''The Square Peg'' is a 1959 British war comedy film directed by

John Paddy Carstairs John Paddy Carstairs (born John Keys; 11 May 1910, in London – 12 December 1970, in London) was a British film director (1933–62) and television director (1962–64), usually of light-hearted subject matter. He was also a comic novelist and ...

and starring

Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...

. Norman Wisdom plays two different characters: a man who digs and repairs roads, and a Nazi general.

Plot

During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Norman Pitkin, a roadmender with the St Godric's Borough Council, enjoys annoying the soldiers of the nearby British Army camp, even a general. Despite the efforts of his boss, Borough Engineer Mr Grimsdale, Colonel Layton (the camp commander) has both of them called up for service in the Pioneer Corps to exact retribution. They begin training at the same camp under the supervision of one of Pitkin's former victims, Sergeant Loder. The only bright spot for Pitkin is falling in

love at first sight Love at first sight is a personal experience as well as a common trope in literature: a person or character feels an instant, extreme, and ultimately long-lasting romantic attraction for a stranger upon first seeing that stranger. Described by p ...

with the beautiful ATS officer Lesley Cartland, who is preparing to go behind enemy lines in

Nazi-occupied France The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...

. Pitkin and Grimsdale board the wrong lorry and end up parachuting into France, where they are put to work on road repairs. They inadvertently advance four miles into enemy territory, and Grimsdale is captured and taken to local headquarters in a chateau. Meanwhile, Pitkin (out of uniform) goes to the nearby town of Fleury to purchase sugar and eggs, but does not notice German soldiers standing to attention and saluting him. It transpires that he is looks exactly like the ruthless local commander, General Otto Schreiber. In a cafe, he recognises the waitress as Lesley Cartland. She is working with the local resistance group, but Pitkin inadvertently blows her cover and she is arrested, along with the cafe owner. Pitkin and Henri Le Blanc, the local resistance leader, break into the chateau through a tunnel that Pitkin digs to try to rescue them, but Henri is himself captured. Pitkin, unaware of this, climbs into Schreiber's suite. When Gretchen, the general's girlfriend (an opera singer of Wagnerian proportions), arrives, Schreiber leaves strict orders not to be disturbed, no matter what. In the next room, Pitkin dresses in one of Schreiber's uniforms and awaits his chance. He watches through a keyhole as the couple dine, then unexpectedly sing a duet. When Schreiber leaves the room to attend to his throat, Pitkin is mistaken for him by Gretchen and has to attempt to sing Schubert lieder with her. Luckily, Schreiber has locked himself in the bathroom. Eventually he gets out, but after some further hijinks, including a rendition of the Marx Brothers' mirror routine from ''Duck Soup'', Pitkin knocks Schreiber out (Gretchen having fainted after seeing two Schreibers). By pretending to be Schreiber, Pitkin manages to free the prisoners. They escape, but Pitkin is caught and sentenced to be shot at dawn. As the execution is about to be carried out, he inadvertently falls into the camouflaged tunnel he dug and escapes. He ties up Schreiber (off-camera). After the war ends,Schreiber puts on his glasses and Turns back into Mr Grimsdale and he is still Borough Engineer, but Pitkin is now the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Cast

as Norman Pitkin/General Schreiber *

Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962 ...

as Lesley Cartland * Edward Chapman as Mr. Grimsdale *

Campbell Singer Campbell Singer (born Jacob Kobel Singer; 16 March 1909 – 16 February 1976) was a British character actor who featured in a number of stage, film and television roles during his long career. He was also a playwright and dramatist. Life He was ...

as Sergeant Loder *

Hattie Jacques Hattie Jacques (; born Josephine Edwina Jaques; 7 February 1922 – 6 October 1980) was an English comedy actress of stage, radio and screen. She is best known as a regular of the ''Carry On'' films, where she typically played strict, no-non ...

as Gretchen * Brian Worth as Henri Le Blanc *

Terence Alexander Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English film and television actor, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British TV drama ''Bergerac (TV series), Bergerac'', which ran for nine series on BBC One be ...

as Captain Wharton *

John Warwick John McIntosh Beattie (4 January 1905 – 10 January 1972), known professionally as John Warwick, was an Australian actor, and television dramatist. Early life He was born John McIntosh Beattie (many sources give "Beattle") at Bellingen, New S ...

as Colonel Layton *

Arnold Bell Arnold Bell (23 May 1901 – 12 March 1988) was a British actor. Selected filmography * ''Convict 99'' (1919) - Warder Gannawy * '' Doctor Josser K.C.'' (1931) * '' Josser in the Army'' (1932) - Becker * ''Doss House'' (1933) - Reporter * '' ...

as General Hunt *

André Maranne André Maranne (14 May 1926 – 12 April 2021) was a French-English actor best known for playing roles in English-language films beginning in the mid-1950s. Life and career Born André Gaston Maillol in Toulouse, France, Maranne's best known r ...

as Jean-Claude *

Victor Beaumont Victor Beaumont (born Peter Wolff; 7 November 1912 – 21 March 1977) was a German-born British film and television actor. Biography Beaumont billed under his birth name of Peter Wolff, appeared in a number of German films (''Revolt in the ...

as Jogenkraut * Frank Williams as Captain Ford *

Oliver Reed Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor known for his well-to-do, macho image and "hellraiser" lifestyle. After making his first significant screen appearances in Hammer Horror films in the early 1960s, his ...

(uncredited) *

Eddie Leslie Eddie Leslie (11 October 1903, in Camberwell, Surrey, England – 27 June 1975 (age 71) in West Chiltington, Sussex, England) was a British film actor and screenwriter. He often acted alongside Norman Wisdom, on stage and in his films ' ...

as Medical Officer

Reception

The popularity of Norman Wisdom films had declined through the 1950s but ''The Square Peg'' halted the trend.''British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference'' by Sue Harper, Vincent Porter Oxford University Press, 2003 p 50
/ref> The film was the 7th most popular movie at the British box office in 1959. It also gained a 3.3/5 on

Letterboxd Letterboxd is an online social networking service co-founded by Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow in 2011. It was launched as a social app focused on sharing opinions about, and love of film, and is maintained by a small team in Auckland, New ...

according to 123 ratings.

References

External links

* * *
''The Square Peg'' at BFI Screenonline
{{DEFAULTSORT:Square Peg, The 1959 films 1959 comedy films British comedy films Films directed by John Paddy Carstairs Films shot at Pinewood Studios Military humor in film 1950s English-language films 1950s British films