Excellent, Without a doubt!!

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

For some years an enterprising firm, Odeon Entertainment, have been restoring and releasing old and neglected British films for their 'Best of British' label. Though it would be stretching a point to claim that all of the titles live up to this billing, they have often managed to unearth some minor treasures. Though banal at times, particularly in characterisation, and not least in the contrived suspense leading to its happy ending, Saturday Night Out is an excellent example. It was emphatically not a 'quota quickie' ( a species that had largely died out by the start of World War 2) but was intended as a main feature.Granted, the subject of five of the crew (plus one passenger) of a ship, spending an intended night of adventure ashore, is hardly a novel one, but this is a fascinating period piece. Donald and Derek Ford's screenplay is a blend of themes explored in the British New Wave films from the turn of the 1960s, and those from the batch of alleged Soho vice exposes, e.g John Lemont's THE SHAKEDOWN, that slightly preceded them. In fact we concentrate on only three of the crew, as stage Irishman Paddy (Nigel Green) is only concerned to imbibe as much liquor as he can, while Arthur (David Lodge) heads, more or less, straight for the bed of his girl in this particular port, played by Margaret Nolan, but this doesn't add much to the story. Passenger George (Bernard Lee) is picked up by the exotic Wanda (the stunning Erika Remberg) only to become a victim of the old badger game which she's running with the smarmy Paul (Derek Bond), adroitly turning the tables on them. Lee (John Bonney) is entranced by Penny, a whimsical anarchist and existentialist, played by the captivating Heather Sears, in a case of the attraction of opposites. The good looking Bonney is excellent and on this performance it is surprising that he never became a major star. Loudmouthed Harry (Inigo Jackson), outraged to find that his intended conquest for the evening is in fact a prostitute, ends up in a Soho clip joint where he's robbed while being distracted by two hostesses (Caroline Mortimer and Vera Day, both excellent). He then takes a beating from a bouncer played by ex boxer Freddie Mills, ironically soon to be the victim of a fatal shooting, thought not to be unconnected with his real life involvement in shady nightclubs. The shy and inexperienced Jamie and Jean, convincingly played by Colin Campbell and Francesca Annis meet in a realistically looking pub (featuring a couple of numbers from popular Merseyside group The Searchers). Despite finding themselves sharing a room in a boarding house for the night, after coming to the aid of its landlady's mother ( a reliably funny cameo from Patricia Hayes), they don't sleep together, but, in contrast with the other protagonists, already have a basis for a lasting relationship. It's a point the writers make with slightly more conviction than they had managed in their previous script for director Robert Hartford-Davis and producers Michael Klinger and Tony Tenser, blatantly exploitative THE YELLOW TEDDYBEARS.

If ever a DVD should be prosecuted under the Trades Description Act this is it. To actually be released under the banner of 'The Best Of British' defies logic as it is mind blowingly awful from start to finish. There are few saving graces apart from a chance to revisit a London now long gone in the mists of time and see the blossoming beauty of the lovely Francesca Annis who shares her screen time mainly with the likable Colin Campbell. Bernard Lee has the best line after turning the tables on the smarmy Derek Bond and Erika Remberg's failed blackmail attempt, but the appearance of Nigel Green who spent the whole of his role drinking and stereotyping a drunken Irishman seemed utterly pointless. To have David Lodge as a lothario was another case of miscasting and I spent a lot of the time watching the film to see if Inigo Jackson was wearing a syrup or as they say in the States, a rug. I know times change and one shouldn't be too harsh on a film made nearly 50 years ago, but this was probably a film just as boring in 1964 as it is today. The less said about the Heather Sears role as a kind of forerunner hippy the better; her scenes seemed to go on forever and anyone who watched this on a Saturday night out would have wished they's spent a Saturday night in rather than going to see this codswallop. This was also the last film appearance of Freddie Mills who died a year later in mysterious circumstances. Rumours that his demise came after a disgruntled patron had seen this film were apparently unfounded.

The British films of the swinging sixties are typified for their crashing through the art barriers and doing things that had never been done before. Sometimes it came off; sometimes - well, all too often, to be exact - it didn't. Compare this with the "straight films" of the 1950s. Between these two phases of British cinema, there were a "special years" transitory phase: the straightness of the past was laid side by side with the oncoming weirdness of the swinging sixties. This is such a film.The film follows the adventures of some merchant seamen on a London night out, before they return to their ship in the morning. There are some memorable scenes in this film. These include the "boyfriend" who is in a meditative trance, the know-all sailor getting his comeuppance, when he gets ripped off in a clip joint, and Bernard Lee voluntarily writing a cheque for ten pounds after a failed blackmail attempt. All this, and The Searchers playing in a pub, too.It is a typical British B movie of the period, and is quite watchable.

Although strictly a 'quota quickie', this British picture is lively and passably entertaining in it's episodic telling of the adventures of five sailor's spending a night in London. The two youngest go looking for girls but only find prostitutes ( discussed in a surprisingly frank manner) although photogenic Francesca Annis and naive Colin Campbell do find common ground. David Lodge heads for bed with floozy Margaret Nolan ( a popular glamor model of the time--she was also in 'Goldfinger') for a saucily comic diversion. Bernard Lee takes the acting honors as a quiet, mature gentleman who is almost caught in a badger game. Add to this an appearance by Merseybeat group, The Searchers, and you do have a fairly peppy Saturday Night Out!