With Father's Day coming up,I took a look on a DVD sellers page for a film I could get to watch with my dad on the day. Having picked up Intimate Relations (1937-also reviewed) from UK company Network,I was happy to spot another British Comedy which my dad had mentioned seeing on TV ages ago,this led to me stepping onto the path.
View on the film:
Going to the Scottish Highlands to track McEwan's search for a bonny lass,co-writer/(with Geoffrey Willans) director Frank Launder & cinematographer Arthur Ibbetson map out a whimsical Comedy atmosphere thrown from winding panning shots of McEwan running against the beautiful rugged terrain. Falling into mishaps with the locals, the score by Cedric Thorpe Davie finely pitches McEwan's problems with a Folk score that digs thorns into his sides, whilst remaining playful for McEwan's issues with every local he meets. Saying goodbye to the remote Scottish island as McEwan lands on the mainland in their adaptation of Nigel Tranter's novel,the screenplay by Launder and Willans hilariously lay Scottish clichés down thickly,from not a minute going by where "Oh aye" does not appear, to the gun-toting locals and incompetent police giving the perceived outsider McEwan a less than warm greeting.
Going from place to place with McEwan in his attempt to find a would-be bride, the writers let the comedy flourish to its most ripe form during these exchanges,with McEwan catching the wrong eye of a banker and the slap-stick high jinks of McEwan outwitting the local police, covering the fact that the whole misunderstanding the film is built on, could easily be solved. Hoping to meet a woman of his dreams but instead finding a wonderful supporting cast of George Cole, Terry Scott and Dilys Laye, Bill Travers gives a warm, embracing performance as McEwan, with Travers having McEwan land on every fish out of water misstep,as he tries to get off the path.
View on the film:
Going to the Scottish Highlands to track McEwan's search for a bonny lass,co-writer/(with Geoffrey Willans) director Frank Launder & cinematographer Arthur Ibbetson map out a whimsical Comedy atmosphere thrown from winding panning shots of McEwan running against the beautiful rugged terrain. Falling into mishaps with the locals, the score by Cedric Thorpe Davie finely pitches McEwan's problems with a Folk score that digs thorns into his sides, whilst remaining playful for McEwan's issues with every local he meets. Saying goodbye to the remote Scottish island as McEwan lands on the mainland in their adaptation of Nigel Tranter's novel,the screenplay by Launder and Willans hilariously lay Scottish clichés down thickly,from not a minute going by where "Oh aye" does not appear, to the gun-toting locals and incompetent police giving the perceived outsider McEwan a less than warm greeting.
Going from place to place with McEwan in his attempt to find a would-be bride, the writers let the comedy flourish to its most ripe form during these exchanges,with McEwan catching the wrong eye of a banker and the slap-stick high jinks of McEwan outwitting the local police, covering the fact that the whole misunderstanding the film is built on, could easily be solved. Hoping to meet a woman of his dreams but instead finding a wonderful supporting cast of George Cole, Terry Scott and Dilys Laye, Bill Travers gives a warm, embracing performance as McEwan, with Travers having McEwan land on every fish out of water misstep,as he tries to get off the path.