Smashing Time (1967)

Smashing it is

I'm very fond of this send up of swingin' London and its pretensions, but even if I weren't, the song Redgrave sings, about not being able to do anything, but she's young, is worth it. I've always been surprised that some punk band never covered it, or maybe somebody has and I just don't know who. Lots of fun, more fun than most of these Swingin' 60s films, most of which simply haven't held up with time. August 27, 2006

WHAT A SMASHING TIME IT IS

One of the best british films that was ever made with top stars and a lovley young Lynn Redgrave, IAN CARMICHAEL AND NOT FORGETTING THAT BIG BOSS ARTHUR MULLARD.
WHAT A CRAKER THIS FILM IS I GARENTEE THIS TO ANY ONE. November 7, 2004

Very groovy

For anyone fascinated by the London take on the swinging sixties circa 1966 to 67, this is the one to watch. Actually, there's not that much competition; The Knack is overrated and handicapped by being black and white (this was NOT the time to be black and white), Help! is outrageously cooky and more about the Beatles than the 60s. Darling, and Alfie also spring to mind, but they are less interested in the "scene" than this film is.

The plot is essentially a string of semi-independent set pieces strung together, some more successful than others, but for the 60s connoisseur the great thing is how they all set out to capture the mood and action of the time. Therefore, we have in the front line a hip photographer, a Northern girl manufactured into an overnight pop star, a wild party in the Post Office Tower revolving restaurant (that dates it, doesn't it? Before the bombs...), a far-out boutique named "Too Much" owned by a titled but trendy deb-type, and an "in" restaurant.

What the makers also capture, perhaps unwittingly, is the fact that hip London was just a tiny island in the middle of a sea of a country still emerging only slowly from the morass of post-war penury. So we also see the desperately grimy and dismal streets of London, the inside of a typical Camden café (and we are definitely talking caff here, not caf-fey) and a dismal example of ghastly exploitative TV (no great change there then).

The main thing is the sheer creative exuberance of the time and the joie-de-vivre of the young hipsters. The sixties were radically out of fashion by the Thatcherite eighties, and if you want to know why this film gives a few pointers. The self-confidence and self-importance of the time looked distinctly like adolescent innocence by the time London had run through the terrorism, recession, explosion of sex and violence in film and TV and near collapse of the country in the seventies. Fortunately for those of us with a soft spot for this kind of thing, the last ten years has seen a reevaluation which finally recognises just what a fantastically creative and imaginative period this was.

Not a film to watch for character development or depth, but unparalleled as an inside glimpse of a special corner of the sixties. June 9, 2004

An Undiscovered MODern Classic

If you love slapstick films or anything from the 1960s, this DVD is for you. This obscure film deserves to be seen and enjoyed by all lovers of the Swinging Sixties.

Rita Tushingham and Lynn Redgrave (Mollie Sugden from "Are You Being Served?" probably got the idea for her character's wigs after seeing Redgrave here) are two girls who decide to make their mark in Swinging London. This film was shot entirely on location and is filled with wonderful shots of Carnaby Street and 1960's London.

Tushingham, who appeared so vulnerable in "The Knack...and How to Get It", really shines in this comedic roll, especially in a scene where she sneaks into the apartment of the man who is trying to seduce a drunk Redgrave. The resulting sabotage is a pleasure to watch.

Anchor Bay released this in widesceen but there are no additional extras on it. After viewers see this, they'll not only wish that there had been some extras, they'll also wish that additional movies about these characters had been made. December 29, 2002

Smashing Indeed

This has to be one of the forgotten gems of the 60's. Hilariously funny, a riot from start to finish and it captures swinging London in an "Austin Powers" sort of way. Being from the UK myself its hard to believe that it's not available over here. If you want an easy to watch and very funny slice of 1960's Britain then this is the film for you. August 26, 2002

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