I'M ALL RIGHT JACK [1959 / 2015] [Blu-ray] [UK Release]
Highly Enjoyable British Comedy! Vintage Classic Comedy! Digitally Restored!
Winning BAFTAs for Best British Screenplay and British Actor Peter Sellers. ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ is popularly considered to be the best of John Boulting and Roy Boulting's social satire.
Peter Sellers plays both Sir John Kennaway and the tragic-comid trade union leader Fred Kite. The results is a laugh-out-loud comedy with satiric edge, lampooning the then-burning issue of industrial relations. Bertram Tracepurcel [Dennis Price] plans to make a fortune from a missile contract, a scheme that involves manipulating his innocent nephew Stanley Windrush [Ian Carmichael] into acting as a catalyst in an escalating labour dispute, from which socialist Mr. Fred Kite is only too keen to make capital of the situation.
Featuring a superb supporting cast including Terry-Thomas, Sir Richard Attenborough, John Le Mesurier, Irene Handl and Margaret Rutherford. This is an ingenious comedy about the British workplace and self-serving hypocrisy. A sequel to the 1956's ‘A Private's Progress.’ ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ is brought roaring to life by Peter Sellers astonishing turn as the Stalinist unionist.
FILM FACT No.1: 1960 BAFTA Film Awards: Win: Best British Actor for Peter Sellers. Nominated: Best British Screen Frank Harvey and John Boulting. Nominated: Newcomer to Leading Film for Liz Fraser.
FILM FACT No.2: The film is a satire on British industrial life in the 1950s. The trade unions, workers and bosses are all seen to be incompetent or corrupt to varying degrees. The film is one of a number of satires made by the Boulting Brothers between 1956 and 1963. The title ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ is a well-known English expression indicating smug and complacent selfishness.
Cast: Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas, Peter Sellers, Sir Richard Attenborough, Dennis Price, Margaret Rutherford, Irene Handl, Liz Fraser, Miles Malleson, Marne Maitland, John Le Mesurier, Raymond Huntley, Victor Maddern, Kenneth Griffith, Fred Griffiths, Donal Donnelly, John Comer, Sam Kydd, Cardew Robinson, Tony Comer, Bruce Wightman, Bill Rayment, Ronnie Stevens, Martin Boddey, Brian Oulton, Malcolm Muggeridge, John Glyn-Jones, Pauline Winter, Maurice Colbourne, Jeremy White, Robin Ray, Michael Bates, John Van Eyssen, Robert Bruce, Michael Ward, Stringer Davis, Tony Spear, Arthur Skinner, William Dexter, Robert S. Young, Roy Purcell, Marianne Stone, Terry Scott, Marion Shaw, Wally Patch, Alun Owen, Muriel Young, Frank Phillips, Ian Wilson, Margaret Lacey, George Selway, Alan Wilson, David Lodge, Keith Smith, Kenneth J. Warren, Basil Dignam, Harry Locke, Chris Adcock (uncredited), Jack Armstrong (uncredited), Jimmy Charters (uncredited), (uncredited), E.V.H. Emmett (Narrator) (uncredited), Mabel Etherington (uncredited), (uncredited), Victor Harrington (uncredited), George Hilsdon (uncredited), Billy John (uncredited), Frederick Kelsey (uncredited), Juba Kennerley (uncredited), Aileen Lewis (uncredited), John Leyton (uncredited), Jack Mandeville (uncredited), Jim O'Brady (uncredited), Bob Raymond (uncredited), Ernie Rice (uncredited), Johnny Rossi (uncredited), Pat Ryan (uncredited), Jack Sharp (uncredited), Sheila Sim (uncredited), George Spence (uncredited), Philip Stewart (uncredited), Fred Stroud (uncredited) and Joseph Tregonino (uncredited)
Director: John Boulting
Producer: Roy Boulting
Screenplay: Alan Hackney (novel), Frank Harvey (screenplay) and John Boulting (screenplay)
Composer: Ken Hare and Ron Goodwin
Cinematography: Mutz Greenbaum (Director of Photography)
Image Resolution: 1080p [Black-and-White]
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audio: English: 2.0 LCPM Mono Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English SDH
Running Time: 105 minutes
Region: Region B/2
Number of discs: 1
Studio: British Lion Films (UK) / STUDIOCANAL
Andrew's Blu-ray Review: British comedy became world renowned in the 1940s and 1950s, primarily thanks to Ealing Studios. Considered by many to be the golden age of British comedy, the period produced films such as those from Ealing that left behind the glamour and vanity of early Hollywood to reflect the lives of the working classes of Britain. Their spirit carried on through the 1960s, as a number of studios brought working class comedy to the masses. Often full of slapstick and politics, these films helped to defy an era defined by domestic austerity and political paranoia. In some ways, they became a unique escape for cinema-goers at a time when the cinema was the largest recreational activity in the country.
