Battle Of The Sexes [1959] [DVD]

Product Description

Angela Barrows (Constance Cummings) is a man-eating business woman who is sent by her American employer to investigate their export opportunities in Edinburgh. En route she meets Robert MacPherson (Robert Morley) a business woman who asks for her help to bring his company into the 20th century. The staff, led by Mr Martin (Peter Sellers), has other ideas however, and a comic battle between the old and new business methods soon brakes out. A vintage eter Sellers comedy that ranks amongst his funniest.

Review

Peter Sellers could do just about anything and this film helped to prove that fact. With some white hair, a moustache, and spectacles, you thoroughly believe his transformation into Mr. Martin, a character at least twenty-five years older than the actor was at the time. Although the title sounds like a sex romp, that's not the right description of this clever comedy with a somewhat dark theme. But BATTLE OF THE SEXES is about a power struggle between a man and woman. Martin is the faithful manager at the House of MacPherson, a Scottish firm that's been turning out tweed the same way for decades. When the new heir (Robert Morley) takes over, he brings in a domineering efficiency expert (Constance Cummings), an American no less, whose ideas threaten to ruin the company. Martin is forced to act. While he seems like a quiet and unassuming sort, he actually has a lot of guile and cunning beneath his mild-mannered exterior. First he tries to get her fired, but when that doesn't work he decides that more drastic measures are called for - like murder. Martin comes up with what he believes is the perfect plan, and all he has to do is carry it out. Do yourself a favor and watch it all unfold. Entertaining from start to finish, hilarious in several places, with a good supporting cast, and a plot that has a couple of surprises in store. Sellers proves yet again that he's a true comic genius. Three cheers for that, and four stars out of five for the film. --www.imdb.com

A delicious mix of dry comments, cultural clashes and devious expressions. Sellers is excellent as the mouse-like Mr Martin shocked to the core by the brash Miss Barrows and driven by his devotion to the family to protect tradition at all costs ! The bumbling uncertainty of the head of the Tweed empire could only be achieved by Morley whose portly figure towers over his frail employees as they await his next disastrous decision. Great examples of new not always being better (or not allowed to be !) form the key of the battle until the final hilarious showdown between the American and Scottish way of thinking. Every second is a film treat - should be on everyone's shelves ! --www.imdb.com