As did George Formby,Will Hay and many others. I have to admit that this film is actually funny at times. Lucan finding three different ways to fall down stairs. Maybe it's the presence of Garry Marsh and Marita Hunt that inspired him. Mind you this film is the exception not the rule.
3 Reviews
Sometimes I Watch 'Em So You Don't Have To
boblipton28 February 2017
Warning: Spoilers
For those of you blissfully unaware of Old Mother Riley, she was played by Arthur Lucan, a Lancashire lad who impersonated an elderly Irish woman in various situations. With her daughter (played by Kitty McShane, Lucan's wife), the only comparison would be with Tyler Perry's Madea series -- if Madea were played by Pauly Shore pretending to be Stepin Fetchit. The emphasis was on rough slapstick and various stock Irishisms. Lucan made seventeen movies as the character. They were enormously popular in Britain, before he collapsed on stage, died, and spared the movie-going public further episodes.
In this one, one of the earliest contemporary war comedies, Kitty has just been certified as a doctor. She is attached to the army, and her mother joins up too, as a nurse. There is also a plot to this one, involving spies trying to steal plans for a new gun from its manufacturer, who are thwarted by Lucan in his sleep. While Lucan is a fair pratfall taker, the screeching stage Irish voice he affects, and the frantic, unfunny direction by Quota Quickie specialist Maclean Rogers, make this a comedy that is a trial to watch.
In this one, one of the earliest contemporary war comedies, Kitty has just been certified as a doctor. She is attached to the army, and her mother joins up too, as a nurse. There is also a plot to this one, involving spies trying to steal plans for a new gun from its manufacturer, who are thwarted by Lucan in his sleep. While Lucan is a fair pratfall taker, the screeching stage Irish voice he affects, and the frantic, unfunny direction by Quota Quickie specialist Maclean Rogers, make this a comedy that is a trial to watch.
Mum's Army
richardchatten5 February 2021
The only vehicle for Old Mother Riley directed by Maclean Rogers was obviously quickly rushed into cinemas on behalf of the war effort, with the result that it's one of the most ramshackle of the garrulous old biddy's films, seemingly cobbled together from old music hall routines.
Fascinating actuality footage of the actual ATS rubs shoulders with such surreal moments as 'electrical treatment' (as they called shock treatment in those days) being administered to an arms manufacturer, the old girl doing a striptease in silhouette or riding a bicycle in her sleep.
It's also the only Old Mother Riley film to feature Garry Marsh, already heading a gang of enemy agents selling plans for a big gun to an unnamed but easily identified enemy power.
Fascinating actuality footage of the actual ATS rubs shoulders with such surreal moments as 'electrical treatment' (as they called shock treatment in those days) being administered to an arms manufacturer, the old girl doing a striptease in silhouette or riding a bicycle in her sleep.
It's also the only Old Mother Riley film to feature Garry Marsh, already heading a gang of enemy agents selling plans for a big gun to an unnamed but easily identified enemy power.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
