“A COMEDY OF ERRORS”

By Raymond Benson

Alastair Sim was a national treasure in Great Britain, a comic actor who never failed to make one smile or outright guffaw. His Scrooge (1951, aka A Christmas Carol) proved that he could also take a serious turn as well. This reviewer likens him to an early sort of John Cleese—an irreverent player who could do irony, surrealism, farce, wicked delight, and pure outrageousness within the confines of a somewhat realistic human being of a character.

As the star of The Green Man (1956), Sim plays an assassin named Harry Hawkins. Yes, that’s right, Alastair Sim is a mad bomber who takes it upon himself to get rid of the pompous blowhards in Britain, whether they be boring politicians or unctuous professors. He even has a Peter Lorre-like assistant, McKechnie (John Chandos), who is willing to obey Harry, even when it comes to the murder of the innocent.

Add the very funny George Cole into the mix to confound Harry’s latest plot to blow up Sir Gregory Upshott (Raymond Huntley), and you have the makings of a classic.

Harry has romanced Upshott’s spinster secretary, Marigold (Avril Angers), so that he can learn the politician’s movements, but Marigold gets wise to Harry. When she arrives at Harry’s home, McKechnie has switched the name of the house with the empty one next door, and that’s where Marigold meets her end.

But wait! Ann Vincent (Jill Adams) and her husband, Reginald Willoughby-Cruft (Colin Gordon) are about to move into the murder house. Determined vacuum salesman William Blake (Cole) also mistakes the house for the address of his appointment with Harry’s housekeeper next door. Thus, William and Ann discover the murder and take it upon themselves to stop Harry’s scheme. Did we mention that the uproarious Terry-Thomas (as “Charles Boughtflower”) also appears to further stir the proceedings?

Of course, it’s much more crazily complicated than that, with numerous mistaken identities and locations, characters being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and plans going awry. It’s all hilariously funny. In short, The Green Man is British farce at its finest.

The movie is superbly written by the brilliant team of Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat (The Lady Vanishes, The Belles of St. Trinian’s). A formidable outfit by this time in British cinema, they also produced the picture. It is directed by cameraman Robert Day in his debut (word on the street is that Basil Dearden had an uncredited hand in it).

Kino Lorber’s new Blu-ray presentation looks marvelous in a 4K restoration from the original camera negative. It comes with an audio commentary by film historian David Del Valle, and it also sports the theatrical trailer for this and other Kino Lorber releases.

Highly recommended, The Green Man will color a grin upon your face and keep it there.

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