alexanderdavies-99382
"The Belles of St. Trinian's" was the first of 4 comedies to feature a rather notorious school for Girls where the pupils had overtaken the school and the teachers were always outsmarted. Alastair Sim is cast as both the headmistress Miss Fritton and her dishonest brother. As with most of his films, he steals the show. However, the supporting cast are brilliant, particularly George Cole and Joyce Grenfell. The latter is a police officer who goes undercover as a teacher, so as to discover what those dastardly pupils are planning next. From the opening scene, it is clear that the establishment ceased to be a school many years earlier! The laughs are plentiful and I rate this film as the best one by a long way. Released in 1954, "The Belles of St. Trinian's" was a huge commercial success and rightly so.
MartinHafer
Before I get to reviewing this film's merits, I should point out that this DVD needs captions--as it has none. While the English accents are not as thick as in some films, for us non-Brits it sure would help to have DVD captions or closed captioning--particularly if you are hard of hearing like I am.The film is set at a god-awful girls school, St. Trinian's. The teachers are unqualified and indifferent--mostly because the kids are so incorrigible and unruly. It all seems to be this way because the Headmistress is a complete idiot. Interestingly, this lady is played by Alastair Sim--who also plays the part of her brother, a professional gambler. When the kids blow things up, kidnap or run amok, she seems to think it's a case of 'girls being girls'. All she really seems to care about it keeping her debt-ridden school afloat--by whatever means is necessary.Watching this film was a lot like watching a hundred kids like the one from "Problem Child" as they go about their wicked ways. At first it was rather cute, but after a while I felt a bit numb about it. Fortunately, there is a bit of plot later in the film about gamblers and a kidnapped horse. While it's all mildly funny, I also was left inexplicably flat about it--and I am not sure why. I mean, seeing and hearing Sim playing a lady was great and the idea of a school full of horrid kids is cute...but the film didn't seem to have a lot more to offer--no deeper meaning or significance. It's decent but don't expect an Ealing comedy...though Sim is quite good.
crossbow0106
A really funny British comedy from the mid 1950's about a school for girls. The girls are all involved in mischief and mayhem, making bathtub gin, smoking and gambling. Alastair Sim plays Headmistress Millicent in a glorious drag role, as well as playing Millicent's brother. A female police officer goes to the school undercover to see what is going on. This film is funny, having great sight gags and Alastair Sim is great. Just a classic Britsh comedy, lots of fun and not too cruse. Joan Sims ans Sid James, stars of many Carry On films, play small roles, but this film is about the girls. It spawned 3 sequels and a recent re-make. Watch and enjoy where it all began.
Welly-2
Tremendous fun both as a film and as an excuse to sit back and play the 'oh, that's whassis name' game. Every star of the golden age of English films seems to be in this one and it was a joy to see them. And the greatest of them all, Richard Wattis, was as tremendous as ever. There is actually a plot that trundles along very nicely, there's also some splendid jokes and comedic moments, but the key to this films triumph is the characters within it. Alastair Sim is magnificent and somehow convinces you that a six foot, big-boned Scotsman could be the headmistress of a girl's boarding school. George Cole, Beryl Reid and Irene Handl all have their moments but, with Alastair and Richard, the star of the show is Joyce Grenfell. She is an absolute one-off and brings a smile whenever she's on the screen...her rolling-walk and plum accent done to perfection. And for those playing the , that's whassis name' game, you can even spot Arthur Mullard, Barbara Windsor and Ronald Searle if you look carefully.
AD
