''Something Money Can't Buy'' is a 1952 British

comedy drama film Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

directed by

Pat Jackson Patrick Douglas Selmes Jackson (26 March 1916 – 3 June 2011) was an English film and television director. Biography Born in Eltham to a formerly affluent family which was severely affected by the Wall Street crash in 1929, Jackson's formal ...

and starring

Patricia Roc Patricia Roc (born Felicia Miriam Ursula Herold; 7 June 1915 – 30 December 2003) was an English film actress, popular in the Gainsborough melodramas such as '' Madonna of the Seven Moons'' (1945) and ''The Wicked Lady'' (1945), though she on ...

, Anthony Steel and

Moira Lister Moira Lister Gachassin-Lafite, Viscountess of Orthez (6 August 192327 October 2007) was a South African-British film, stage and television actress and writer. Early life Born in Cape Town to Major James Lister and Margaret (née Hogan), Liste ...

. It was written by Jackson and J.L. Hodson, and distributed by Rank's

General Film Distributors General Film Distributors (GFD), later known as J. Arthur Rank Film Distributors and Rank Film Distributors Ltd., was a British Empire, British film distribution company based in London. It was active between 1935 and 1996, and from 1937 it was p ...

. In America it was released by

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

in 1953.

Plot

Harry and Anne Wilding return to civilian life after service in the army. They have trouble readjusting, and Harry eventually resigns from his council job and goes into business, selling food from a mobile canteen. Anne becomes jealous of the daughter of Harry's backer. Anne gives up her job to concentrate on her marriage.

Cast

as Anne Wilding * Anthony Steel as Captain Harry Wilding *

as Diana Haverstock *

A. E. Matthews Alfred Edward Matthews (22 November 186925 July 1960), known as A. E. Matthews, was an English actor who played numerous character roles on the stage and in film for eight decades. Already middle-aged when films began production, he enjoyed incr ...

as Lord Haverstock *

David Hutcheson David Hutcheson (14 June 1905 – 18 February 1976) was a British character actor. He made his film debut in ''Fast and Loose'' in 1930 and played his only lead role in 1934's '' Romance in Rhythm''. He went on to specialise in hooray henrys, si ...

as Buster *

Michael Trubshawe Michael Trubshawe (7 December 1905 – 21 March 1985) was a British actor and former officer in the Highland Light Infantry Regiment of the British Army. Trubshawe was very close friends with fellow British actor David Niven, serving with h ...

as Willy *

Diane Hart Diane Lavinia Hart (20 July 1926 – 7 February 2002) was an English actress in both films and West End theatre, political campaigner, and inventor. Early life Born in 1926, Hart was educated at various convents and then at Abbot's Hill Schoo ...

as Joan *

Charles Victor Charles Victor (10 February 1896 – 23 December 1965) was a British actor who appeared in many film and television roles between 1931 and 1965. He was born Charles Victor Harvey. Born in Southport, Lancashire, England, Victor was a fourth- ...

as Borough Treasurer * Henry Edwards as Gerald Forbes * Mary Hinton as Mrs. Forbes *

Joss Ambler Joss Ambler (23 June 1900 – 1959) was an Australian-born British film and television actor. He usually played somewhat pompous and irascible figures of authority, particularly in comedy films. He was an effective foil to George Formby in both ...

as Mr. Burton, the auctioneer * Michael Brennan as fairground boss *

Helen Goss Helen Goss (15 October 1903 – 1985) was a British stage, television and film actress. She was also a drama teacher and for a period was responsible for admissions to the Rank Charm School. Filmography References External links * 19 ...

as Mrs. Lindstrom * D. A. Clarke-Smith as critic * Mara Lane as film star * John Barry as film star * Joe Linnane as cameraman *

Dennis Arundell Dennis Drew Arundell OBE (22 July 1898 – 10 December 1988)"Arundell, Denni ...

as director *

Oscar Quitak Oscar Morris Quitak (10 March 1926 – 31 December 2023) was a British television actor. Quitak's stage work includes roles at the Old Vic and the National Theatre; as well as the original West End and Broadway productions of the musical '' ...

as 2nd assistant director *

Irene Prador Irene Prador (née Peiser; 16 July 1911, in Vienna – 8 July 1996, in Berlin) was an Austrian-born actress and writer. Biography Prador was born as Irene Peiser, the daughter of Dr. Alfred Peiser and actress Rose Lissmann, and sister of actre ...

as German maid *

Olwen Brookes Olwen Brookes (26 November 1901 – 17 September 1976) was an English actress, known for '' An Inspector Calls'', '' The Happiest Days of Your Life'' and ''The First Night of Pygmalion''. Her career spanned over a quarter of a century, and as wel ...

