''Rotten to the Core'' is a 1965 black and white British comedy film directed by
John Boulting
John Edward Boulting (21 December 1913 – 17 June 1985) and Roy Alfred Clarence Boulting (21 December 1913 – 5 November 2001), known collectively as the Boulting brothers, were English filmmakers and identical twins who became known for thei ...
, and co-written and produced by his brother
Roy Boulting
John Edward Boulting (21 December 1913 – 17 June 1985) and Roy Alfred Clarence Boulting (21 December 1913 – 5 November 2001), known collectively as the Boulting brothers, were English filmmakers and identical twins who became known for thei ...
. It stars
Anton Rodgers
Anthony "Anton" Rodgers (10 January 1933 – 1 December 2007) was an English actor and occasional director. He performed on stage, in film, in television dramas and sitcoms. He starred in several sitcoms, including ''Fresh Fields'' (ITV, ...
,
Charlotte Rampling
Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress, known for her work in European arthouse films in English, French, and Italian. An icon of the Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model.
She was cast in the role ...
,
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes (4 May 1923 – 4 July 2012) was an English radio, stage, television and film writer, comedian, actor, and director whose performing career spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and performed with many other leading com ...
and
Ian Bannen
Ian Edmund Bannen (29 June 1928 – 3 November 1999) was a Scottish actor with a long career in film, on stage, and on television. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in '' The Flight of the Phoenix'' (1965), the first ...
. The film received a
BAFTA nomination for
Alex Vetchinsky
Alex Vetchinsky ( Alec Hyman Vetchinsky; 9 November 1904 - 4 March 1980) was a BAFTA nominated British film art director and production designer. He worked on more than a hundred productions during a career that lasted between 1928 and 1974. Vetc ...
's production design.
It was Charlotte Rampling's first credited role and she plays the main female lead.
The principal comedy sections are supplied by
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes (4 May 1923 – 4 July 2012) was an English radio, stage, television and film writer, comedian, actor, and director whose performing career spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and performed with many other leading com ...
in various guises as an undercover policeman.
Plot
Upon finishing a prison sentence, a trio of crooks go in search of their one-time leader, known as "The Duke", who was supposed to safeguard their share of the money which was never recovered. However, the Duke's girlfriend Sara tells them the Duke is dead and the money is long gone. Later, the gang discover that she's lying, and that the Duke has set up a spa, the Hope Springs Nature Clinic, as a front. The Duke is planning a major heist with some criminal cronies.
The complex plot involves the police, the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
, officers of the German army and a complicated deception by means of rail, with real German army officers being tricked into getting off the train one stop early, to be replaced by criminals in their guise. Leading the army group is Lt Vine who is successfully deceived by the whole affair (aided by Sara feeding him false information) and he has to bear the brunt of the blame.
Cast
*
Anton Rodgers
Anthony "Anton" Rodgers (10 January 1933 – 1 December 2007) was an English actor and occasional director. He performed on stage, in film, in television dramas and sitcoms. He starred in several sitcoms, including ''Fresh Fields'' (ITV, ...
as the Duke
*
Charlotte Rampling
Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress, known for her work in European arthouse films in English, French, and Italian. An icon of the Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model.
She was cast in the role ...
as Sara Capell
*
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes (4 May 1923 – 4 July 2012) was an English radio, stage, television and film writer, comedian, actor, and director whose performing career spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and performed with many other leading com ...
as William Hunt
*
Ian Bannen
Ian Edmund Bannen (29 June 1928 – 3 November 1999) was a Scottish actor with a long career in film, on stage, and on television. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in '' The Flight of the Phoenix'' (1965), the first ...
as Lt. Percy Vine
*
Thorley Walters
Thorley Swinstead Walters (12 May 1913 – 6 July 1991) was an English character actor. He is probably best remembered for his comedy film roles such as in ''Two-Way Stretch'' and '' Carlton-Browne of the FO''.
Early life
Walters was born in Tei ...
as Chief Constable Preston
*
Peter Vaughan
Peter Vaughan (born Peter Ewart Ohm; 4 April 1923 – 6 December 2016) was an English character actor known for many supporting roles in British film and television productions. He also acted extensively on the stage.
He is perhaps best know ...
as Sir Henry Capell
*
Dudley Sutton
Dudley Sutton (6 April 1933 – 15 September 2018) was an English actor. Active in radio, stage, film and television, he was arguably best known for his role of Tinker Dill in the BBC Television drama series ''Lovejoy''.
Early life
Sutton was ...
as Jelly
*
Kenneth Griffith
Kenneth Griffith (born Kenneth Reginald Griffiths, 12 October 1921 – 25 June 2006) was a Welsh actor and documentary filmmaker. His outspoken views made him a controversial figure, especially when presenting documentaries which have been ca ...
as Lenny the Dip
*James Beckett as Scapa Flood
*
Victor Maddern
Victor Jack Maddern (16 March 1928 – 22 June 1993) was an English actor. He was described by ''The Telegraph'' as having "one of the most distinctive and eloquent faces in post-war British cinema."
Life and career
Born in Seven Kings, ...
as Anxious O'Toole
*
Avis Bunnage
Avis Bunnage (22 April 1923, Ardwick, Manchester – 4 October 1990, Thorpe Bay, Southend-on-Sea) was an English actress of film, stage and television.
She attended Manley Park Municipal School and Chorlton Central School in Manchester. She ...
as Countess de Wett
*
Frank Jarvis as Moby
*
Raymond Huntley
Horace Raymond Huntley (23 April 1904 – 15 June 1990) was an English actor who appeared in dozens of British films from the 1930s to the 1970s. He also appeared in the ITV period drama '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' as the pragmatic family so ...
as Prison Governor
*
Dandy Nichols
Dandy Nichols (born Daisy Sander; 21 May 1907 – 6 February 1986) was an English actress best known for her role as Else Garnett, the long-suffering wife of the character Alf Garnett who was a parody of a working class Tory, in the BBC sit ...
as Woman in Cemetery
Production
The film was based on an original idea by Roy Boulting which he gained, he told ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', when recuperating from a broken neck in 1964. "Call it a cynical comment on organised thievery today," he said. Filming began in February 1965 at
Shepperton Studios
Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not to be confused w ...
.
Critical reception
*''
Time Out'' wrote the film had "some mildly funny moments, but most of the jokes are laboriously set up and loudly telegraphed."
*''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' wrote Anton Rodgers "shows versatility in four or five characterizations...(But) the Boulting Brothers' knives are less sharp than customary." The film features Charlotte Rampling's first credited performance.
References
External links
British comedy films
British heist films
1965 films
Films directed by John Boulting
1965 comedy films
1960s English-language films
1960s British films
{{1960s-UK-comedy-film-stub