In a mansion block in Knightsbridge, a gang of middle-aged biddies decide to brighten up "the dullness of the tea time of life" by staging a series of robberies on furriers, then donating the proceeds to charitable concerns. Terry Thomas as a retired army officer leads the gang, which includes Athene Seyler and Hattie Jacques, on a series of capers that nearly go awry when their maid, Billie Whitelaw, an ex-con and also a resident of the block, falls for a police officer.
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Reviews
The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.
Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable
It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.
It's just as well the charming and beguiling Billie Whitelaw is included in this rather knockabout farce, as well as a number of other expert players who can similarly overcome both the over-talkative dialogue and the rather long time it takes for the movie to actually start moving! In fact, it's chiefly the cast that makes this entry worth watching. Even the minor roles are expertly filled. You can spot Kenneth Williams giving one of his typically fruity portrayals. Hattie Jacques, as always, is a delight. Alas, Robert Asher's director, while it does have some inventive touches here and there, tends to be slow and heavy-handed. However, other credits are serviceable and production values are well up to "A" standard.
As some people would say, this is good film for a rainy night, but I don't understand all the rave reviews about it."Make Mine Mink" looks like an episode of a television series where the same cast is used in different histories. I think that for really enjoying this kind of film it helps being familiar with the actors (and their former/later works). For instance, a reviewer had a lot of fun in seeing "a stunning, long-haired blond, high-heeled Hattie Jacques" and another reviewer says "Terry-Thomas is cast out of his usual flash, boisterous role as the rather timid Major Rayne" and so on.There's also the cultural/national factor. British humor can be difficult to understand in other countries. In my case, I like the sophisticated British humor that is present in many films, even in those that could not be labeled as comedy. "The Servant", for instance, presents a more sarcastic, cruel humor, that I appreciate as well.But "Make Mine Mink" belongs to the category of television humor, not quite so refined. It has a good story, with a strong theatrical flavor, very dependent on the charisma of the actors (so beloved by the audience, as the reviews prove). Anyway, one can feel that the actors are at ease and are given opportunities to improvise.All in all, "Make Mine Kink" is a mildly funny film but no more than that.
Just saw it on TCM. It was much funnier than I expected. It is unusual for a slapstick comedy to have so much sympathy for the characters. You really get to like them. Even the love interest is well done. Its well worth watching. Terry Thomas is superb. As good as I remembered him from my misspent youth. The three women who worked with him were also very good. I didn't remember any of them but will look for them in the future. It is a shame that the wondrous tradition of British comedies disappeared. From Guiness to Sellars to Margaret Rutherford. The Remake of The Ladykillers proved just how good they were. It is amazing how even a fine actor like Tom Hanks was unable to match the quality of the original movie.
I liked this. I suggest you reserve it for a time when you want something that isn't much work in viewing (which means that 1960 is about the latest you can consider).The structure is a familiar one: we watch a bunch of actors portraying unlikely characters who themselves play unlikely characters precisely as far away. The joke of course is in the overlap, and the competence of the first contrasted with the incompetence of the second. Its all about coats and appropriation.There's an interesting performer here, one I haven't seen before. She plays a painfully reserved spinster who's occupation is mending broken china. Her character, Pinkie, is immensely inept and most of the polished humor (this was a successful stage play) is hers. We are introduced to her when the silly major breaks in on her bath because she has extended into his time. This is moments after having the first long segment of the movie linger on the sexy, pretty maid. And we see a naked skinny old maid in the bath. The major is retired from his duty as commander of "portable baths."That's the attention to detail you'll find in how this humor is constructed.Anyway, Pinkie (with the wonderful name of Elspeth Duxbury) only lived a few years after this. Too bad.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.
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