Laikals The greatest movie ever made..!

Sammy-Jo Cervantes There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Brennan Camacho Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

joe-pearce-1 THE TITFIELD THUNDERBOLT played a few 'art houses' in the U.S.A. when it came out, but I, at 14, missed it in its short New York City run, and have finally caught up with it. There is no need to rave about it here, because most of the other reviews printed here do so more than adequately, and I totally concur with the most positive of those reviews. There are so many wonderful character actors/comedians in this film that unless you rave about all of them, you are in danger of grievously insulting that one or two you leave out. However, only one other reviewer has mentioned a 'little' performance in this film - it runs no more than a minute - which had me reversing the film about four or five times to see it over and over again, and that is the performance of an unnamed policeman by actor Wensley Pithey. Unadulterated Anglophile movie-lover that I am, I cannot recall his name at all, yet he seems to have had some notable success as, if no one else, Winston Churchill in several outings as that wonderful man. Here, he almost steals the film (at least, for me) as a policeman who has just arrested Stanley Holloway and Hugh Griffith for stealing a railroad engine and running it through all of Titfield to a final crash, and when asked what he is charging them with, breathlessly rattles off a litany of charges that are almost awe-inspiring to the viewer. If he did not have the 1953 version of a teleprompter in front of him, it is amazing that the actor could even have memorized such a plethora of legally questionable activities. It's kind of like a shorter comic version of Edward G. Robinson's speech in DOUBLE INDEMNITY on all the ways to commit insurance fraud, or for something more classical in nature, Oscar Wilde's Herod spewing forth his huge list of things he will give Salome in preference to providing her with the only thing she really wants - John the Baptist's head. This may not be one of the defining moments of British screen acting, but having been watching films for a good 70 years without recognizing him, I will now remember Wensley Pithey's name forever (well, for however long my particular forever may last). Bravo for British Acting and, in the absence of a teleprompter, the memorization techniques endemic to the acting profession.

l_rawjalaurence Shot in Technicolor - still rather unusual for Ealing Studios - THE TITFIELD THUNDERBOLT returns to a familiar theme explored in earlier movies such as WHISKY GALORE! (1949) in which a tight-knit community triumphs over bureaucracy. In the earlier film the subject was Scotch whisky; in this film the focus of contention is the proposed closure of a rural branch line linking the small village of Titfield to a main junction. Not many commuters actually make use of it; but the line as a whole symbolizes a tradition which, for the villagers at least, should not be discontinued. If it were to close, then Titfield would be overrun with traffic instead.Led by enterprising businessperson John Gregson, and supported by vicar George Relph and dipsomaniac landed gentleman Stanley Holloway, the village challenges the Ministry of Transport. Inevitably there are those who oppose their initiative, especially bus-owner Alec Pearce (Ewan Roberts) and his snake-like sidekick Crump (Jack MacGowran). Despite their best efforts to sabotage the railway, aided by disgruntled steamroller driver Hawkins (Sidney James), the line is saved, even though the locomotive pulling the train is the eponymous Titfield Thunderbolt, a late nineteenth century "Puffing Billy" with a maximum speed of twenty-five miles per hour.Director Charles Crichton makes us aware that this is a wish- fulfillment film - at the end we see a shiny new steam locomotive pulling several coaches, an emblem of the present (and the future) of Britain's now-nationalized railway network. From now on locos like the Titfield Thunderbolt will be operated by groups of enthusiasts for tourism purposes (as is still the case today in many parts of the country).Nonetheless the film remains an enjoyable experience to watch, notably for its evocation of an unchanging pastoral world (cinematography by Douglas Slocombe) and a clutch of memorable characterizations, including Naunton Wayne as a city lawyer who cannot make up his mind whether to support or oppose those wanting to keep the line open. In one memorable sequence he wakes up in the middle of the night with a start, convinced that he heard something untoward happening. He looks round and then goes to sleep with a terribly worried look on his face, as if feeling that he has not done his duty. However his fears are dispelled later on in the film, when Holloway tells him that he has done good work in helping the Ministry of Transport inspector to give a favorable report on the line. Wayne looks to the left of the camera and his features break into a big smile - perhaps for the first time, he understands that he has been of some use to his community.Like most Ealing comedies, the action of THE TITFIELD THUNDERBOLT unfolds at a brisk pace, covering up the screenplay's basic logical implausibilities (why would the Ministry keep such an archaic branch line open anyway?). The film remains a pleasant experience to watch.

