With headmistress Fritton (Alastair Sim) in jail, the older girls of St. Trinian’s concern themselves with marrying a rich Prince. Since he wants to see the girls before choosing one, Flash Harry (George Cole) and the girls rig a contest to win a trip to Europe, and blackmail a jewel thief on the run (Lionel Jeffries) into dressing in drag and pretending to be their headmistress. Since no reputable company will drive the St. Trinian’s girls anywhere, down on his luck Captain Carlton-Ricketts (Terry-Thomas) is hired. Once again, intrepid police Sergeant Ruby Gates (Joyce Grenfell) has infiltrated the school to see what illegal activities the girls are up to.
I suppose I should be able to sit and watch Blue Murder at St. Trinian’s and simply enjoy it for what it is: a wild farce with clever lines, sexy girls, and some of the best character actors to hit the screen. It’s a laugh-out-loud picture, and I give it 3 
s, meaning you’ll want to see it.
Yet, I find it a disquieting film to watch. It is a sequel, in all the bad senses of the word. There are plenty of retreads from the original (such as a very unfeminine man in drag). There is the loss of the star (Alastair Sim only pops in for a cameo) while characters that were meant to be sidekicks take over the leads. Pretty much all the flaws of a sequel are here, and as I watch, I keep thinking “that was funny, but it should have been funnier.” I don’t question that I’m being unfair. The Belles of St. Trinian’s was a perfectly formed film, and is on my list of the ten best screen comedies. Is it surprising that Blue Murder couldn’t live up to a film that got everything right? Both George Cole and Joyce Grenfell recreate their characters from Belles, and both are delightful, but not as good as they’d been the first time around. Terry-Thomas comes off best for me, as he wasn’t in the first; I can enjoy him for what he does without that nagging feeling that he should have been better.
Like the first, the plot really doesn’t matter. The fun comes from the offbeat personalities, and how they react to the destruction caused by the schoolgirls. The focus now is on the older girls, which means there are a lot less of the great scenes of little ten-year-olds torturing people. Instead, their greater age (the “lead” girl is played by a 24-year-old actress) allows for more gags involving sexy schoolgirl uniforms. Hmmm. Sexy school girl uniforms. Well, I guess there is something to be said for the switch.
Blue Murder at St. Trinian’s is better than most comedies you’ll find, is a successful film in the Post-War British Comedy movement, and is worth catching at a revival theater or owning if you can play region 2 DVDs. It only fails in comparison to The Belles of St. Trinian’s and what it might have been.
It was followed by The Pure Hell of St. Trinian’s (1960), The Great St. Trinian’s Train Robbery (1966), The Wildcats of St. Trinian’s (1980).