as lady at party *

Margaret Vyner Margaret Leila Vyner, also known by her married name Margaret Williams (3 December 1914 in Armidale, New South Wales – 30 October 1993 in Reading, England) was an Australian-born model and actress who appeared in British films. She collabora ...

as actress at party *

Basil Dignam Basil Dignam (24 October 1905 – 31 January 1979) was an English character actor. Basil Dignam was born in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire. Before the acting, he tried many jobs, from a company clerk to a journalist. He acted on film and ...

as head waiter *

Johnnie Schofield Johnnie William Schofield (10 March 1889 – 9 September 1955) was a British actor, known for '' The Middle Watch'' (1948), '' Tawny Pipit'' (1944) and '' Melody of My Heart'' (1936). Early life John William Schofield was born on 10 March 1889 ...

as Irish policeman * Fred Griffiths as customer at fairground *

Ernie Rice John Tomasso (17 November 1896 – 1979), better known as Ernie Rice, was a British boxer who was British and European lightweight champion between 1921 and 1922. After retiring from boxing he became an actor, appearing in several films and tel ...

as boxing booth assistant *

Avice Landone Avice Landone (1 September 191012 June 1976) was an English actress who appeared in British television and film. She was born in Quetta, British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, pres ...

as maternity Sister *

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, in the BBC sitcom '' Till Death Us Do Part''. Early l ...

as reassuring mother

Production

The film was made through British Film-Makers, a short lived production scheme that operated in Britain in the early 1950s as a co operative venture between the

Rank Organisation The Rank Organisation (founded as the J. Arthur Rank Organisation) is a British entertainment conglomerate founded in 1937 by industrialist J. Arthur Rank. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the Uni ...

and the

National Film Finance Corporation The National Film Finance Corporation (NFFC) was a film funding agency in the United Kingdom in operation from 1949 until 1985. The NFFC was established by the Cinematograph Film Production (Special Loans) Act 1949 ( 12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6. c. 20), a ...

(NFFC), whereby Rank would provide 70% of finance and the rest came from the NFFC. Patrick Macnee wrote in his memoirs that he auditioned for the male lead, and Pat Jackson wanted him rather than Anthony Steel, but Macnee had a few alcoholic drinks to calm his nerves and did a poor audition. The film was shot at

Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...

near

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

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. Ve ...

. The film was a rare comedy role for Steel, who made it immediately prior to shooting '' The Planter's Wife'' (1952). It involved Roc returning to London after two years in Paris, where she lived with her French husband. She and Steel had an affair during the making of the movie which resulted in Roc having Steel's baby. It was the only comedy Steel made while a star. Pat Jackson later said "It ought to have been a good film, it had a certain charm, the story had a certain charm. I think I just did it badly, I directed badly, I don't know what it was, it just didn't work. It was my fault and that was it; it was as simple as that...It needed great lightness of touch, which I didn't get... It was all in the script, the script was charming. I think James and I wrote a nice script and he was a great help and a wonderful man, James. But no. I botched it."

Reception

Box office

According to internal Rank documentation, the film's box office performance was "average" with billings of £121,000.

Critical

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, "the plot is slender enough, but the script resorts to anunnecessary degree of padding to keep the story moving. It’s mainly played, however, in a light key, with a few chuckles and odd moments of pathos. Film has been smoothly directed, and Patricia Roc and Anthony Steel play husband and wife roles in frothy style." ''

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'' described it as "a double disappointment from the director of ''

White Corridors ''White Corridors'' is a 1951 British drama film directed by Pat Jackson and starring Googie Withers, Godfrey Tearle, James Donald and Petula Clark. It was written by Jan Read and Jackson based on the 1944 novel ''Yeoman's Hospital'' by Helen ...

''; the poverty-stricken material apart, its staging is uncharacteristically flabby, with none of the polish and professionalism of its predecessor." ''

Filmink ''FilmInk'' is an Australian film magazine published by FKP International Exports. It was founded by current publisher Dov Kornits and Colin Fraser in July 1997, in Sydney. The magazine has been through many changes over the course of its exist ...

'' thought the film "starts out interestingly... but spins off into weird, dull subplots about work. In ''British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959'' David Quinlan rated the film as "mediocre", writing: "Occasionally funny comedy hasn't sufficient comic situations or invention in script."

Radio adaptation

The film was adapted for Australian radio in 1954.

References

Bibliography

* Harper, Sue & Porter, Vincent. ''British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference''. Oxford University Press, 2007.

External links

*
''Something Money Can't Buy''
at Letterbox DVD {{Pat Jackson British comedy-drama films Films scored by Nino Rota 1952 films 1952 comedy-drama films Films shot at Pinewood Studios Films directed by Pat Jackson Films set in Germany Films set in London British black-and-white films 1950s English-language films 1950s British films English-language comedy-drama films