Carol 'The Third Man' Reed directed this, and there are very few hints here at his future greatness. Set in a time before good- looking people had been invented, and on the Liverpool docks where, bizarrely, all the characters but one have Yorkshire accents (the only other accent being a sort of cod Irish) it sets out to show the working class as sort of heroic and noble.
Does it succeed? Well sort of. The story is so very simple - a poor but happy man almost becomes rich and unhappy. It's the sort of chin-up, mustn't grumble, know-your-place-common-folk theme we see in so many British films, of any era. And it left me thinking: did these films merely reflect that British identity, or were they attempting to invent it? If the producers didn't know or care that Liverpool has it's own accent, distinct identity and sense of humour, what was the point of setting it there specifically? Also, it teeters on a edge of Kitchen sink realism at times (check out the little flat behind the chip shop, sad widow dreaming her dreams) but never dares question anything, big or small, not even light-heartedly.
Does it succeed? Well sort of. The story is so very simple - a poor but happy man almost becomes rich and unhappy. It's the sort of chin-up, mustn't grumble, know-your-place-common-folk theme we see in so many British films, of any era. And it left me thinking: did these films merely reflect that British identity, or were they attempting to invent it? If the producers didn't know or care that Liverpool has it's own accent, distinct identity and sense of humour, what was the point of setting it there specifically? Also, it teeters on a edge of Kitchen sink realism at times (check out the little flat behind the chip shop, sad widow dreaming her dreams) but never dares question anything, big or small, not even light-heartedly.