Good concept, poorly executed.

It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Despite its age this was an excellent old film. It can't fail to entertain virtually everyone.It's about a dying way of life, with different pace and priorities, but a life they love. This old way of life clashes with a newer way of life with a different pace and priorities.The often drunken and flawed captain and crew drift through life enjoying themselves, but usually on the wrong side of the law. Ironically often looked after by the youngest member of the crew; the wee boy.As a result of desperation and deviousness they pick up a cargo from an American tycoon, which they hope will save their little ship for another day. The story centres around trying to deliver the cargo and their battles and clashes with the American.As well as being an excellent film, the social history is excellent also.

Having seen other Ealing films, I came to this film with the expectation of quality, humor and charm, but this film devoid of all three. Watching four conniving and deceiving village idiots break a man's spirit and ruin his life is neither humorous nor charming. It is despicable. How this film could be called a comedy or even entertainment of any sort is a complete mystery to me. It paints a very grim picture of British people in general, and of Scottish people in particular. If they're anything like the people in this movie, you'd do well to steer clear of both. And above all, steer clear of this film. Tbere are Ealing films worth a look, but this is definitely not one of them.

Paul Douglas came as rather a surprise in this film. First of all, he's as alien among these Gaelic Islanders as Raymond Burr was among the Japanese of "Godzilla." Second of all, after a series of contretemps he must change into a woolly pullover and, although he has the face of a pudgy man, we see that he's not overweight, only a little bulky and lacking in neck. Douglas is Mr. Marshall, the owner of some expensive cargo that has been accidentally shipped to an island via the old and delapidated Scottish puffer called the Maggie.The captain and crew of the Maggie need desperately to get the cargo to its destination so they can collect the payment they need to get the broken-down boat into a shape good enough for it to pass inspection and be relicensed. (Which it is not now.) Essentially the story is a battle of wits between Douglas and the crew of the Maggie. Douglas is a very wealthy American businessman, but not the blustering brutish junkman he was on Broadway in "Born Yesterday." Instead he's a polite, efficient materialist, keenly clever. More clever than the Maggie's crew, or so he thinks.Douglas has a heck of a time tracking down the boat once it sails out of Glasgow with its cargo. He hires an airplane to find it and finally intercepts it at one of the many small fishing villages at which it stops for fuel or other reasons, such as the 100th birthday party of an old man who speaks only Gaelic.Boy, does this ring bells. All peasants on the screen must be a little whimsical and fun loving, when they're not casually getting the job done. It doesn't matter whether they're Greek ("Zorba") or Irish ("The Luck of the Irish") or Okinawan ("The Teahouse of the August Moon"). And the earnest, uptight American or English businessman must learn from them that the law must be interpreted leniently and life is nothing to get particularly upset about.The direction, by Alexander MacKendrick, is functional and the editing just about flawless. The acting is at a professional level. There are no major misjudgments on display. But it's not a zany laff riot either. The pace is generally slow, the slapstick sparse, and the humor is not mean spirited. Oh, the Maggie's crew may be on the right philosophical track okay, but Douglas isn't exactly a heavy. He's not so much angry as frustrated at losing every contest. And at the end, when he decides to jettison his precious cargo, it must come finally as a big relief to him. I'll bet his systolic blood pressure dropped thirty points.There are certainly funnier Ealing comedies: "The Man in the White Suit," "The Ladykillers." But this quiet little film really shouldn't be missed, especially if you're concerned about ulcers or blood pressure.

I remember vividly the first time I saw this film. It was a grey afternoon, spirits were drooping and I felt as dull as the tupperware sky outside. With no great relish, I turned on the afternoon movie - The Maggie - and gently let myself become enchanted. The word "gently" says it all, for this is an uplifting movie, full of charm and the odd brush stroke of pathos. Giggles transform into laughter with this one.It's an old tale of local knowledge taking on a Corporation - though in a private capacity as Calvin B Marshall is anxious to deliver some domestic appliances, including 4 baths ("What all on one island?" asks the incredulous Wee Boy), to a Scottish retreat, part of his plan to save an ailing marriage. The cargo unwittingly falls in to the hands of the motley crew of a puffer - The Maggie - and then begins a comic chase which is a delight to behold. Once Mr Marshall gets involved in a hands on way, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery. The lessons may be homely and somewhat prissy now, but it's pleasant to wallow in a social world that could never be. More's the shame for us. Still, it remains a wonderful wish-fulfillment world, touched by the gentlest of humours. A marvellous tonic for escapists.