A man (Rex Harrison), later identified as Charles Hathaway, wakes up in Wales with amnesia. With the aid of a specialist (Cecil Parker), he discovers heās rich, married to a beautiful woman (Kay Kendall), and is an important government official. But quickly things donāt fit properly. His boss (Raymond Huntley) only seems to know him through a club and his best friend (Robert Coote) relays a vague story of violence and lies. Heās soon after kidnapped, revealing more and more secrets and that he, most likely, used to be an unmitigated cad.
The description sounds like it comes from a Hitchcock film, but then this is a Frank Launder & Sidney Gilliat production, and they did write The Lady Vanishes for Hitchcock. However, this is farce. Gilliat is in charge, writing and directing, besides co-producing, and was gifted with a suburb cast. Harrison needed the right kind of role to really shine, and that of a sometimes frightened, sometimes annoyed amnesiac was perfect for him. Heās supported by some of the best England had to offer; besides Kendall, Parker, Huntley, and Coot thereās George Cole, Jill Adams, and Michael Hordern. Itās a team that makes it easy to create a good film.
And this one really takes off from the first. With a different score, and different directing choices, the first two-thirds could have been very tense, as Charles digs into mysteries and finds only more and more mysteries. Instead itās hilarious, while still keeping me curious. Composer Malcolm Arnold (a longtime time collaborator with Launder & Gilliat, but probably most famous for his music for The Bridge on the River Kwai) sets the perfect tone.
Unfortunately, for a piece that starts so strong, the ending lets it down. It isnāt bad, but once we know what actually happened, and we know it all too early, much of the energy fades. āCharlesā is more sympathetic when heās running and searching and being accosted for things he doesnāt understand, then when heās finally able to stop and take a stand. Whatever message the film had also slips away, along with the laughs. It feels like they radically changed the last act after theyād started production. This is a good film that looses its way. It should have been a great one.
Other Gilliat & Launder (produced, directed, or written) Post-War British Comedies:Ā The Happiest Days of Your Life (1950), Lady Godiva Rides Again (1951), Folly to Be Wise (1952), The Belles of St. Trinian’s (1954), Geordie (1955), The Green Man (1956), Blue Murder at St. Trinian’s (1957), The Smallest Show on Earth (1957), The Bridal Path (1959), Left, Right, and Centre (1959), The Pure Hell of St. Trinian’s (1960), Only Two Can Play (1961), The Great St. Trinian’s Train Robbery (1966), Wildcats of St. Trinian’s (1980)