Windbag the Sailor
Windbag the Sailor is a 1936 British comedy film directed by William Beaudine and starring Will Hay. The film marked the first appearance of Hay with Graham Moffatt and Moore Marriott acting as his straight men, however both Moffatt and Marriott had previously acted separately in films starring Hay, namely in Dandy Dick and Where There's a Will, respectively.
Windbag the Sailor | |
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Directed by | William Beaudine |
Produced by | Michael Balcon |
Written by | Stafford Dickens George Edgar Marriott Edgar Will Hay |
Starring | Will Hay Moore Marriott Graham Moffatt |
Music by | Charles Williams |
Cinematography | Jack E. Cox |
Edited by | R.E. Dearing Terence Fisher |
Distributed by | Gainsborough Pictures |
Release date | December 1936 |
Running time | 87 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Plot
Ben Cutlet is a retired barge captain who entertains his bar room audience with tales of his alleged days at sea, although his maritime experience extends no further than navigating a coal barge. His tall tales catch him out when he is conned into commanding the unseaworthy Rob Roy to the West Indies by a gang of criminals who mean to scuttle the ship for the insurance money. Cutlet gets the upper hand however when he and his companions fall in with West Indian natives who mistake their radio set for a god.
Cast
- Will Hay as Captain Ben Cutlet
- Moore Marriott as Jerry Harbottle
- Graham Moffatt as Albert Brown
- Norma Varden as Olivia Potter-Porter
- Kenneth Warrington as Yates
- Dennis Wyndham as Jim Maryatt
- Amy Veness as Emma Harbottle
- Leonard Sharp as Crew member
Reception
Writing for The Spectator in 1937, Graham Greene gave the film a good review, recommending it to "those under sixteen". Greene praised Beaudine for his "admirabl[e] direct[ion]", and noted that Hay "has never had a better part than that of Captain Ben Cutlett".[1]
References
- Greene, Graham (1 January 1937). "The Jungle Princess/Windbag the Sailor". The Spectator. (reprinted in: Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. p. 127. ISBN 0192812866.)