Of all the unlikely subjects for successful satirising on the screen with organised labour and management in modern industry comes the British Boulting brothers, John Boulting and Roy Boulting, with their hilarious classic comedy film ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK.’ And, what do you know; they have run it into the brightest, liveliest British comedy ever seen. Much like their ‘Private's Progress,’ which took a decidedly scandalous view of life in the British Army during World War II, but this comedy classic satire takes a swipe at the obstructive tactics of trade unions and with the intrigues of management, too. As a matter of fact, most of the characters in this delightfully sharp and rowdy farce are the same as were in ‘Private's Progress,’ only grown a little longer in the tooth.
‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ fits neatly into this era, bringing together the stars of the age to tell a tale of corporate manipulation, workers' rights, and the press in a satirical, goofy way. Directed by the Boulting Brothers, John and Roy, and written by Frank Harvey and Roy Boultig, and the film examines these dynamics through the story of wealthy heir Stanley Windrush [Ian Carmichael], who is hired to work in a factory by his uncle Bettram Purcel [Dennis Price] the art-purloining major, now the head of the arms factory. Unknowingly, Stanley Windrush becomes the central figure in Bettram Purcel's plot to extort thousands of dollars out of Iran in a weapons-buying scheme while simultaneously embarrassing the trade unions. There's Sir Richard Attenborough, as the cockney schemer, now become a dapper man of affairs. These two arch and practiced connivers are joined in a clearly crooked plot, with Marne Maitland as a shifty-eyed Mohammedan, to mulct an unnamed Arab country on a big arms deal.
The film is loaded with stars, all of whom use their comedic talents to bolster the film above its contemporaries. Zany one-liners and physical hilarities fly by so quickly that it is easy to miss them. Terry Thomas’s almost elastic emotional expression makes one smile without him saying a word, and Peter Sellers is at his absolute best as union representative Fred Kite. Their performances poke fun at the vanity and self-obsession of all men, regardless of class, elevating the film from a satire of class warfare to one about the eternal battles of ego and greed.
Frank Harvey and Roy Boulting’s screenplay can only be described as genius. To throw so many layers of satire and observation into one film is an achievement, and one of the many reasons the film is considered such a classic today. Not a line is wasted in Harvey's mission to observe the madness of men in their eternal race for wealth. He pulls on basic human instinct and creates an instant photographic time capsule of his time.
If the film sounds absurd, it is. That's the point. There are several reasons the film was the highest-grossing of 1959, perhaps most so because of its absurdity. As the scheme unravels and each political player becomes more and more desperate to get what they want, the story becomes timeless in its ridicule and makes it funny and sentient even today. At a time when class has become the primary political discourse even in America, although it only being so in the United Kingdom in 1959, the film's Blu-ray release allows contemporary viewers the chance to escape into the very laughable history of our own capitalist society.
It can be no simple coincidence that Peter Sellers decided to give Kite a somewhat Hitler-esque moustache. He is one of the most believable caricatures that have ever graced the screen. Inflated by his own importance within the union, he's a non-too-subtle swipe at the leftist leaning workforce coming to prominence in post-war Britain. All we'll say further is that John Boulting, Frank Harvey and Alan Hackney have written a script that is one of the liveliest in a long time, although loaded with cryptic British slang; that Mr. Boulting has directed it briskly; that Margaret Rutherford, Irene Handl, Liz Fraser and Victor Maddern play it finely, along with all those mentioned above and that this film should to be sure a must view around the word, especially on this stunning remastered Blu-ray disc.
Now re-released in a pristine Blu-Ray version ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ may have lost some of its edge over the years. Down more to the fact that we're surrounding by a sarcastic view point from all forms of media these days, it's a diluting of the culture rather than the film that is to blame. It still stands up well on its mature comedy feet. Terry Thomas is on hand to describe someone as a "shower, an absolute shower." John Le Mesurier is there being his effervescently charming self-whilst mixing in some hand-wringing anxiety. Everyone seems to be having fun, Sellers though does stand above the pack. His Mr. Fred Kite feels like one of his more-understated performances as though he is playing a real-life fuss pot who is trying to act in a comedy film. It's a fine turn and one that is perhaps the main reason the film is remembered so well today.
