The Wrong Box: Difference between revisions
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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In the early 19th century, a lawyer explains to a group of young boys that a [[tontine]] has been organised in which £1,000 has been invested in the name of each child (£20,000 in total) |
In the early 19th century, a lawyer explains to a group of young boys that a form of [[tontine]] has been organised in which £1,000 has been invested in the name of each child (£20,000 in total) but only the last survivor will benefit by receiving the accrued total of all capital and earned interest. A series of accidental deaths gradually reduce the numbers of the group. |
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63 years later, in [[Victorian era|Victorian]] [[London]], elderly brothers Masterman ([[John Mills]]) and Joseph Finsbury ([[Ralph Richardson]]), who live next to each other, are the last surviving members of the tontine. Masterman is attended by his unpromising medical student grandson |
63 years later, in [[Victorian era|Victorian]] [[London]], elderly brothers Masterman ([[John Mills]]) and Joseph Finsbury ([[Ralph Richardson]]), who live next to each other, are the last surviving members of the tontine. Masterman is attended by his unpromising medical student grandson Michael Finsbury ([[Michael Caine]]), and, although Masterman hasn't talked to his despised brother in many years, he sends Michael next door to summon Joseph to see him. Michael is greeted by Julia ([[Nanette Newman]]), the granddaughter of Joseph. They see each other often on the street and secretly admire each other. She explains Joseph is in [[Bournemouth]] with her cousins. They talk in a room containing a large collection of eggs of different species. |
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Meanwhile, |
Meanwhile, Julia's cousins Morris ([[Peter Cook]]) and John ([[Dudley Moore]]) receive a telegram from Michael in their [[boarding house]] in Bournemouth, saying that Masterman is dying. |
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On the train trip to London, Joseph escapes from his grandson [[minder]]s, entering a compartment, and boring the sole occupant with a [[diatribe]] of trivial facts about the history of |
On the train trip to London, Joseph escapes from his grandson [[minder]]s, entering a compartment, and boring the sole occupant, who is [[knitting]], with a [[diatribe]] of trivial facts about the history of knitting. His companion later turns out to be the "Bournemouth Strangler". Joseph leaves to smoke a cigarette, leaving behind his coat, which "the Strangler" dons. The train then collides with another one, and in the wreckage, Morris and John find a mangled body wearing their uncle's coat and mistakenly assume it is that of their uncle. To protect their interest in the tontine, they hide the body in the woods in order to hide the death. Morris tells John to crate the body up and post it to London. Meanwhile, Joseph wanders away from the accident and obtains a ride on a coach, where he bores the driver with tales of how many words are in the [[Bible]]. |
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In London, Michael gets a telegram telling him to expect a crate containing a statue. Morris arrives at the door immediately after. He mistakes the elderly butler for Masterman. |
In London, Michael gets a telegram telling him to expect a crate containing a statue. Morris arrives at the door immediately after. He mistakes the elderly butler Peacock ([[Wilfrid Lawson (actor)|Wilfrid Lawson]]) for Masterman. |
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Morris decides to try to hide the body long enough for Masterman to |
Morris decides to try to hide the body long enough for Masterman to die, and then claim Joseph died of a heart attack upon hearing the news. Morris and John plot to ship the body to Joseph's London home where Julia lives. John, left behind to attend to this task, sends the body in a large barrel. Joseph makes his way to London on his own and visits his brother. Masterman makes several failed attempts to kill his brother, with Joseph oblivious to the attempts. They separate after quarrelling. Meanwhile, the barrel containing the body is delivered to Masterman's house by mistake, and as he emerges from the door Joseph is asked to sign for the barrel for "Mr Finsbury". Minutes later, another container, a crate ("the wrong box" of the title), is delivered to Joseph's house, also to "Mr Finsbury", but the house number is partially obscured. Julia signs for it, believing it to be an expected delivery from a relative. So both containers are mistakenly delivered to the wrong house. |
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Morris, arriving at Joseph's house in John's absence, sees a [[delivery wagon]] just leaving and assumes that his uncle's body has just been delivered. Morris then goes to Dr. Pratt ([[Peter Sellers]]) to try to obtain a blank [[death certificate]]. Michael helps move the crate into Joseph's house. |
Morris, arriving at Joseph's house in John's absence, sees a [[delivery wagon]] just leaving and assumes that his uncle's body has just been delivered. Morris then goes to Dr. Pratt ([[Peter Sellers]]) to try to obtain a blank [[death certificate]]. Michael helps the delivery men move the crate into Joseph's house. This stirs the passions of both Julia and Michael and they kiss for the first time. When Michael draws back and says they cannot do this because they are cousins, it emerges that they were both orphans adopted by their families, so are not blood related. |
