Get Cracking

I have to confess that I like every George Formby film – more or less. What this one lacks in plot it makes up with atmosphere, of a safe fairytale Britain that never existed but came closest to between the World Wars. Of pretending everyone was in the same boat fighting a common (and uncommon) enemy and encouragement with flag-wavers like this for everyone to do their bit. As we're finding nowadays, a House divided falls.

Here we see what happens when the lads of the village got cracking, with the formation of a Local Defence Volunteers force (the Home Guard, or Dad's Army as they came to be known and also a great UK TV series 1968-1977) to be ready for a Nazi invasion in the two small villages of Minor and Major Wallop, and the results of their rivalry to posses a Vickers gun. There's a cracking cast: George is just George naturally, girlfriend Dinah Sheridan, wise old Edward Rigby and Wally Patch as George's friendly superiors, avuncular Frank Pettingell and nasty Ronald Shiner as their rivals, Irene Handl always on the lookout for her elusive son Ben, and Vera Francis, still an evacuee but sadly underused here. Favorite bits: the Hellzappopin type opening minutes; the night raid on Pemberton's shop looking for the gun. Songs: Get Cracking (on march), Home Guard Blues (on the tank) and the witty Under The Blasted Oak (in George's Garage).

For me, it's a pleasant 90 minutes every time I watch it; of course people who don't like Formby at all but watch this anyway will have a real battle on their hands.