ackstasis The Ealing comedies have never looked as wonderful as in 'The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953),' the first from the studio to be filmed in Technicolor. Cinematographer Douglas Slocombe captures the sheer magnificence of the British countryside, every frame alive with the vibrant colours of the hills, the trees and the skies. The film was directed by Charles Crichton, who had earlier achieved success with 'The Lavender Hill Mob (1951),' and was penned by T.E.B. Clarke, who also wrote the outrageously whimsical 'Passport to Pimlico (1949),' encapsulating the wit and optimism of the British sense of humour in a way that typifies why such classic comedy gems are still treasured more than fifty years later. The story was inspired by real events, when local volunteers restored and operated the narrow gauge Talyllyn Railway in Wales.The residents of the small village of Titfield rely daily on trains to commute to work each day; so much so that the steam locomotive has become an icon of the town. However, when British Rail announces the intended closure of the service, the villagers are understandably devastated, and one resident, railway enthusiast Vicar Sam Weech (George Relph), decides to purchase the line and run it locally. Employing the funding of the wealthy and amiably-drunken Walter Valentine (Stanley Holloway), who is easily persuaded by the promise of an early-morning bar on the train, Sam and the other enthusiastic villagers convince the Ministry of Transport to offer them a one month trial, at the end of which their ability to run a train service will be determined. The only two men in town who don't approve of this daring venture are Pearce and Crump (Ewan Roberts and Jack MacGowran), the owners of a bus service, who plan to gain from the closure of the train service, and will try anything to prevent it from running again.'The Titfield Thunderbolt' shares many of its themes with a lot of the other Ealing comedies, most namely the notion of a small community taking on the "Big Guys" {also found in 'Passport to Pimlico' and 'Whisky Galore!'} and the potentially destructive forces of industrial progress {see also 'The Man in the White Suit (1951)'}. The acting is fun and light-hearted, and each of the characters possesses their own eccentricities, which makes them all equally enjoyable to watch. Considering its nature as a comedy, I was surprised to find that the film has some genuine moments of suspense, scenes that would not have seemed out-of-place in a Hitchcock film. I found myself gripping the seat in the sequence where the train passengers must disembark to collect water for the heating engine (after the water-tank is cunningly sabotaged), and also where the weak coupling between the engine and the carriage threatens to snap. The frequent use of rear-projection, which is relatively effective throughout the film, also reminded me of the Master of Suspense. It's an interesting comparison, I think.

JoeytheBrit One of the lesser Ealing Studios comedies of the 50s that are fondly looked upon today as the quaint legacy of a bygone age, The Titfield Thunderbolt shares many of the characteristics of its more celebrated peers (Passport to Pimlico, etc) – especially in its story of everyday folk rallying against a dictatorial bureaucracy (in this case, British Rail, who close down the village's railway line) – without quite attaining their sublime heights. The reason is probably down to T.E.B. Clarke's script, which, relying as it does on comedy stereotypes that date all the way back to silent days, is disappointingly sketchy. We have the saintly vicar, the rascally poacher, the booze-loving lord, etc none of whom have any real back story to speak of. John Gregson is the notional male lead, but has very little to do, and is given no love interest, and so can't help but come across as bland.And yet, despite all this, the film has charms that make spending an hour in its company not unpleasant. It has that aura of a gentler time now lost to us – and which, in all likelihood, never really existed – and seeing the familiar faces of Gregson, Sid James, Hugh Griffiths, Stanley Holloway and Naunton Wayne is always a pleasure. Funniest moments for me have to be the drunken joyride in a stolen train enjoyed by Holloway and Griffith through the streets of the sleeping village, and the site of dear old Edie Martin trying to get a train's furnace going by covering its hatch with a tea towel.