Contest Girl (1964)
"The Beauty Jungle" (original title)

On a seaside holiday, pretty Bristol typist Shirley meets Dan Mackenzie from her local paper. He persuades her that she has what it takes in the world of beauty contests, and so it proves. ... See full summary »

Director:

Val Guest

Writers:

Val Guest, Robert Muller

Stars:

Ian Hendry, Janette Scott, Ronald Fraser

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ian Hendry	...	Don Mackenzie
Janette Scott	...	Shirley Freeman
Ronald Fraser	...	Walter Carey
Edmund Purdom	...	Rex Carrick
Jean Claudio	...	Roger Armand
Kay Walsh	...	Mrs. Freeman
Norman Bird	...	Mr. Edward Freeman
Janina Faye	...	Elaine Freeman
Tommy Trinder	...	Charlie Dorton
David Weston	...	Harry
Peter Ashmore	...	Lucius
Sid James	...	'Butlin' Judge (as Sydney James)
Jacqueline Jones	...	Jean Watson
Jackie White	...	Barbara Lawton
Jerry Desmonde	...	Swimming Pool MC

Storyline

On a seaside holiday, pretty Bristol typist Shirley meets Dan Mackenzie from her local paper. He persuades her that she has what it takes in the world of beauty contests, and so it proves. Ditching her predictable fiance and having to leave home, Shirley moves to London to continuing success. Increasingly smitten by her, Dan reckons he should be more than just her manager, but this is not at all the way Shirley sees things.

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Plot Keywords:

beauty pageant | independent film

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Taglines:

From the Boardwalk... to Monte Carlo Villas... the inside story of the men behind the beauty racket!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

May 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Contest Girl

Filming Locations:

Bristol, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rank Organisation, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alexandra Bastedo screen tested unsuccessfully for a role in this film.

User Reviews

over long and mostly dull

When I was young I had a "Picture-Goers Annual of 1953" - in it there was an article about Janette Scott. No description was too good for this young star who had made such a splash a few years before in "No Place for Jennifer". Big things were expected of her.

She had a reasonable career - appearing as Susie Dean in the remake of "The Good Companions" (a role that was forever associated with Jessie Matthews) was not a good career move.

"The Beauty Jungle" was one of her last films - an expose of beauty pageants. Shirley Freeman is on holiday when she is spotted by a model agent (Ian Hendry). He convinces her to enter a "prettiest girl in the cinema" competition and she wins 5 pounds.

She goes back to her humdrum life but she misses the applause and recognition so she decides to pursue a beauty pageant career. After dyeing her hair blonde (which makes her look cheap - her natural brunette hair suited her better and made her look younger but not so glamorous) she wins a chance to compete in the Rose of England Beauty Pageant.

Edmond Purdon, looking even younger than he did in "The Student Prince" plays a matinée idol who turns Shirley's head in Monte Carlo.

Considering that parts of the film were shot on location in Monte Carlo, there was no advantage taken of the scenery. Most of the scenes were indoors.

Stirling Moss and Norman Hartnell (the Queen's dress designer) appeared in cameos as themselves, the gowns were by Christian Dior - it was a film in which no expense was spared.

The end result, though, was a very over-long and mostly dull film which at nearly 2 hours could have done with some heavy editing.