American (Indiana) born Tim Whelan sandwiched this in between The Divorce of Lady X and Q Planes so that it missed being Alphabet soup by that much. To see it for the very first time - as I have just done - in 2013 is to wonder yet again at what pre-war cinema audiences would stand for. Laughton is simply atrocious, they didn't go further over the top at Ypres and the Somme put together. His monologues, "If" and "The Green Eye Of The Little Yellow God" had absolutely no 'feel' for the narrative, phrasing, or sense of rhythm; Rex Harrison displayed none of his gifts as a light comedian, and only Vivien Leigh appeared to know her ass from third base. It occurred to me that the popular English comedian of the nineteen fifties, Tony Hancock, had clearly based his voice on that of Laughton in this film. Back in his native US Whelan directed three musicals, Seven Days Leave, Higher and Higher, and Step Lively, all three minor league but light years ahead of this embarrassment.
Review of The Sidewalks of London
