The Wrong Box

Overview

Years before the story proper in The Wrong Box gets under way, a "tontine" is drawn up on behalf several young British boys. Each of the boys' parents had placed 1000 pounds in a pool, to be invested and expanded upon. The resultant fortune will go to the last surving member of the tontine. A series of montages depicts the various demises of the heirs (our favorite occurs when one of them is inadvertently beheaded while being knighted by Queen Victoria). Finally, only two of the tontine participants are left: aged brothers Ralph Richardson and John Mills. On his last legs, Mills is determined that Richardson will not outlive him, and to that end attempts to kill his brother; each attempt fails spectacularly, with the doddering Richardson none the wiser. Standing to benefit from the tontine are Mills' dimwitted med-student son Michael Caine and Richardson's greedy nephews Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. When Richardson is supposedly killed in a train wreck, Cook and Moore don't want the authorities to find out, so they appropriate what they think is their uncle's corpse and ship it home in a box. Thus it is that Caine finds the body of a perfect stranger on his doorstep. The farcical complications begin flying about thick and fast from this point onward. Among the participants in this wacky gigglefest are such formidable talents as Peter Sellers, Tony Hancock, Wilfred Lawson, Thorley Walters, Norman Rossington, Irene Handl and Cicely Courtenedge. Based on a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Wrong Box is a delightful harkback to the glory days of Britain's Ealing comedies. We were so wrapped up in the story that we didn't even notice all those TV antennae sprouting up on the rooftops of Victorian London.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/23/2010
UPC:	0043396368422
Original Release:	1966
Rating:	NR
Source:	SONY
Language:	English

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jeremy Lloyd	Brian Allen Harvey
James Villiers	Sydney Whitcombe Sykes
Graham Stark	Ian Scott Fife
Ralph Richardson	Joseph Finsbury
Michael Caine	Michael Finsbury
Peter Cook	Morris Finsbury
John Mills	Masterman Finsbury
Dudley Moore	John Finsbury
Nicholas Parsons	Alan Fraser Scrope
Nanette Newman	Julia Finsbury
Tony Hancock	Detective
Peter Sellers	Dr. Pratt
Cicely Courtneidge	Maj. Martha
Wilfrid Lawson	Peacock,Peacock
Thorley Walters	Lawyer Patience
Gerald Sim	1st Undertaker
Peter Graves	Military Officer on Train
Irene Handl	Mrs. Hackett
Norman Bird	Clergyman,Bonn's Vanman,Countryman
John Le Mesurier	Dr. Slattery
Hilton Edwards	Lawyer
Norman Rossington	1st Rough
Diane Clare	Mercy
Tutte Lemkow	Bournemouth Strangler
Joseph Behrmann	Vanman's Mate
Marianne Stone	Spinster on Train
Thomas Gallagher	2nd Rough
Timothy Bateson	Clerk
Reg Lye	3rd Undertaker
John Junkin	1st Engine Driver
Roy Murray	1st Stoker
Tony Thawnton	2nd Undertaker
George Selway	Railway Vanman
Gwendolyn Watts	Maid
Vanda Godsell	Mrs. Goodge
Donald Tandy	Ticket Collector
Lionel Gamlin	2nd Engine Driver
Martin Terry	2nd Stoker
George Spence	Workman in Road
Willoughby Goddard	James White Wragg
Valentine Dyall	Oliver Pike Harmsworth
Leonard Rossiter	Vyvyan Alastair Montague
Hamilton Dyce	Derek Lloyd Peter Digby
Donald Oliver	Gunner Sergeant
Totti Truman Taylor	Lady at Launching
Jeremy Roughton	Bugler
Frank Singuineau	Native Bearer
Michael Lees	Young Digby
Andre Morell	Club Butler
Avis Bunnage	Queen Victoria
Penny Brahms	Twittering Females on Moor
Maria Kazan	Twittering Females on Moor
Freddy Clark	Constable
George Hillsden	Constable
Alf Mangun	Gravedigger
Norman Morris	Gravedigger,Himself
Arthur Sandiford	Mourner
Louise Noland	Mourner
John Tateham	Verger
Sarah Harrison	Governess
Peggy Ray	Child with Governess
John Parker	Undertaker's Assistant
John Fitch	Undertaker's Assistant
Norman Hibbert	Undertaker's Assistant
Jimmy Scott	Undertaker's Assistant
Alistair Dick	Undertaker's Assistant
Dan Cressey	Judas
Lindsay Hooper	Matthew
Denis Cowles	Sotheby's Partner
Patsy Snell	Girls on Train
Andrea Allen	Girls on Train
Phillip Stewart	Elderly Man on Train
Rita Tobin	Elderly Woman on Train
Dick Gregory	Leicester Young Fielding
John Barry	Composer

Technical Credits

Larry Gelbart

Bryan Forbes	Director,Producer
Larry Gelbart	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

A film which has developed a considerable cult following over the years, The Wrong Box is a black British comedy that combines Ealing Studio subtlety with a 1960's era cynicism and detachment, all in the re-telling of a Victorian-era story from Robert Louis Stevenson. This curious mélange works remarkably well, although it comes with an odd sensibility, the appeal of which will escape some viewers. The excellent cast is a huge asset; in an ensemble in which all roles are well played, special kudos go to Ralph Richardson, Peter Cook, Michael Caine and Peter Sellers. Richardson, constantly spouting useless trivia, is hilarious, and Cook's hypocritical, larcenous and venal nephew is a portrait to treasure. Some may find Caine too gentle and dim witted, but the film and the role call for a bit of exaggeration. And Sellers' cameo is a priceless piece of comic acting. Director Bryan Forbes gives the film an appropriately quirky feel, and he handles the climactic chase with flair. By turns wacky and weird, Wrong Box is a welcome alternative to standard issue film comedies.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler