Half a Sixpence

Buy This Item Half a Sixpence by Paramount  Available from Amazon  $12.99  on 11-29-2008     When orphaned shop clerk Arthur Kipps inherits a fortune, his future seems assured--but money doesn't buy happiness, as the gawky lad learns when he mixes with the swells. The splashy musical <I>Half a Sixpence</I> was adapted from H.G. Wells's novel, <I>Kipps</I>, and it saw considerable success as a stage vehicle for the exuberant Tommy Steele. The film version gets caught in that mid-1960s mode of the lumbering super-production (the kind that helped kill the movie musical). Lavishly mounted by old pro director George Sidney, and boasting some echt-sixties photography by the great Geoffrey Unsworth, <I>Half a Sixpence</I> offers its share of eye candy. The blowhard presence of Cyril Ritchard and the spectacular dancing of Grover Dale help. Then there's Tommy Steele, whose stage-scaled performance is all teeth and hair; he attacks the razzmatazz numbers with ferocity--maybe more ferocity than charm. Songs by David Heneker. <I>--Robert Horton</I> Reader Reviews I saw this movie on Saturday and I thought it was good. It was 20 minutes too long. I think Tommy Steele was convincing as Arthur Kipps. Let's also give credit to Julia Foster's performance (one of the women that Michael Caine's character romances in "Alfie" in case you didn't know) as Anne. I noticed that the movie is in the same timeframe that "My Fair Lady" was. My favorite scene is early on when Kipps visits a stage rehersal (it leads to the song "If I Had a Banjo") and it leads to him meeting an actress named Nora (played by Juila Sutton-correct me if I'm wrong); who is in her lingerie and Kipps puts his head on her lap! Then it leads to the musical number and how often do you see a movie today in which one of the actresses (with the exception of Nicole Kidman in "Moulin Rouge") dance while wearing lingerie and shaking it in front of the lead actor's face? That scene as a whole was a hoot (an example that "The Times They Were a Changin'" in the 1960's). You should of felt my blood pressure drop when Kipps almost married Helen (Penelope Horner) and then feel it go back up again when Kipps breaks the engagment (when that happened I yelled out 'Good! What a bitch!') and goes back to Anne and marries her. A rarity: The lead character gets the girl. Above all, it is a decent movie. It's too bad this movie is not a special edition.

Half a Sixpence Available from Amazon Price: $12.99 Updated on 11-29-2008.

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