Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Tuesday's Overlooked Films: The School for Scoundrels

Heartsick watching the events in London -- and seeing them spread across the country. I hope things are better today. I cannot remain transfixed by the news on Twitter, as I must try to get some work done. So here's a mood lightener, the classic comedy The School for Scoundrels (1960) with Terry-Thomas playing his best cad ever and Ian Carmichael as the most put-upon nice guy around. Don't worry, nice guys win in the end, of course. Fantastic supporting cast including Irene Handl, Alastair Sim, Dennis Price and John Le Mesurier. Hard cheese!



As always, see Sweet Freedom for a round-up of other overlooked A/V.

8 comments:

Paul D Brazill said...

Good call. A favourite of mine.

C. Margery Kempe said...

Cheers, Paul -- how could it not be! But are you, too, a graduate? ;-)

pattinase (abbott) said...

I have seen the play but never the movie.

C. Margery Kempe said...

Sheridan's play? A bit different, but on the same order. I used to teach The School for Scandal when I had to do the "all English literature up to 1800" [groan] survey. It was my end point and a very fun one. The screen scene is genius.

Todd Mason said...

Meanwhile, I knew the US film had an antecedent, but hadn't sought it out...the reports of the rioters in the UK using social media to aid in the riots adds a bit of a twist to all the Cool Britannia/Big Society chickens coming home to roost.

C. Margery Kempe said...

When rioters in Egypt used social media it was the Twitter revolution: just goes to show it's only a tool, no better or worse than the one who wields it.

When the ridiculous headline, "Is Technology to Blame?" came out, Karl Steel tweeted, "What shall we blame? I say the wheel and the plow." I plumped for winches. Horrible things. Technology is evil.

Todd Mason said...

Simple machines burned at the stake while u wait!

And, as with most such riots, one has to wonder How Wrong Are the rioters? How much have they been chivvied and worse by police forces, etc.? You don't usually start Fooking Shite Up because it's a load of laughs, even if some members choose to take it that way by the time they actually get a boot in.

C. Margery Kempe said...

And the weight of people who tutted when folks said well, there are causes that brought this about; reminder -- to look for causes is not to condone.

The speed with which supposedly liberal and humane people asked for the army to intervene was shocking. Let's look again to Norway to see how we react to tragedy.