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Michael discovers the contents of the mistakenly delivered barrel and, after learning of the "altercation" between Masterman and Joseph from Peacock, assumes that his grandfather has killed his brother. Thinking they should tell the police, Michael and Peacock debate who should take the blame in order to protect Masterman, but when Julia arrives with some broth for Masterman, Michael hides the body in a piano. That night, Michael hires unscrupulous "[[undertaker]]s" to remove the body from the piano and dump it into the [[River Thames|Thames]], but when they arrive Masterman has just fallen down the staircase and they assume his unconscious body is the one they are to dispose of. Outside, Morris observes the activity and gleefully assumes Masterman has died. |
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Morris and John go to see the lawyer controlling the tontine and claim that it has been won, producing the fake death certificate to prove it, and the lawyer tells them it has accrued to a total of £111,000. |
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Michael hides the body in a piano when Julia brings Masterman some broth. That night, Michael hires unscrupulous "[[undertaker]]s" to remove the strangler's body from the piano and dump it into the [[River Thames|Thames]], but Masterman falls down the staircase and they assume his unconscious body is the one they are to dispose of. Morris observes the activity and gleefully assumes Masterman has died. |
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| ⚫ | After being fished out of the river, Masterman is brought home by [[the Salvation Army]], who assume he has drowned himself. Julia orders a fancy [[coffin]] for her uncle. Morris orders a cheap coffin to remove the mutilated body he thinks is in Joseph's basement, but the coffin is delivered to the wrong house, and Michael sells the piano not knowing the body is still in it. The police become involved when the body in the piano is discovered. Masterman is revealed to be quite alive as he sits up in the coffin as it is being taken away. The cousins make off with the tontine money in the second [[hearse]]. Both hearses gallop through the park, Michael and Julia chasing Morris and John. They then encounter a real [[funeral procession]] in which Joseph is participating. |
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Further misunderstandings and antics ensue the next day as the cousins claim that the tontine has been won. The controlling lawyer says it has accrued to a total of £111,000. |
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| ⚫ | After a confusing crash, Morris and John realise they have a body instead of the money. The tontine money is about to be buried when they grab it and run off. The box bursts open and money is blown around the cemetery. Joseph pops up from the open grave just as Masterman arrives. The lawyer arrives to say the tontine has yet to be won. The police detective ([[Tony Hancock]]) arrives and Morris is arrested. They ask who put the body in the piano as there is a £1000 reward for catching the Bournemouth Strangler. A new argument begins. |
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| ⚫ | After being fished out of the |
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| ⚫ | After a confusing crash, Morris and John realise they have a body instead of the money. The tontine money is about to be buried when they grab it and run off. The box bursts open and money |
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==Cast== |
==Cast== |
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Revision as of 19:53, 10 July 2021
| The Wrong Box | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Bryan Forbes |
| Written by | Larry Gelbart Burt Shevelove |
| Based on | The Wrong Box by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne |
| Produced by | Bryan Forbes Jack Rix Larry Gelbart Burt Shevelove |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Gerry Turpin |
| Edited by | Alan Osbiston |
| Music by | John Barry |
Production company | Salamander Film Productions |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 107 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Wrong Box is a 1966 British comedy film produced and directed by Bryan Forbes from a screenplay by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove, based on the 1889 novel The Wrong Box by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne. It was made by Salamander Film Productions and distributed by Columbia Pictures.[1][2]
The cast includes a number of Britain's leading actors and comic actors of the time, including John Mills, Ralph Richardson, Michael Caine, Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Peter Sellers, Irene Handl, Nanette Newman, Wilfrid Lawson, and Tony Hancock. Included in the cast are other actors who later became more well-known, including John Le Mesurier, John Junkin, Leonard Rossiter, Nicholas Parsons, Jeremy Lloyd, Graham Stark, Thorley Walters, Norman Rossington, David Lodge, Juliet Mills, and Norman Bird. Cicely Courtneidge also appears, as Salvation Army Major Martha and The Temperance Seven also appear (as themselves).[3][1]
Plot
In the early 19th century, a lawyer explains to a group of young boys that a form of tontine has been organised in which £1,000 has been invested in the name of each child (£20,000 in total) but only the last survivor will benefit by receiving the accrued total of all capital and earned interest. A series of accidental deaths gradually reduce the numbers of the group.
