Off the Dole

1935
1h 29m

IMDb RATING

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Without a job, a young man is given the opportunity run his ill uncle's private-detective agency. He finds himself mixed up with everything from an unfaithful husband who is a secret nudist ... Read allWithout a job, a young man is given the opportunity run his ill uncle's private-detective agency. He finds himself mixed up with everything from an unfaithful husband who is a secret nudist to a schoolteacher who believes his pupil's father is beating him.Without a job, a young man is given the opportunity run his ill uncle's private-detective agency. He finds himself mixed up with everything from an unfaithful husband who is a secret nudist to a schoolteacher who believes his pupil's father is beating him.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.2/10

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

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Trivia
Stan Little, playing a seven-year-old boy, was actually 24 at the time.

Soundtracks
With My Little Ukulele In My Hand
Written by Jack Cottrell
Performed by George Formby

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Review

Featured review

Formby's Second Film - Marginally better than his first.

This film was also made by John Blakely and shot at the Albany 'Studio' which was above a garage in Regent Street. Apparently the mechanics had to stop work every time they filmed.

The film is described as a 'Merry Musical Burlesque' The plot is so disjointed it barely deserves a mention other than to say Formby plays a gormless private detective.

He appears again in scenes with his wife Beryl - she wasn't much of a singer and had a 'posh' 1930s speaking voice which now sounds rather ridiculous and is at odds with George's accent.

At least he gets to sing a lot more than in his first film and he uses not only a proper ukulele but the banjulele (or Ukulele Banjo) for which he was famous.

The other highlights for me are the inclusion of two super variety acts that border on being speciality acts. Firstly is an eccentric dancer called Len Martin who starts of with a patter and cross talk routine before dancing. Some of his material is just a bit near the mark too, especially for 1935.

The second act is Stan Pell and Stan Little who do a routine as a Parson and a little boy. Little is the little boy who is supposed to be 7 years old but is actually a midget who was aged around 24. You'll see for yourself if you ever get to see this film. It's a priceless act - but like Len Martin absolutely nothing to do with the 'plot'.

By Blakeley and Mancunian Films standards this was probably a good film but by any other standards it was not. Nevertheless it and its predecessor Boots! Boots! were a big enough attraction 'oop North' to gain the interest of Basil Dean who directed Formby's following films and made him one of the greatest (if not the greatest) cinema stars of the 30s and 40s in the UK.