No Smoking (1955 film)

No Smoking
Directed byHenry Cass
Screenplay byKenneth Hayles
Phil Park
Based onNo Smoking by George Moresby-White and Rex Rienits[1]
Produced byRobert S. Baker
Monty Berman
StarringReg Dixon
Peter Martyn
Belinda Lee
Lionel Jeffries
CinematographyMonty Berman
Edited byJack Slade
Music byIvor Slaney
Production
company
Distributed byEros Films
Release date
  • November 1955 (1955-11)
Running time
66 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

No Smoking is a 1955 British second feature ('B')[2] comedy film directed by Henry Cass and starring Reg Dixon, Peter Martyn, Belinda Lee and Lionel Jeffries.[3][4][5] The screenplay was by Kenneth Hayles and Phil Park, based on the 1952 TV play of same title by George Moresby-White and Rex Rienits. It was produced by Tempean Films. Shortly after the production Lee was signed up for a contract with the Rank Organisation.

Plot

Reg Bates is a scientist who invents a pill that can cure smokers of their nicotine addiction. This is revealed by a visiting American, Hal Hurst. Bates faces strong opposition from both the tobacco industry and the government.

Cast

Production

The TV play on which the film was based[6][7] was described by the Daily Mail as "plenty of good family fun."[8]

The film was shot at Southall Studios with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold.

It was one of only a few movies starring Reg Dixon.[9] It was one of several comedies featuring Belinda Lee.[10]

Reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Unfortunately the action does not fizz; the bubbles never quite come to the surface; and there is the inevitable song and dance dream sequence, which might be dispensed with. Reg Dixon, as the inventor, and Lionel Jeffries, as the village tobacconist, play quite amiably"[11]

Kine Weekly wrote: "The picture, a queer mixture of the amateurish and the slick, has its moments, but they barely outweigh its flat spots. Reg Dixon works tirelessly and sings occasionally, yet finds the going rough as Reg, but Lionel Jeffries draws amusing character as Pogson, Myrtle Rowe effectively plays hard to get as Milly, and Belinda Lee introduces a touch of sex as a sweater girl sccretary. The rest are so-so. The second half is infinitely brighter than the first and luckily enables it to end on a lively note. In all, a harmless, typically English romp."[12]

Picture Show wrote: "Reg Dixon makes one of his rare film appearances in this bright comedy as a chemist who invents an anti-smoking pill. Amusing performances also come from Lionel Jeffries, Myrtle Rowe and Belinda Lee. There are pleasant tunes."[13]

The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "Notable only for its anti-smoking theme in a period where no one bothered about puffing away on a cigarette, this gentle comedy ends up a wasted opportunity, though the cast give their all."[14]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "mediocre", writing: "Potty comedy doesn't catch fire."[15]

References

  1. ^ Goble, Alan (8 September 2011). The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 9783110951943 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 88. ISBN 978-1-8445-7319-6.
  3. ^ "No Smoking". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  4. ^ "No Smoking - Film". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  5. ^ "No Smoking (1955)". BFI. Archived from the original on 6 October 2019.
  6. ^ 1952 TV play at IMDb
  7. ^ "No Smoking". BBC Programme Index. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  8. ^ Specially Written TV Play is Effective Author: J. Stubbs Walker Date: Monday, Mar. 17, 1952 Publication: Daily Mail (London, England) Issue: 17415 p2
  9. ^ BACKBEAT: 1950: Confidentially - it's our Reg; BECAUSE THEY DON'T MAKE MUSIC LIKE THEY USED TO!: [First Edition] Chambers, Peter. Coventry Evening Telegraph; Coventry [Coventry]25 Jan 2005: 16, 17.
  10. ^ Vagg, Stephen (7 September 2020). "A Tale of Two Blondes: Diana Dors and Belinda Lee". Filmink.
  11. ^ "No Smoking". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 22 (252): 181. 1 January 1955 – via ProQuest.
  12. ^ "No Smoking". Kine Weekly. 464 (2523): 24. 3 November 1955 – via ProQuest.
  13. ^ "No Smoking". Picture Show. 61 (1707): 10. 17 December 1955 – via ProQuest.
  14. ^ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 667. ISBN 9780992936440.
  15. ^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 354. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.