Passport to Pimlico (1949)

Director:

Henry Cornelius

Writer:

T.E.B. Clarke (original screenplay)

Release Date:

26 October 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

It's the wittiest comedy in years!

Plot:

Residents of a part of London declare independence, when they discover an old treaty. This leads to the need for a 'Passport to Pimlico'.

Plot Keywords:

Bomb | Burgundy | Place Name In Title | Diplomacy | Heat Wave

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Stanley Holloway	...	Arthur Pemberton
Betty Warren	...	Connie Pemberton
Barbara Murray	...	Shirley Pemberton
Paul Dupuis	...	Duke of Burgundy
John Slater	...	Frank Huggins
Jane Hylton	...	Molly
Raymond Huntley	...	Mr. Wix
Philip Stainton	...	PC Spiller
Roy Carr	...	Benny Spiller
Sydney Tafler	...	Fred Cowan
Nancy Gabrielle	...	Mrs. Cowan
Malcolm Knight	...	Monty Cowan
Hermione Baddeley	...	Edie Randall
Roy Gladdish	...	Charlie Randall
Frederick Piper	...	Garland

Runtime:

84 min | USA:70 min (2005 DVD release)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #13221) | UK:U (video rating) (1987) | Australia:G | Finland:S | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Ealing Studios, Ealing, London, England, UK

Company:

J. Arthur Rank Organisation

Trivia:

Wix is referred to as a second Montagu Norman; he had served as Governor of the Bank of England between 1920 to 1944.

Goofs:

Continuity: Frank Huggins appears with a group of men refilling the reservoir with a hosepipe, while simultaneously refilling his goldfish tank back at the shop.

Quotes:

P.C. Spiller: I've had the police after me.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Creating 'The Upside of Anger' (2005) (V)

An endearing look at London life that is gone but not forgotten

Brace yourself for a shock - according to a recently-discovered and authentic legal document that is centuries old, Brooklyn belongs to Iceland! Consequently, people travelling to and from Brooklyn must now carry a passport or visa, declare items of value at the Brooklyn Customs points, and perhaps even converse in Icelandic!

It is a similar, mind-bending assumption (with hilarious practical implications) that British viewers have to make when watching "Passport to Pimlico" (a London district near Buckingham Palace, no less). In the film, much of Pimlico (or "Burgundy" as it is now called) looks like a bomb-site, which it probably was still at that time in the aftermath of World War II.

As one of the so-called "Ealing comedies", it ranks alongside other films in this group like "Kind Hearts and Coronets" and "The Lavender Hill Mob" which parody - but in an affectionate way - various aspects of British social life. Conversation is always very parochial and petty. At the same time, this film preserves certain other conventions of the time - for example, there really was a restriction on how much money people could take out of Britain which lasted until the 1970s. In "Passport to Pimlico", people travelling on the underground railway have to declare there currency at the "Burgundy" Customs points. Above all, Margaret Rutherford stands out as the unworldly history professor with sweeping convictions. This charming films preserves a way of life which, though long gone, is not forgotten.