63 years later, in Victorian London, elderly brothers Masterman (John Mills) and Joseph Finsbury (Ralph Richardson), who live next to each other, are the last surviving members of the tontine. Masterman is attended by his unpromising medical student grandson Michael Finsbury (Michael Caine), and, although Masterman hasn't talked to his despised brother in many years, he sends Michael next door to summon Joseph to see him. Michael is greeted by Julia (Nanette Newman), the granddaughter of Joseph. They see each other often on the street and secretly admire each other. She explains Joseph is in Bournemouth with her cousins. They talk in a room containing a large collection of eggs of different species.
Meanwhile, Julia's cousins Morris (Peter Cook) and John (Dudley Moore) receive a telegram from Michael in their boarding house in Bournemouth, saying that Masterman is dying.
On the train trip to London, Joseph escapes from his grandson minders, entering a compartment, and boring the sole occupant, who is knitting, with a diatribe of trivial facts about the history of knitting. His companion later turns out to be the "Bournemouth Strangler". Joseph leaves to smoke a cigarette, leaving behind his coat, which "the Strangler" dons. The train then collides with another one, and in the wreckage, Morris and John find a mangled body wearing their uncle's coat and mistakenly assume it is that of their uncle. To protect their interest in the tontine, they hide the body in the woods in order to hide the death. Morris tells John to crate the body up and post it to London. Meanwhile, Joseph wanders away from the accident and obtains a ride on a coach, where he bores the driver with tales of how many words are in the Bible.
In London, Michael gets a telegram telling him to expect a crate containing a statue. Morris arrives at the door immediately after. He mistakes the elderly butler Peacock (Wilfrid Lawson) for Masterman.
Morris decides to try to hide the body long enough for Masterman to die, and then claim Joseph died of a heart attack upon hearing the news. Morris and John plot to ship the body to Joseph's London home where Julia lives. John, left behind to attend to this task, sends the body in a large barrel. Joseph makes his way to London on his own and visits his brother. Masterman makes several failed attempts to kill his brother, with Joseph oblivious to the attempts. They separate after quarrelling. Meanwhile, the barrel containing the body is delivered to Masterman's house by mistake, and as he emerges from the door Joseph is asked to sign for the barrel for "Mr Finsbury". Minutes later, another container, a crate ("the wrong box" of the title), is delivered to Joseph's house, also to "Mr Finsbury", but the house number is partially obscured. Julia signs for it, believing it to be an expected delivery from a relative. So both containers are mistakenly delivered to the wrong house.
Morris, arriving at Joseph's house in John's absence, sees a delivery wagon just leaving and assumes that his uncle's body has just been delivered. Morris then goes to Dr. Pratt (Peter Sellers) to try to obtain a blank death certificate. Michael helps the delivery men move the crate into Joseph's house. This stirs the passions of both Julia and Michael and they kiss for the first time. When Michael draws back and says they cannot do this because they are cousins, it emerges that they were both orphans adopted by their families, so are not blood related.
Michael discovers the contents of the mistakenly delivered barrel and, after learning of the "altercation" between Masterman and Joseph from Peacock, assumes that his grandfather has killed his brother. Thinking they should tell the police, Michael and Peacock debate who should take the blame in order to protect Masterman, but when Julia arrives with some broth for Masterman, Michael hides the body in a piano. That night, Michael hires unscrupulous "undertakers" to remove the body from the piano and dump it into the Thames, but when they arrive Masterman has just fallen down the staircase and they assume his unconscious body is the one they are to dispose of. Outside, Morris observes the activity and gleefully assumes Masterman has died.
Morris and John go to see the lawyer controlling the tontine and claim that it has been won, producing the fake death certificate to prove it, and the lawyer tells them it has accrued to a total of £111,000.
After being fished out of the river, Masterman is brought home by the Salvation Army, who assume he has drowned himself. Julia orders a fancy coffin for her uncle. Morris orders a cheap coffin to remove the mutilated body he thinks is in Joseph's basement, but the coffin is delivered to the wrong house, and Michael sells the piano not knowing the body is still in it. The police become involved when the body in the piano is discovered. Masterman is revealed to be quite alive as he sits up in the coffin as it is being taken away. The cousins make off with the tontine money in the second hearse. Both hearses gallop through the park, Michael and Julia chasing Morris and John. They then encounter a real funeral procession in which Joseph is participating.
