The most satirical of Ealing's comedies, played
as a farce and put together with meticulous cinematic
counterpoint.
Alec Guinness, by now the most ubiquitous of Ealing
faces, plays a would-be research chemist who invents
a fabric which will never soil or wear out. Before
the threatened unions and business owners can destroy
his formula a flaw is revealed - the fabric disintegrates!
One of the highlights is Joan Greenwood's rapt response
to Guinness' scientific jargon - an enchanting piece
of screen comedy and surely a contributor to the
Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay [Roger
Macdougall, Alexander Mackendrick and John Dighton].
