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IMDb > The Ups and Downs of a Handyman (1975)

The Ups and Downs of a Handyman (1975) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
3.3/10   99 votes
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Director:
Writers:
John Sealey (writer)
Derrick Slater (writer)
Release Date:
November 1976 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
Always Handy - the odd job man whose services are constantly in demand!
Plot:
A young handyman and his wife (Barry Stokes, Penny Meredith) move to a small village and set up business... more | add synopsis
User Reviews:
A modern version of a Victorian erotic postcard more (8 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Barry Stokes ... Bob
Gay Soper ... Maisie
Sue Lloyd ... The Blonde
Bob Todd ... Squire Bullsworthy
Chic Murray ... P. C. Knowles
Robert Dorning ... Newsagent
Valerie Leon ... Redhead
Penny Meredith ... Margaretta
Helli Louise ... Newsagent's Daughter
John Blythe ... Farmer Elgin
Harold Bennett ... Gasper
Julia Bond ... Polly (as Julie Bond)
Jeannie Collings ... Mrs Wain
Alexandra Dane ... Mrs Knowles

Ava Cadell ... Schoolgirl
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Confessions of a Handyman (UK) (video title)
Confessions of an Odd-Job Man (UK) (video title)
The Happy Housewives
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Country:
Language:
Color:
Sound Mix:
Certification:
UK:18 (uncut version, re-rating) | USA:R | UK:18 (cut)
Filming Locations:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
It was intended to be the first of a series, but the idea was dropped. The sequel would have been called "Ups and Downs of a Soccer Star", and was to star Julie Lee, with a script by John Sealey and Ken Follett more
Goofs:
Crew or equipment visible: In the last shot of the bathroom sequence a crew member's hand can be briefly seen touching actress Mrs Wain's backside, directing her to move out of the way of the camera. more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Twisted Sex Vol. 19 (1998) (V) more

FAQ

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3 out of 3 people found the following review useful.
A modern version of a Victorian erotic postcard, 10 August 2003
Author: L. Denis Brown (ldbrown1@shaw.ca) from Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada



This film has recently been given what I would describe as a sneak showing on a local TV channel. It was shown at a normal evening viewing time and was just listed as a British comedy, with no mention of sex-comedy or adult film to be found in my program guide. I believe the best British comedies, such as "Passport to Pimlico", are unmatched and I decided to watch it. I was quite startled to find that it was an unabashed and totally uninhibited sex comedy, with at least as much nudity as in any other film I remember seeing. I was recently amused to read a newspaper report about an author who has published a book listing nude appearances in films, and detailing their duration and the anatomical features displayed. I found it very hard to credit that someone should spend their time creating such a reference work, or that having done so they could find anyone willing to spend money buying it. However the article was quite serious and the author, when interviewed, reported that he could process most films very quickly - the only one which had taken him a considerable time to review fully had been "Showgirls". It appears that he has never seen this film which features far more nudity than "Showgirls"!

This film is a farce, comparable in many ways with the British "Carry On" series of films. It is probably best regarded as a more modern replacement for the Victorian erotic postcards that used to be so popular a century ago. The main story is of a young couple who have to move to a small country town where work is not plentiful. The husband attempts to make a living as the local handyman, but his shop window advertisement somehow conveys a message to the lonely women who see it, that he is offering other types of services. His role is supplemented by a series of kinky characters including an elderly man who enjoys spanking girls (a very Victorian theme), an amateur glamour photographer looking for models, and an incredibly inept policeman, all are portrayed outrageously to create a comedy with very broad humour. There is no real acting as all the characters are caricatures, but the film is reasonably well made and - if you are prepared to watch this type of humour - is enjoyable to view at least once. My personal view is that such films are far less socially harmful than most of the unnecessarily violent action/adventure films which today hardly ever raise the public's eyebrows. However anyone buying it, or seeing it in a cinema or on TV should be aware of what to expect. Viewers with other expectations are likely to class it as an example of the ultimate turkey.

Normally this would be a film which would leave a viewer with nothing to think about, but in my case I found myself facing the weighty question of whether this film is likely to be released again soon as one half of a two feature DVD for home viewing; and if so what could be chosen as a suitable companion film to pair with it? Perhaps "Can you keep it up for a week?" might have made a possible pairing; but although this is in my view a much less successful film, it has somehow already made DVD status on its own.

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