Alfred Polly (John Mills) is a well-intentioned if lazy and directionless day dreamer. Recently fired from his job as a drapers assistant, he half heartedly searches for another job without success. Almost penniless, he receives a communication that his father has passed away and so he sets off to pay his last respects. During this time away Alfred finds out that he has been left an inheritance, which amount to the princely sum of £500.
Alfred stays briefly with some relations although it is not long before they are hinting that he needs to move out and find a place of his own, they suggest a shop. But Alfred wants adventure and so buys a bicycle so that he can explore. On one of these days out on his bicycle he meets and falls in love with a school girl called Cristobel, although those feelings are obviously not reciprocated in any way, in fact he makes a bit of a fool of himself. To console himself he makes his way over to his cousin's house, the Larkins, these three women are obviously out to net a man with a little money and one of them, Miriam certainly falls on her feet when Alfred talks himself into marrying her. They move away to a small town and set up a drapers shop together.
Fast forward 15 years and Alfred is a hen-pecked husband, his business is on the verge of bankruptcy and he is depressed therefore the only logical course of action (rolls eyes) is for him to commit suicide so his wife (the one he hates and hen-pecks him) can benefit financially from his death. Of Course Alfred being Alfred this attempt goes wrong too and his suicide attempt fails massively, to
the point where he actually turns out to be a hero. Rather than revisit suicide as a way out he decides to run away, leave his wife, the shop and the debt behind (I assume there are no tax men to chase you to every corner of the earth in these time) and search for the idyllic life he has also craved, he thinks he has found this lifestyle in the Potwell Inn, where he hopes to settle, only "Uncle Jim", a drunkard and a bully intends to spoil it all and Alfred is forced into making a decision, shall he fight or shall he flee?
I will admit right from the outset that this is not generally my kind of film, and I was not looking forward to watching it but as a reviewer I wanted to be as objective as I could be. My first thoughts as the credits rolled were that the film was better than I thought it was going to be, yes I had some issues with certain aspects but I would not say that I was bored or completely disinterested in it.
One problem I have is with the Schoolgirl Cristobel, I have no idea what social attitudes were like in the time the film was set, or in 1949 when the movie was made but a grown man declaring his love for a schoolgirl, come on that is a little close to the mark, and it isn't as if the film was some controversial movie about forbidden love, in fact the entire scene with Cristobel could have been edited from the film and no one would be any the wiser, as such I've no idea why it was included.
That got me to thinking why would H.G.Wells write a story like this in the first place? His work that I am familiar with fell within the adventure and science fiction genres such as War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man and The Time Machine. This seems totally off of the beaten track for him. On doing a little research I think that he was maybe putting a little bit of himself into Mr Polly. The story itself touches upon a number of issues, marriage issues, midlife crises and depression being a few examples. Wells was 44 when he penned this story, perhaps he was experiencing some of the things that Mr Polly was going thorough. Wells was also from a lower middle class family and he had also inherited some money which he put into a shop so there is (I think) more than a passing resemblance to the man himself in his Mr Polly character.
Another problem I have is why would he kill himself to ensure that his wife was financially secure when he hated her? That just didn't make sense and for me that stood out like a sore thumb, although again etiquette being what it was in those days may lead to different attitudes.
Those few negative points aside the film for the most part is ok, being a comedy rather than a serious drama there are going to be a few funny bits peppered here and there. The operative word here is few, but this is mainly due to the fact the humour in 1949 just isn't the same as humour in 2007, even so there are a few funnies that make the (approximate) hour and a half go fairly quickly. This is in no small part mainly to the credit of John Mills. I have not seen many films with John Mills in them, but none of the films I have seen him in have been terrible. He plays Alfred Polly very well, from the man trying to act and talk above his class, to the depressed husband who wants to get out of a failing marriage as well as all the comedy bits in-between.
Come the end of the film we really do wish him well and hope that he finally finds the happiness that he has been striving for.
>>> Picture <<< There are some issues with the picture, there is a fair amount of grain and the image looks a bit soft in places. The thing I found most annoying was a blooming of the whites, which was more noticeable on white clothes and faces, also the brightness seemed to dull and then brighten in a pulsating fashion. I think most of these issues are more with the film stock rather that the DVD itself.
>>> Sound <<< The Mono sound track is sufficient for the film, the dialogue is clear and you can understand what is being said without having to strain your ears.
>>> Extras <<< There are a few extras on these disks. There are two interviews with John Mills, one on the Sunday Sunday Program and the other on Aspel & Co, both in the mid 80's these are basically chat show excerpts with John Mills in them, they are not actually pertinent to the movie in question.
There are also some movie stills, which is great if you like that sort of thing.
Lastly there is an episode on the Tales of the Unexpected called Galloping Foxley which again has nothing to do with the film but does again star John Mills, this is actually an amusing little tale.
>>> Overall <<< Come the end of the movie I couldn't really say that I felt anything for it either way, I did not think it a brilliant movie, but more importantly for me I didn't think it a terrible movie, I did not have to tolerate it to get to the end. Personally it is not a movie that I would want to own but I can see the appeal for someone who is a fan of John Mills or a fan of this era of movies.
I have said yes to recommend buying as although this film is not really for me, I appreciate that there are people that would be appreciative of this movie
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Production Year: 2003 - Drama - Director: Michael Winterbottom - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Tim Robbins, Samantha Morton, Om Puri, Jeanne Balibar
I might give this one a watch, thanks : ) Eleanor x
sjp1966 11.08.2008 16:18
Thanks for your comments on my Mr Polly review. Ill probably forget to remind you, the VH is fine thanks :).
jeaniecz 11.08.2008 15:33
This sounds like a good film I'd like to see. I would have given you an E, but am out of them for today, however, if you remind me, I'll save one for you! Radka
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May 14th, 2008
exceptional by (3%):
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