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Amazon.co.uk Review
Though he gets solo above-the-title billing, Will Hay was no more a solo comedian than Groucho Marx. Teamed with sidekicks Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt the trio formed one of British cinema's greatest comedy gangs. Oh, Mr Porter!, one of their finest vehicles, finds Hay as congenial William Porter, an inept railway worker who is shunted off to the dead-end job of stationmaster in Buggleskelly, Northern Ireland. The delight of the film is in the interplay between Hay and Marriott, the single-toothed dotty old-timer, and Moffatt, the chubby smart kid, as they fail the most basic requirements of their jobs but come up trumps when investigating the ghost of One-Eyed Joe and his haunted mill. --Kim Newman
One of Will Hay's brisker comic efforts, 1936's Convict 99 sees Dr Benjamin Twist, Hay's clueless schoolmaster, caught in a case of mistaken identity and invited to head up a prison for especially hard-boiled criminals. It's a typical outtake from Hay's bizarrely lawless universe in which, for all his harrumphing and bluster, he's unable to exercise any sort of discipline whatsoever over the men in his charge. Hay plays exactly the same character from film to film, one so ill-equipped for any situation he's equally suited for all. Whereas Twist is an incompetent who somehow muddles through, Hay the comic actor is a master of timing and double-takes who knows precisely how to create the air of a shambles. --David Stubbs
Special Features
4:3
DVD 5
English
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Mono English
Dolby Digital Mono
DVD 5
English
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Mono English
Dolby Digital Mono
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Oh Mr Porter is 60 years old but still one of the best ever comedies. Hay, Marriott and Moffat spark off each other, the grainy black-and-white texture gives oodles of atmosphere; I just love the whole scene when Porter arrives at Buggleskelly in the pouring rain. Of its time, but timeless. Just enjoy!
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Oh Mr Porter has been a favourite of mine for over 30 years. I can remember hiring an 8mm sound copy when a teenager. The story is well known and has appeared on TV many times but I just could not miss buying it on DVD. The sound seemed out of sync in a couple of places but not enough to be annoying, the picture and sound quality is good. A fine example of early British film comedy and the teaming of Hay, Marriott and Moffat is genius. Buy it.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I took great delight in introducing my two boys of 11 and 8 to Will Hay with this double DVD pack. Admittedly it can be hard to keep kids interested in a black and white film with a silly old duffer careering from one job to another, but it kept them entertained, and it was especially nice to get in from work one night and find the eldest just watching Convict 99 again.
You can pull them to pieces if you want in comparison with today's slick blockbusters, but these were true honest films featuring a comic genius. If you can make any complaint it is that you do get some 'slow' sections, but that can be relevant of films today.
My dad (His first introduction was as an avid 7/8 year old in the penny pictures when he saw them when they first came out in the 30s) first encouraged me to watch them when the BBC used to consider Will Hay, Harold Lloyd, Laurel and Hardy and the like good entertainment for kids - why do they never show them now?
You can pull them to pieces if you want in comparison with today's slick blockbusters, but these were true honest films featuring a comic genius. If you can make any complaint it is that you do get some 'slow' sections, but that can be relevant of films today.
My dad (His first introduction was as an avid 7/8 year old in the penny pictures when he saw them when they first came out in the 30s) first encouraged me to watch them when the BBC used to consider Will Hay, Harold Lloyd, Laurel and Hardy and the like good entertainment for kids - why do they never show them now?
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The old ones are the best
One of the best Will Hay films, and a must for lovers of old steam trains. Incompetent William Porter (Will Hay) is sent by his relatives as far away as possible, to a tiny railway... Read more
Published on 27 May 2010 by Stephen Bloom
Wonderful Double Bill (or is it double Will?)!
Two of Will Hay's best comedies, including his regular side-kicks Moore Marriott and Graham Moffat. 'Oh Mr Porter' is the better of the two. Read more
Published on 2 Nov 2007 by David Lusher
Unappreciated comedy classic
Every time I see one of those"100 GREATEST COMEDY"list shows on TV I always want to throw something at the screen.I've seen lists with"Police Academy"in the pool for Chrissake! Read more
Published on 15 Jun 2007 by Donald Morrissey
Hilarious
Will Hay has always been a favourite of mine. Neither as slapstick as Laurel and Hardy, nor as sharp as the Marx Brothers, Hay made his own the bumbling clown who just wants to... Read more
Published on 3 Oct 2005 by Paul D
Will Hay's best
We have here two movies in which the common factor is the bumbling, self important incompetent character Will Hay played so often making good in spite of himself. Read more
Published on 13 July 2003 by R. A. Caton
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