'Glad Tidings' is frankly a fairly lame attempt at middle class domestic humour in the early 1950's. It has a incredulous and unlikely storyline, where a young and pretty American women, played by Barbara Kelly, is 'dating,' the stuffy, pompous and middle aged Raymond Huntley, the chairman of the local and equally stuffy golf club. One has to suspend a sense of disbelief that Kelly would be even remotely interested in marrying a much older and staid character like Huntley; indeed throughout the film, there seems to be no sexual or romantic chemistry between the two ill matched pair! The other baffling feature of the film is that the arrival at the Huntley country home of a young American woman, seems to spark immediate antagonism from Huntley's daughters, for no other reason than she's an American. The incongruity of the storyline takes a turn for the worse when two worthy, but gormless members of the Air Force, Terence Alexander and Ronald Howard, arrive at the country home where they encounter the two daughters, who show more than just a passing interest in the two servicemen. However, the adolescent behaviour of these two dim witted individuals in endeavouring to woo the daughters is frankly cringeworthy! The cut glass accents and the tedious behaviour of Howard and Alexander had me reaching for the off switch. One of the many reasons why British audiences flocked to see American films was the poor standard of British B films. Had the director cast a more realistic male lead playing opposite Barbara Kelly, then the film would have at least some semblance of believability!
Review of Glad Tidings!
