Classic Movies on Sky Arts - The Story of I'm All Right Jack

 

Ian Nathan introduced this episode by telling us that released in 1959, I'm All Right Jack became top of the British box office and the number one film of that year. Steve Punt thought it was a "state of the nation" film. The cast is awesome. Peter Sellers has graduated from being a comedy actor (first coming to prominence in the BBC radio programme "The Goon Show" (never missed an episode) was not mentioned) to a film star alongside Ian Carmichael (the posh twit), Terry Thomas, Dennis Price, Richard Attenborough, Irene Handel,  Margaret Rutherford and John Le Mesurier. 

Directed by John Boulting and produced by his brother Roy (both committed liberals), we heard about how they interchanged roles on some of the series of comedies they made. These included Brighton Rock also featured in this series. They used lots of location filming with an "ex Steven Armstrong went on to say that this film was a "social satire" and a clash between the workers (always looking after number one) and management who all seemed upper class idiots. Neil thought they stuck with an exaggerated plot and that it was a "jaundiced view of life" of Britain in the 1950's. 

Steven Armstrong discussed the emergence of the country from the second world war (that was never discussed) how the country was changing with a new consumer society and emerging teenagers (including me). The film was a "parody of the angry young men of the 50's" (not me). Based on the 1958 novel Private Life by Alan Hackney, it shows how the country was changing, An in depth feature about Peter Sellers included how he was given carte blanche to create his character of the bolshi shop steward. He also plays the fusty upper class character who starts the film on his own in his club. He makes the movie. Ian Carmichael is also superb, his character "just out of university" from Oxford. Steve Punt thinks he feels as if he can do anything.

Steven's explanation of how the film compares the cads and bounders of the upper class with the lazy working class on the make is quite something. Even the emerging middle class gets a mention. This is the best film criticism of the series so far.  It seems quite like a historical document that still reverberates today. I will watch the film in a couple of weeks time.