Gasbags is a 1941 British comedy film directed by Walter Forde and Marcel Varnel and starring The Crazy Gang as well as Moore Marriott.[1] The film was a morale-booster in the early part of the Second World War.[2]
Gasbags | |
---|---|
Directed by | |
Written by | |
Produced by | Edward Black |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Arthur Crabtree |
Edited by | R. E. Dearing |
Music by | Louis Levy |
Production company | |
Distributed by | General Film Distributors |
Release date |
|
Running time | 77 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Production
editIt was shot at the Lime Grove Studios in London. The film's sets were designed by the art director Alex Vetchinsky. It was the fourth and final film starring the comedians at Gainsborough Pictures. Flanagan and Allen subsequently moved to British National where they made a further four films over the next few years.
Plot summary
editThe Crazy Gang's mobile fish and chip shop is tethered to a barrage balloon which lifts the shop into the air and the gang is carried to Nazi Germany. They are captured but break out of prison, impersonate Adolf Hitler and return to England in a stolen secret weapon.
Cast
edit- Bud Flanagan as Bud
- Chesney Allen as Ches
- Jimmy Nervo as Cecil
- Teddy Knox as Knoxy
- Charlie Naughton as Charlie
- Jimmy Gold as Goldy
- Moore Marriott as Jerry Jenkins
- Wally Patch as Sergeant-Major
- Peter Gawthorne as Commanding Officer
- Frederick Valk as Sturmfuehrer
- Eric Clavering as Scharffuehrer
- Anthony Eustrel as Gestapo Officer
- Carl Jaffe as Gestapo Chief
- Manning Whiley as Colonel
- Torin Thatcher as SS Man
- George Merritt as German General
- Irene Handl as Burgomaster's wife
- Leonard Sharp as Chip Shop customer
- Mavis Villiers as Woman
- Henry Longhurst as Woodcutter
- Theodore Zichy as 2nd in Command
Critical reception
editTV Guide called it "An exhilarating comedy";[3] while the Radio Times called it "the best film ever made by the Crazy Gang...Director Marcel Varnel has just the right surreal touch to make it work and leave audiences laughing."[2]
Soundtrack
edit- Bud Flanagan and Chesney Allen - "Yesterday's Dreams" (Written by Michael Carr and Dorothy Day)
References
edit- ^ "Gasbags (1941)". Archived from the original on 2 April 2018.
- ^ a b "Gasbags – review - cast and crew, movie star rating and where to watch film on TV and online". Radio Times.
- ^ "Gasbags - TV Guide". TVGuide.com.
Bibliography
edit- Mayer, Geoff. Guide to British Cinema. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003.
External links
edit