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Castle in the Air
Castle in the Air
	Film poster by Ronald Searle
Directed by	Henry Cass
Screenplay by	Edward Dryhurst; Alan Melville
Based on	Castle in the Air; 1949 play; by Alan Melville
Produced by	Edward Dryhurst; Ernest Gartside
Starring	David Tomlinson; Helen Cherry; Margaret Rutherford
Cinematography	Erwin Hillier
Edited by	Edward B. Jarvis
Music by	Francis Chagrin
Production; company	Associated British Picture Corporation
Distributed by	Associated British-Pathé
Release dates	June 1952 ; 26 December 1952 (U.S.);
Running time	89 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	£116,727

Castle in the Air is a 1952 British comedy film directed by Henry Cass and starring David Tomlinson, Helen Cherry and Margaret Rutherford.^[2] The screenplay was by Edward Dryhurst and Alan Melville based on Melville's 1949 stage play of the same title.^[3] Produced by ABPC, the film was made at the company's Elstree Studios.

Plot

The penniless 19th Earl of Locharne, the owner of a run-down Scottish castle which he has made into a mostly empty hotel, has to deal with a myriad of financial troubles, starting with his creditors and the few disgruntled tenants. Then there is Mr. Phillips, a socialist official from the British National Coal Board, which wants to requisition (not buy) it to convert into a vacation hostel for miners and their families. The earl introduces Phillips to a beautiful family ghost, Ermyntrude, the earl's grandfather's mistress.

Next, a long-time prospective purchaser, wealthy, attractive American divorcee Mrs. Clodfelter Dunne, shows up unannounced to look over the place in person. The earl's evident attraction to Mrs. Dunne is observed with dismay by his assistant, "Boss" Trent.

Both Mr. Phillips and Mrs. Dunne stay overnight at the castle. The earl is hard-pressed to simultaneously convince the former that the castle is falling into ruin and the latter that it is well worth purchasing.

Meanwhile, eccentric boarder Miss Nicholson is obsessed with proving that the earl is actually the rightful King of Scotland. When Mrs. Dunne expresses her belief that she is a member of the family, a delighted Miss Nicholson sets out to try to trace her lineage.

Mrs. Dunne eventually decides to purchase the place. She and the earl drive to Aberdeen to see his solicitor, Pettigrew. The price is $250,000 (about £70,000). Later, the earl receives a message to see an unnamed lady in hotel room 57. However, when he enters the room, he is disappointed to find Miss Nicholson and her followers, bent on a Jacobite restoration. The ensuing party runs late into the night, with Mrs. Dunne and Pettigrew in attendance. The earl and Mrs. Dunne, both rather intoxicated, return to the castle around four in the morning.

The next day, Trent, believing that the earl and Mrs. Dunne were alone in the hotel room, quarrels with the earl. She makes him inform Mrs. Dunne that the castle is in danger of being requisitioned. Mrs. Dunne takes back her cheque. However, after hearing from Phillips that he has been passed over for promotion, the earl has Mrs. Dunne offer him the position of managing the castle for her for a large salary, provided he turn in a recommendation that the castle not be acquired. He agrees. Now that the sale has been reinstated, the earl asks Trent to marry him, much to her delight. Miss Nicholson interrupts them with dreadful news: it turns out the earl is not in the direct line of succession after all.

Cast

David Tomlinson as The Earl of Locharne
Helen Cherry as Boss Trent
Margaret Rutherford as Miss Nicholson
Barbara Kelly as Mrs. J. Clodfelter Dunne
A. E. Matthews as Blair, a tenant
Patricia Dainton as Ermyntrude
Ewan Roberts as Menzies, the earl's loyal servant
Brian Oulton as Phillips
Clive Morton as MacFee
Gordon Jackson as hiker
Pat Sandys as girl hiker
Russell Waters as Moffat
John Harvey as Andrews
Esme Beringer as Mrs. Thompson, a tenant
Winifred Willard as Miss Miller, a tenant
David Hannaford as small boy
Helen Christie as Jessie
Archie Duncan as constable
Norman Macowan as Pettigrew
Stringer Davis as hall porter
Paul Blake as hotel manager

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "The difficulties of the titled poor, an idea amusing when new, has been exploited too often in recent productions. David Tomlinson and Helen Cherry reinforce this impression by their lack of enthusiasm. Only Margaret Rutherford, clad in full Highland regalia and her own sublime brand of humour, lends life to a joke which otherwise falls flat, though it apparently sparkled a bit more on the stage."^[4]

Kine Weekly wrote: "Farcical comedy, smoothly adapted from the West End stage success. ... Certain of laughs in practically any company, it honours not hides behind the eagerly sought quota label. Capital British light booking."^[5]

Picturegoer wrote: "Chuckles all the way in a neat comedy about the parlous condition of some of the stately homes of Scotland. It is well produced and picturesquely staged."^[6]

At the time of its American release, The New York Times described the film as a "slender but thoroughly good-natured little British comedy".^[7]

TVGuide.com said: "this stage play should have stayed on the stage."^[8]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "good", writing: "A good few chuckles, mainly from Margaret Rutherford as the genealogist."^[9]

Leslie Halliwell said: "Topical comedy which sparkled more on the stage."^[10]

A reviewer on the website Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings wrote, "all in all, a delightful comedy."^[11]

References

^ Vincent Porter, 'The Robert Clark Account', Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol 20 No 4, 2000 p499
^ "Castle in the Air". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
^ Melville, Alan (1949). Castle in the Air: A Comedy - Alan Melville - Google Books. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
^ "Castle in the Air". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 19 (216): 126. 1 January 1952 – via ProQuest.
^ "Castle in the Air". Kine Weekly. 434 (2395): 30. 21 May 1953 – via ProQuest.
^ "Castle in the Air". Picturegoer. 24: 18. 8 July 1952 – via ProQuest.
^ H. H. T. (5 January 1953). "Movie Review - Castle in the Air - THE SCREEN; British Comedy Bows". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
^ "Castle In The Air Trailer, Reviews and Schedule for Castle In The Air | TVGuide.com". Movies.tvguide.com. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 291. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.
^ Halliwell, Leslie (1989). Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 181. ISBN 0586088946.
^ "Fantastic Movie Musings & Ramblings - CASTLE IN THE AIR (1952)". Scifilm.org. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 12 March 2014.