Whisky Galore! (1949)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Alexander Mackendrick

Writers:

Compton MacKenzie (novel)
Compton MacKenzie (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 December 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

A Highland fling on a tight little island

Plot:

Scottish islanders try to plunder 50,000 cases of whisky from a stranded ship.

Plot Keywords:

Home Guard | Scottish Island | Scotland | WWII | Hebrides

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Basil Radford	...	Captain Paul Waggett
Catherine Lacey	...	Mrs Waggett
Bruce Seton	...	Sergeant Odd
Joan Greenwood	...	Peggy Macroon
Wylie Watson	...	Joseph Macroon
Gabrielle Blunt	...	Catriona Macroon
Gordon Jackson	...	George Campbell
Jean Cadell	...	Mrs Campbell
James Robertson Justice	...	Dr Maclaren
Morland Graham	...	The Biffer
John Gregson	...	Sammy MacCodrun
James Woodburn	...	Roderick MacRurie
James Anderson	...	Old Hector
Jameson Clark	...	Constable Macrae
Duncan Macrae	...	Angus McCormac

Also Known As:

Tight Little Island (USA)

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English | Scottish Gaelic

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | UK:Approved (British Film Censors) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A

Filming Locations:

Allasdale, Barra, Western Isles, Scotland, UK

Company:

Ealing Studios

Trivia:

Shot in three months.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Captain Waggett telephones the Post Office, he is unable to get through to the switchboard operator. Seconds later, he is speaking to Mistress Campbell. He could not possibly do so without the Post Office switchboard connecting him.

Quotes:

Captain Paul Waggett: [Speaking about the islanders] They're so unsporting. They don't do things for the sake of doing them like the English. We play the game for the sake of the game. Other nations play the game for the sake of winning it.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Rockets Galore! (1957)

Charming, heartwarming, hilarious

A lovely bit of nostalgia here, one of the greats of British comedy. The isle of Toddy becomes for a while at least a true paradise when the islanders find themselves rescuing part of the cargo of a wrecked ship carrying precious whisky, despite the efforts of the sassenach jobsworth running the local home guard. A wealth of wonderful moments, a softly-spoken gentleness that has always characterised this kind of movie (and lives on in such modern works as Hear My Song and Waking Ned), and a kind but firm lack of respect for bureaucratic authority soaked throughout the entire film make this a delight and a joy every time.