighton based on a story by Ralph Smart, The film tells the story of a group of entertainers who mount an illegal show at a tavern in the 1840s.

Preservation status

The British Film Institute has classed The Good Old Days as a lost film,[5] included in its "75 Most Wanted" list.[2] The BFI National Archive holds a collection of ephemera and stills but no film or video materials.[3]

Plot

In 1840s, a law prohibits drama except in licensed theatres. When travelling showman Alexander The Greatest and his troupe ignore the law and perform in a pub, the owner informs the police and Alexander faces prison. But by locating a missing child, he escapes punishment.

Cast

Reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This film is essentially a vehicle for Max Miller and his 'cheeky chappy' type of humour, with Hal Walters making an admirable 'stooge' – it being only necessary to add that this film can be recommended to all Max Miller fans."[6]

Kine Weekly wrote: "The plot itself is not particularly strong, but it nevertheless leads to a number of robust gags."[7]

The Daily Film Renter wrote: "Max Miller goes back to 1840 for the laughs, appearing as theatrical troupe manager saved from gaol sentence by recovering peer's missing son. Stellar patter and knockabout climax featuring soot 'battle' provide main entertainment angles, and scenes of comedian in stocks also pack amusement quota, but narrative errs occasionally on side of tedium, Miller seeming trifle restricted by period characterisation. Reliable popular entertainment, with principal pull for star fans."[8]

Picturegoer wrote: "Max Miller does his best to make the good old days of the forties seem good, but he does not succeed. Costume is not his metier. ... Taken all in all, the film fails to be more than very superficially entertaining."[9]

Variety wrote: "Quite an amusing idea in this latest Max Miller vehicle, and far ahead of his last effort. Perhaps its greatest asset is slick direction, for not a minute is wasted, and theme should interest U.S. audiences. ... Miller is a music-hall name here, and scored in brief character parts in his first films. Stardom is a different matter, however. Many will enjoy the picture in spite of him, and not because of him. Supporting cast leaves nothing to be desired, while direction is creditable."[10]

Graham Greene wrote in The Spectator: "I am inclined to avoid a Max Miller film, but The Good Old Days has one Regency sequence of a pie-eating contest in a public-house which almost makes it worth a visit. The sight of seconds massaging the huge stomachs of the contestants – the voice of the referee tolling out the score, 'The Champion is starting his ninth pie, leading by four pies from the Camberwell Cannibal' – has a pleasant period grossness."[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Good Old Days". The Daily Film Renter (3655): 185. 2 January 1939. ProQuest 2826358838.
  2. ^ a b "The Good Old Times / BFI Most Wanted". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  3. ^ a b "The Good Old Days". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  4. ^ "The Good Old Days". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 14 January 2009.
  5. ^ Eyles, Allen; Meeker, David, eds. (1992). "The Good Old Days". Missing Believed Lost: The Great British Film Search. British Film Institute. pp. 91–92. ISBN 0851703062.
  6. ^ "The Good Old Days". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 6 (61): 111. 1 January 1939. ProQuest 1305807740.
  7. ^ "The Good Old Days". Kine Weekly. 268 (1678): 22. 15 June 1939. ProQuest 2339766441.
  8. ^ "The Good Old Days". The Daily Film Renter (3786): 9. 8 June 1939. ProQuest 2826311007.
  9. ^ "The Good Old Days". Picturegoer. 9: 14. 2 June 1940. ProQuest 1771126654.
  10. ^ "The Good Old Days". Variety. 135 (3): 20. 28 June 1939. ProQuest 1476087103.
  11. ^ Greene, Graham (16 June 1939). "Stage and Screen The Cinema". The Spectator. 162 (5790): 1036 – via ProQuest.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.