One Wild Oat (1951)

A barrister (Robertson Hare) attempts to discourage his daughter's infatuation for a philanderer by revealing his past. The plan backfires when the daughter's would-be father-in-law (... See full summary »

Director:

Charles Saunders

Writers:

Lawrence Huntington, Vernon Sylvaine (play),

Stars:

Robertson Hare, Stanley Holloway, Sam Costa

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robertson Hare	...	Humphrey Proudfoot
Stanley Holloway	...	Alfred Gilbey
Sam Costa	...	Mr. Pepys
Andrew Crawford	...	Fred Gilbey
Vera Pearce	...	Mrs. Gilbey
June Sylvaine	...	Cherrie Proudfoot
Robert Moreton	...	Throstle
Constance Lorne	...	Mrs. Proudfoot
Gwen Cherrell	...	Audrey Cuttle #1
Irene Handl	...	Emily Pepys (Audrey Cuttle #2)
Ingeborg von Kusserow	...	Gloria Samson (as Ingeborg Wells)
Charles Groves	...	Charles
Joan Rice	...	Annie (maid)
Audrey Hepburn	...	Hotel receptionist
Fred Berger	...	Samson

Storyline

A barrister (Robertson Hare) attempts to discourage his daughter's infatuation for a philanderer by revealing his past. The plan backfires when the daughter's would-be father-in-law (Stanley Holloway) threatens to reveal the barrister's shady background.

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Plot Keywords:

based on play

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 May 1951 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Riverside Studios, Hammersmith, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Coronet Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to some biographies of Audrey Hepburn, her role in this film was originally much larger (one book indicated that her character was in fact the "wild oat" of the title), but jittery censors forced most of her part to be cut.

User Reviews

Not so wild

This is a not-so-great attempt to revive the Aldwych farces of the thirties in a post-war setting on the cheap. There is an interesting cast, but not on top form. Robertson Hare is excellent as a comedy foil, but here carries too much of the weight of the action, and his pompous barking monotone, so splendid when deployed strategically, becomes irritating long before the end. Stanley Holloway's roguish charm is also out of kilter, with too much rogue and not enough charm. He is excellent in his drag scene, though.

The romantic leads are charisma-free, so that we don't really care whether they get married or not, and hardly notice when they disappear for half the film. More might have been made of Mrs Gilbey's music hall past, while the plot might have benefited from more decisiveness about Mrs Proudfoot's character - is she a snob, or basically good-hearted? The minor parts are more pleasing, with a rare film outing for Sam Costa, his voice so familiar from 'Much Binding in the Marsh', an excellent early cameo from Irene Handl, and a bit part for Audrey Hepburn, who ironically has a telephone conversation with Holloway, who would play her father in 'My Fair Lady'. There are a couple of funny flashbacks to Proudfoot's gay 20s cycling and dancing with a flapper, and more could have been made of these too.

But gosh, the film is slow. The funny gags are too few and far between, and all too often a promising situation goes nowhere. A misfire.