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I won a "Short and Good" award - thanks Ciao :-) Can't believe Christmas is almost upon us - where did the year go?!
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This is a film only review
Blackmail is a nasty business - particularly if you are the victim of it. What is one to do if a sleazy journalist is threatening to reveal your well hidden past unless you can get your hands on £10,000 pronto?
This is the basic scenario of "The Naked Truth", a classic British comedy film made in 1957 and directed by Mario Zampi.
Plot
Nigel Dennis has a dummy magazine called "The Naked Truth", which is inspired by American scandal rags of the period such as "Confidential". However rather than publish the "guess who" style stories he has dug up on several public figures, he realises blackmailing these people is going to be far more lucrative.
He has many victims but the film focuses on just four - model Melissa Right, TV personality "Wee" Sonny MacGregor, peer of the realm and insurance executive Lord Henry Mayley and best-selling author Flora Ransom.
Only MacGregor's secret is clearly shown - on TV his faux Scotsman act appeals mainly to the older generation, however in reality he is a slum landlord to many of them. The other
secrets are merely hinted at and it is left to the audience to work out what they may be.
Through the course of the film we see these characters attempt to sort out their mutual problem, which is Dennis, and this results in some hilarious scenes along the way.
My Thoughts
The cast is superb, and is led by Peter Sellers playing the slimy MacGregor, replete with a passable fake Scottish accent. MacGregor portrays several different characters on his TV show and he uses this "ability" to spy on Dennis and procure items to make a bomb.
Ignoring the advice of his dresser Porter not to overact as he has a habit of doing on TV, he proceeds to overdo things in every guise, resulting in a hilarious scene in a Dublin pub where he insists on wearing shamrock in his collar and pronouncing, in a dodgy Irish accent, "God bless all here". That this is going to end in tears is never in any doubt.
Terry-Thomas is superb as Lord Henry Manley, who one suspects is something of a womaniser. His facial expressions as he finds himself in ever more bizarre situations are a joy to behold and the scenes where he tries to dodge his wife are wonderful. Lady Manley is played by Georgina Cookson and both she and Terry-Thomas bounce off one another brilliantly. Cookson has a wonderfully knowing aura about her as she deals with her errant husband and looks stunning in every scene.
Author Ransom is played by professional battleaxe Peggy Mount. Mount manages to give Ransom a vulnerable edge and it is hinted that in her youth she dabbled in prostitution. Her daughter Ethel is loyal but timid, and she is played by a young Joan Sims who refers to her repeatedly as "Mumsie". Mount is particularly funny when she is trying to get some drugs in an attempt to murder Dennis, especially during a scene in a pharmacy where she loudly requests some "knock out drops".
Sims is wonderful as Ethel and proves her mettle as a comedy actress here. It's also lovely to see her play a character so very different from the type she ended up playing regularly in the "Carry On" films and on TV later on in her career.
Shirley Eaton plays Melissa Right, a model who clearly has a secret she is trying to keep from her jealous billionaire Texan boyfriend. Eaton doesn't really have much to do in the film apart from look lovely, but she manages this with ease.
Dennis Price is malevolent but always very cool as blackmailer Nigel Dennis, and he manages to keep the audience from disliking him intensely, possibly because some of the people he is blackmailing aren't too likeable either. His character is similar to that he played in "Kind Hearts & Coronets" and just as good. One suspects Price had a ball making this film.
What I love about "The Naked Truth" is the characterisations - something that was always very strong in British comedies of the fifties - aided and abetted no end by some of the incredibly gifted comedic actors working in the UK at the time.
It's also fun to spot the actors you recognise in these films, even if they are in "blink and you will miss them" roles. Kenneth Griffith is wonderfully camp as MacGregor's loyal dresser Porter, but in smaller roles are David Lodge as a police constable and Michael Ripper as a greengrocer.
"The Naked Truth" is a film that will make you laugh - certainly it never fails to have me howling with mirth - whether that is due to the ridiculous situations the cast find themselves in, the dialogue or the general stupidity and vanity of many of the characters who are so very well portrayed by the cast. Try to see past the fact it is in black and white if this bothers you - it's definitely worth a look.
Available on Amazon for £3.98
This review has previously been published by me on dooyoo under the same user name
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In 1957'sThe Naked TruthTerry Thomas plays a dodgy peer of the realm being blackmailed in ... more
the company of Peter Sellers, Peggy Mount and Shirley Eaton by a gutter press journalist, Dennis Price ("Don't try to appeal to my better nature, because I haven'...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Terry-Thomas is a shifty peer of the realm. Peter Sellers is a TV celebrity. Peggy Mount ... more
is a best-selling novelist Shirley Eaton is a gorgeous model.They are all being blackmailed by the sleazy editor of a scandal rag (Dennis Price), who'd rather take...
In 1957'sThe Naked TruthTerry Thomas plays a dodgy peer of the realm being blackmailed in ... more
the company of Peter Sellers, Peggy Mount and Shirley Eaton by a gutter press journalist, Dennis Price ("Don't try to appeal to my better nature, because I haven'...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
![The Naked Truth [DVD] [1957]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78544661.jpg "The Naked Truth [DVD] [1957]")
Sep 9th, 2009
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