I really enjoyed Smashing Time, a 1967 British musical comedy with Rita Tushingham and Lynn Redgrave. They play a couple of gals from the north of England who come to London to see Swinging London. Periodically the gals sing songs in a voice over while the action continues on screen and they are proper musical type songs, observational ones that move the story ahead.
George Melly wrote the screenplay and Desmond Davis directed. George only wrote 2 films, this one and another called Take A Girl Like You in 1970. I haven't seen that movie but I have seen George acting in Demob, a 1993 mini-series set after WW2. George was a jazz singer and Demob is about a couple of jazz musicians wanting to get some BBC radio action. Martin Clunes and Griff Rhys Jones play the musicians. I picked it up cheap because of those two guys.
Desmond is probably best known for directing the 1981 Clash Of The Titans. He only directed 7 theatrical features, starting with Girl With Green Eyes in 1964. That film also stars Rita and Lynn. Desmond directed several TV movies and a good number of TV episodes. I can't say I've seen any of it except for the 1983 TV movie The Sign Of Four and an episode of The Agatha Christie Hour.
Rita and Lynn come into London on the train. Lynn is smitten with the idea of being a big star. She's read all about Swinging London and Carnaby Street but she's hardly hip. Rita is even more unhip but she's practical and protective of her friend. Lynn is shallow and oblivious to what's going on around her, she treats Rita rather poorly.
Lynn meets up with hip photographer Michael York, he spots her on the street and takes her picture. It runs in the paper the next day as an example of a fashion travesty. Of course, Lynn gets instant fame and becomes a trend setting pop star. Her song, I'm So Young, is a wonderful poke at youth culture that reminds me of Julie Brown's I'm A Blonde. Julie's on-screen persona is very like Lynn's character but with a bit more sass.
Rita has hurdle after hurdle placed in front of her but she too becomes famous for 15 minutes when Michael uses her as a model. Everywhere Rita goes she causes chaos. There's a massive mess created in a cafe, an art gallery and in a shop that only sells pie. Their fame peaks and the girls head for home.
I really enjoyed their trip to London and all the chaos. There's plenty of location shots that were fun to see. It's a nice combo of jokes and slapstick. I enjoyed the heck out of it. I picked up the Kino Lorber Blu-Ray during a sale and it was well worth it. The image is nice. I also enjoyed the commentary by film historian Kat Ellinger. She had lots of info and interesting stuff to say. I'll certainly watch it again someday.
Comments