No Funny Business

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No Funny Business
No Funny Business film Theatrical release poster (1933-2).jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
Written by
Based ona story by Dorothy Hope
Produced byJohn Stafford
Starring
Cinematography Walter Blakeley
Edited by
Music by Noel Gay
Production
company
John Stafford Productions
Distributed by United Artists (UK)
Release dates
  • 19 June 1933 (1933-06-19)(London, England)
Running time
76 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
Language English

No Funny Business is a 1933 British comedy film directed by Victor Hanbury and starring Laurence Olivier, Gertrude Lawrence, Jill Esmond and Edmund Breon. [1] It was written by Hanbury and Frank Vosper based on a story by Dorothy Hope.

Contents

The film is a comedy of errors set in a divorce case. [2]

Cast

Production

It was made at Ealing Studios [3] with sets designed by the art director Duncan Sutherland.

Olivier had returned to Britain after his career, following an initial move to Hollywood, had faltered. [4]

Reception

Picturegoer wrote: "The story is complicated and slow, and the humour generally forced; so that one relies almost solely on the famous stage star for entertainment, There are touches of sex and sophistication which help to liven matters up, and the technical qualities generally are good." [5]

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote in 1951: "Originally seen in 1933, this comedy, with its stagey plot and sets, slowly developed situations, and badly dated dialogue, has a certain fascination simply as a period piece. Gertrude Lawrence conveys a good deal of vitality and assurance, although playing in a manner long outmoded; Laurence Olivier, however, looks somewhat unhappy as the conventional juvenile lead of the period." [6]

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References

  1. "No Funny Business". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  2. No Funny Business at the British Film Institute [ better source needed ]
  3. Munn p.44
  4. Munn p.43-44
  5. "No Funny Business" . Picturegoer . 3: 30. 2 December 1933 via ProQuest.
  6. "No Funny Business" . The Monthly Film Bulletin . 18 (204): 298. 1 January 1951 via ProQuest.

Bibliography