I'M ALL RIGHT JACK MUSIC TRACK LIST
I'M ALL RIGHT JACK (Written by Ken Hare) [Sung by Al Saxon]
LAND OF HOPE AND GLORY (uncredited) (Music by Edward Elgar and original lyrics by A.C. Benson) [Sung by the crowd with modified lyrics outside Aunt Dolly's house]
Blu-ray Image Quality – ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.66:1 and encoded with a brilliant crisp black-and-white 1080p image transfer, and arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of STUDIOCANAL. Recently restored by STUDIOCANAL, this very witty and very entertaining British comedy looks simply wonderful in high-definition. Virtually all close-ups boast outstanding depth and clarity and one can easily see even exceptionally small details. There are no traces of problematic de-graining or sharpening adjustments. Rather predictably, grain is beautifully resolved and evenly distributed and from start to finish the film has a very pleasing organic appearance. All in all, this is a fantastic restoration of I'm All Right Jack which will unquestionably remain the definitive presentation of the film on the home video market. Please Note: Playback Region B/2: This will not play on most Blu-ray players sold in North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Learn more about Blu-ray region specifications.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release a 2.0 LCPM Mono Audio. It is very obvious that the audio has been fully restored as balance is excellent and there isn't even a whiff of background hiss. The dialogue is exceptionally clean, stable, and easy to follow. Dynamic intensity is somewhat limited, but depth cannot possibly be better. For the record, there are absolutely no pops, cracks, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report in this review.
Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
Special Feature: Brand New Interview with Liz Frazer [2014] [1080p] [1.78:1] [9:52] Liz Fraser talks of how she got her role on ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ with stories of its production and interacting with the cast and crew, and how this film helped springboard her into other acting roles. This is a very insightful and nostalgic interview from a very charming woman.
Special Feature: The Running, Jumping & Standing Still Film [1960] [1080p] [1.37:1] [11:10] ‘The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film’ is a short film directed by Richard Lester and Peter Sellers, in collaboration with Bruce Lacey. It was filmed over two Sundays in 1959, at a cost of around £70 (including £5 for the rental of a field). It was nominated for an Academy Award, but did not win. It was a favourite of The Beatles, which led to Richard Lester being hired to direct ‘A Hard Day's Night’ and then ‘Help!’ in which Bruce Lacey makes a guest appearance as George Harrison's gardener in the opening sequence. Starring: Richard Lester, Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Mario Fabrizi, Bruce Lacey, David Lodge, Leo McKern, Norman Rossington and Graham Stark. Director Richard Lester first worked with Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan on three television series, ‘The Idiot Weekly Price 2d,’ ‘A Show Called Fred’ and ‘Son of Fred’ (all shown on ITV in 1956), each of them an early attempt to transfer the surreal humour of BBC radio's ‘The Goon Show’ to a visual medium. The film's lasting legacy, however, was its influence, as part of Spike Milligan's overall body of work on British comedy in general, and on Monty Python's Flying Circus [BBC TV] (1969 – 1974) in particular. This is evident not only in its surreal humour, but in the way that elements of one routine are threaded through subsequent scenes, transcending the stand-alone sketch form and a tactic subsequently favoured by the Monty Python team.
Special Feature: Cinefile: Sellers Best! Extract [1992] [1080i] [1.78:1] [13:31] Here we take an in-depth look at Peter Seller’s career and where they talk about all the characters he has portrayed in all of the films he has appeared in. But when he made his first appearance in the Boulting Brothers film, he was very reluctant to appear, because he felt he got more out of his performance in front of an audience, but when Roy Boulting explained that his performance in films he would expand his repertoire, and from then on he went from just being a comedian to becoming a fully-fledged comedian actor. But in the film ‘I’M ALL RIGHT JACK’ and in the first scene he appeared in the character of Fred Kite, when all the actors came into the studio and watched his performance, the all fell about laughing and from then on Peter Seller’s realised his full potential. By the way, the character Fred Kite was actually based on a real Union Reprehensive. We also get lots of clips from I’M ALL RIGHT JACK’ [1959] and ‘The Running, Jumping & Standing Still Film’ [1960]. This TV Special was commissioned by Channel 4 for the original transmission in 1992, but you only get to view a short part of an hour long TV programme. It was A Lucida Production and was Directed by Paul Joyce. Contributors include: Roy Boulting, Spike Milligan, Ian Carmichael, Dick Lester, Sidney Gilliat and John Sessions.
Theatrical Trailer: This is the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ [1959] [1080p] [1.66:1] [3:06]
Finally, the ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ film has a familiar British face in virtually every part, which suggests that somehow the nation is on trial, as indeed it was. Three years after the Suez fiasco, with Prime Minister Harold Macmillan declaring that “we’d never had it so good” and a chorus of angry young men proclaiming the country’s moral bankruptcy, and the film ‘I'M ALL RIGHT JACK’ preserves the Britain of 1959 in glorious amber. It is a thoroughly enjoyable classic British comedy from the Boulting Brothers. It has a tremendous cast and very dry sense of humour that is just about perfect. One of the greatest and most memorable British comedy films from a time when a lot of great memorable British comedy films were being produced at the time. So all in all it is definitely well worth owning this brilliant Blu-ray disc. Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
