Next to No Time

Last updated

Next to No Time
"Next to no Time" (1958).jpg
Original UK 1-sheet poster
Directed by Henry Cornelius
Written byHenry Cornelius
Based on"The Enchanted Hour" (short story)
by Paul Gallico
Produced by Albert Fennell
Starring Kenneth More
Betsy Drake
Cinematography Freddie Francis
Edited by Peter R. Hunt
Music by Georges Auric
Production
company
Montpelier
Distributed by British Lion Film Corporation (UK)
Release date
  • 29 September 1958 (1958-09-29)
(London)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Next to No Time, also known as Next to No Time!, is a 1958 British colour comedy film written and directed by Henry Cornelius and starring Kenneth More, Betsy Drake, John Laurie, Sid James and Irene Handl. [1] It was based on Paul Gallico's short story The Enchanted Hour. It was the last feature film completed by Cornelius before his death in 1958. [2] The film concerns an underconfident engineer who is helped by the advice of a ship's barman.

Contents

Plot

David Webb is a mild-mannered British planning engineer sent across the Atlantic by his firm to negotiate a deal, a task for which he feels hugely out of his depth. However, a friendly barman, with the help of one of his special cocktails, convinces Webb that his personality changes during the hour when the clocks on the ship are stopped when it enters a new time zone in its progress west.

Cast

Production

In March 1957 Cornelius travelled to the US to look for an American co-star to appear opposite Kenneth More. [3]

The film was shot at Shepperton Studios. [1]

Cinematographer Freddie Francis called it "a bit of a mess of a film" and said Cornelius was "a lovely man but a bit of a muddler. And the film didn't make a lot of sense, it needed a bit of stronger direction and by now, unfortunately, one of the problems may have been, by now Kenny More who I liked very much, Kenny More was a bit of a law unto himself and Corny hadn't done anything for a long time. So I've an idea that Kenny may have been a bit too strong for Corny." [4]

Release

The film was premiered at the cinema on the Queen Elizabeth, on which some of the film was shot, while the ship was docked at Southampton. [5] It was released in the US by Rank Distributors of America, the first time that company had distributed a non-Rank film. [6]

Critical reception

Variety called it "a flimsy comedy" with "impeccable casting". [7]

The New York Times wrote, "Mr. Cornelius' little frolic is very much like the bubbles cascading around the opening title and credits – thin, transparent and bouncy." [8]

Filmink argued "More was miscast in an Alec Guinness/Norman Wisdom type part, as a nerdy engineer who gets brave at certain times of the day – More is always so cheery and confident that the device of the “worm turning” doesn't work. (And why not have him romance Betsy Drake?)" [9]

Leslie Halliwell said: "Whimsical comedy which never gains momentum." [10]

The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 3/5 stars, writing: "This whimsical comedy was something of a disappointment considering it marked the reunion of director Henry Cornelius with his Genevieve star Kenneth More. Sadly, it proved to be Cornelius's last picture before his tragically early death the same year during the production of Law and Disorder . More is curiously out of sorts as an engineer who uses a voyage on the Queen Elizabeth to persuade wealthy Roland Culver to back his latest project. His romantic interest is provided by Betsy Drake, who was then married to Cary Grant." [11]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "good", writing: "Pleasant, if uneasy mixture of genres. Smiles rather than guffaws." [12]

Notes

After Cornelius' death, a friend of his wrote how "intensely personal, of all this films", Next to No Time was to the writer-director, adding: "A man of acute introspection and self-examination, he identified himself closely with The Little Guy in the story ... The character in the film, played by Kenneth More, is a planning engineer in a large factory who finds a difficulty in convincing his employers of his ability. “I know I’ve got it in me” the character says in effect, “but when it comes to putting myself over to people, I don’t know how to do it.” In the course of the story. The Little Guy learns how to do it, and becomes a Big Guy. Remembering his own early struggles to convince people of his ability, studying his own development as a man, ever grateful for the success which his ability and determination attained, Cornelius had a passionate belief that his new film, for all its trappings of comedy, would give help and encouragement to the millions of Little Guys who would be given an opportunity to see it. This perhaps serves best to illustrate his overall attitude towards film-making. From boyhood, he saw the medium as a means of disseminating ideas. And the idea that seemed most to excite him is that in our world, The Big Guy is only The Little Guy who has crossed the rubicon by his belief in himself. His death robs the British cinema of its most serious comedy maker." [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth More</span> British actor (1914–1982)

Kenneth Gilbert More, CBE was an English film and stage actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irene Handl</span> British character actress in over 100 films (1901-1987)

Irene Handl was a British author and character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films.

<i>Genevieve</i> (film) 1953 British film

Genevieve is a 1953 British comedy film produced and directed by Henry Cornelius and written by William Rose. It stars John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall as two couples comedically involved in a veteran automobile rally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Betsy Drake</span> American actress, writer, and psychotherapist (1923–2015)

Betsy Drake was an American actress, writer and psychotherapist. She was the third wife of actor Cary Grant.

<i>The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw</i> 1958 film by Raoul Walsh

The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw is a 1958 Western comedy film directed by Raoul Walsh, starring Kenneth More and Jayne Mansfield. Mansfield's singing voice is dubbed by Connie Francis. It was one of the first Westerns to be shot in Spain.