After a confusing crash, Morris and John realise they have a body instead of the money. The tontine money is about to be buried when they grab it and run off. The box bursts open and money is blown around the cemetery. Joseph pops up from the open grave just as Masterman arrives. The lawyer arrives to say the tontine has yet to be won. The police detective (Tony Hancock) arrives and Morris is arrested. They ask who put the body in the piano as there is a £1000 reward for catching the Bournemouth Strangler. A new argument begins.
Cast
- John Mills as Masterman Finsbury
- Ralph Richardson as Joseph Finsbury
- Michael Caine as Michael Finsbury
- Peter Cook as Morris Finsbury
- Dudley Moore as John Finsbury
- Nanette Newman as Julia Finsbury
- Peter Sellers as Dr. Pratt
- Tony Hancock as Detective
- Valentine Dyall as Oliver Pike Harmsworth
- Leonard Rossiter as Vyvyan Alistair Montague (killed in tontine)
- Wilfrid Lawson as Peacock
- Thorley Walters as Lawyer Patience
- Cicely Courtneidge as Major Martha
- Diane Clare as Mercy
- Gerald Sim as First Undertaker
- Irene Handl as Mrs. Hackett
- John Le Mesurier as Dr. Slattery
- Nicholas Parsons as Alan Frazer Scrope
- James Villiers as Sydney Whitcombe Sykes
- Graham Stark as Ian Scott Fife (killed in tontine)
- Jeremy Lloyd as Brian Allen Harvey
- Peter Graves as Military Officer
- John Junkin as 1st Engine Driver
- Timothy Bateson as Official
- Norman Bird as Spiritual
- Norman Rossington as first hooligan
Filming locations
Pinewood Studios, Iver, Buckinghamshire, was the main production base for the studio sets and many exteriors, with the Victorian London crescent exteriors being shot on Bath's historic Royal Crescent, complete with TV aerials on the roofs. The funeral coach and horse chase was filmed in St James's Square, Bath, and on Englefield Green, Surrey, and surrounding lanes.[4]
Reception
Bosley Crowther wrote in The New York Times, "Perhaps the best of the clowning is the little bit Mr. Sellers does as this drink-sodden, absent-minded skip-jack, fumbling foolishly and a little sadly among his cats. But Mr. Richardson is splendid as a scholarly charlatan, and Mr. Mills and Mr. Lawson are capital as a couple of fuddy-duddy crooks. Sure, the whole nutty business is tumbled together haphazardly in the script that has been written—or maybe scrambled—by Larry Gelbert and Burt Shevelove. Some sections and bits are funnier than others. Some are labored and dull. It is that sort of story, that sort of comedy. But it adds up to a lively lark";[5] while more recently, Dennis Schwartz called it a "Mildly amusing silly black comedy."[6] AllMovie wrote, "By turns wacky and weird, The Wrong Box is a welcome alternative to standard issue film comedies."[7]
In his autobiography What's it All About?, Michael Caine wrote of the movie's reception, that the film "is so British that it met with a gentle success in most places except Britain, where it was a terrible flop. I suppose this was because the film shows us exactly as the world sees us - as eccentric, charming and polite - but the British knew better that they were none of these things, and it embarrassed us."[3]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Awards | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | British Academy Film Awards | Best British Costume | Julie Harris | Won |
| Best British Actor | Ralph Richardson | Nominated | ||
| Best British Art Direction | Ray Simm | Nominated |
References
- ^ a b "The Wrong Box (1966)". British Film Institute.
- ^ Goble, Alan (1 January 1999). The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 9783110951943 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b "The Wrong Box (1966) - Articles - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
- ^ "Reel Streets". www.reelstreets.com.
- ^ "The Wrong Box (1966) - Other Reviews - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
- ^ Schwartz, Dennis. "wrongbox". homepages.sover.net.
- ^ "The Wrong Box (1966) - Bryan Forbes - Review - AllMovie". AllMovie.
External links
- The Wrong Box at IMDb
- The Wrong Box at Rotten Tomatoes
- Template:AllMovie title
- The Wrong Box at BritMovie (archived)
- Use dmy dates from May 2013
- 1966 films
- 1966 comedy films
- British films
- British black comedy films
- English-language films
- Films based on British novels
- Films based on works by Robert Louis Stevenson
- BAFTA winners (films)
- Films directed by Bryan Forbes
- Films scored by John Barry (composer)
- Films with screenplays by Larry Gelbart
- Films set in England
- Films set in the 1880s
- Films shot at Pinewood Studios
- Columbia Pictures films