Kenneth Graham Hughes was an English film director, writer and producer. He was the co-writer and director of the children's film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968). He has been called "a filmmaker whose output was consistently interesting and entertaining, and deserved more critical attention than it has received."

<i>Hell Is a City</i> 1960 film by Val Guest

Hell Is a City is a 1960 British crime thriller film starring Stanley Baker, based on the 1954 novel of the same title by Maurice Procter.

<i>Emergency Call</i> (1952 film) 1952 film by Lewis Gilbert

Emergency Call, released in the US as The Hundred Hour Hunt, is a 1952 British drama film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Jack Warner, Anthony Steel, Joy Shelton and Sid James. It was distributed by Butcher's Film Service. The film was a noted success compared to its small budget and helped establish Gilbert as a director. It was remade in 1962 as Emergency.

<i>Our Girl Friday</i> 1953 British film

Our Girl Friday is a 1953 British comedy film starring Joan Collins, George Cole, Kenneth More and Robertson Hare. It is about a woman who is shipwrecked with three men on a deserted island.

<i>Flame in the Streets</i> 1961 British film

Flame in the Streets is a 1961 film directed by Roy Ward Baker and based on the 1958 play Hot Summer Night by Ted Willis. It opened at the Odeon Leicester Square in London's West End on 22 June 1961.

<i>We Joined the Navy</i> 1962 British film

We Joined the Navy is a 1962 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Lloyd Nolan, Joan O'Brien, Derek Fowlds, Graham Crowden, Esma Cannon and John Le Mesurier. Produced by Daniel M. Angel, it was based on the 1959 novel of the same name by John Winton, a former Royal Navy lieutenant commander.

<i>No Trees in the Street</i> 1959 British film

No Trees in the Street is a 1959 British crime thriller directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Sylvia Syms, Herbert Lom and Melvyn Hayes. It was written by Ted Willis, from his 1948 stage play of the same name.

<i>Raising a Riot</i> 1955 British film

Raising a Riot is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Shelagh Fraser and Mandy Miller about a naval officer who attempts to look after his three children in his wife's absence.

<i>The Comedy Man</i> 1964 film

The Comedy Man is a 1964 British kitchen sink realism drama film directed by Alvin Rakoff and starring Kenneth More, Cecil Parker, Dennis Price and Billie Whitelaw. It depicts the life of a struggling actor in Swinging London.

<i>Just My Luck</i> (1957 film) 1957 British film

Just My Luck is a 1957 British sports comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Norman Wisdom, Margaret Rutherford, Jill Dixon and Leslie Phillips.

<i>Waterfront</i> (1950 film) 1950 British film by Michael Anderson and Peter Ustinov

Waterfront is a 1950 British black and white drama film directed by Michael Anderson and starring Robert Newton, Kathleen Harrison and Avis Scott. It is based on the 1934 novel of the same name by John Brophy.

<i>Jazz Boat</i> 1960 British film by Ken Hughes

Jazz Boat is a 1960 British black-and-white musical comedy film directed by Ken Hughes and starring Anthony Newley, Anne Aubrey, Lionel Jeffries and big band leader Ted Heath and his orchestra. It was based on the 1960 novel of the same name by Rex Rienits.

<i>The Gangs All Here</i> (1939 film) 1939 British film

The Gang's All Here is a 1939 British black-and-white comedy-mystery, directed by Thornton Freeland and starring Jack Buchanan and Googie Withers. It was produced by Associated British Picture Corporation and released in the U.S. in 1943 as The Amazing Mr. Forrest.

<i>The Feminine Touch</i> (1956 film) 1956 British film

The Feminine Touch is a 1956 colour British drama film directed by Pat Jackson and starring George Baker, Belinda Lee and Delphi Lawrence. In 1957 it was released as A Lamp Is Heavy in Canada, and The Gentle Touch in the United States.

<i>Mrs. Pym of Scotland Yard</i> 1939 British film

Mrs. Pym of Scotland Yard is a 1939 British comedy-drama film directed by Fred Elles starring Mary Clare in her only title role and Nigel Patrick in his film debut. It is based on the Mrs Pym novels by Nigel Morland, and written by Morland, who re-used the title for a 1946 book.

References

  1. 1 2 "Next to No Time". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  2. 1 2 Danischewsky, Monja (Summer 1958). "Henry Cornelius and the Little Guy". Sight and Sound. Vol. 27, no. 5. p. 262.
  3. ↑ "London". Variety. 13 March 1957.
  4. ↑ "Interview with Freddie Francis". British Entertainment History Project. 1993–1994.
  5. ↑ Richards, Dick (7 January 1959). "Beacoup British Showmanship in Selling Yank and Anglo Pix". Variety. p. 177.
  6. ↑ "Rank to Handle Outside British Film in U.S.". Variety. 19 November 1958. p. 12.
  7. ↑ "Next to No Time". Variety. 20 August 1958. p. 10.
  8. ↑ Thompson, Howard (28 May 1960). "Movie Review – Next to No Time – Screen: Breezy Charade:' Next to No Time' Bows at Little Carnegie". New York Times. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  9. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (16 April 2023). "Surviving Cold Streaks: Kenneth More". Filmink.
  10. ↑ Halliwell, Leslie (1989). Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 724. ISBN   0586088946.
  11. ↑ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 656. ISBN   9780992936440.
  12. ↑ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 352. ISBN   0-7134-1874-5.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.