Never Mind the Quality Feel the Width (film)

Never Mind the Quality Feel the Width
UK theatrical poster
Directed byRonnie Baxter
Written byHarry Driver
Vince Powell
Produced byRonnie Baxter
StarringJohn Bluthal
Joe Lynch
Yootha Joyce
Wendy King
CinematographyKen Hodges
Edited byDev Goodman
Music byRonald Cass
Production
company
Distributed byMGM
Release date
  • 3 January 1973 (1973-01-03)
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$270,000[1]

Never Mind the Quality Feel the Width is a 1973 British comedy film directed by Ronnie Baxter and starring John Bluthal, Joe Lynch, Yootha Joyce, Wendy King and Bernard Stone.[2][3] It was a spin-off from the ITV television series Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width (1967–71) about two mismatched tailors in the East End of London. The role of Rita was played by singing ukulele player and Opportunity Knocks winner Wendy King, whose 1971 album "Ukelele Girl" can be spotted in Mrs. Finch's travel shop window.

Plot

[edit]

In the course of the film, Manny and Patrick hire a sexy new assistant Rita, seriously fall out after a gambling incident, experience woman trouble, find themselves burgled, and eventually end up on holiday in Rome after posing as priests.[4]

Cast

[edit]

Reception

[edit]

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Never Mind the Quality Feel the Width resembles not so much a feature film as three episodes of the original Thames TV series laid end to end. Its weak storyline (centred on Manny's dream of a trip to Israel) principally provides an excuse for a number of self-contained sketches: the clichéd funeral sequence in which the hearse rolls away and comes to rest on the river bank as the coffin slides into the water; or the genuinely funny sequence in the stonemason's yard from which Manny has ordered a statue of the Virgin Mary to replace one he's accidentally broken, with Bill Maynard's down-toearth mason providing an amusing contrast to the pomp of the surrounding monuments and tombstones. The film's faltering plot is bolstered by its heavy reliance on Irish and Jewish caricatures: Patrick drinks Guinness, plays the horses and keeps a picture of the Pope up on the wall, while Manny prefers to keep one eye on his cash-box and one on his giant photo of Moshe Dayan. As with many similar British comedies, the film's farcical elements are not enhanced by the dull and dogged naturalism of its style. "[5]

Sky Movies wrote, "although one of the better TV spin-offs, this is not so much a feature film as three episodes strung together by a tenuous overall storyline. Indeed, the episodes, chronicling the abrasive love-hate relationship between two East London tailors – one Irish, the other Jewish – are themselves composed of sketches."[6]

The film was considered a flop.[1]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Tailoring To 'Parochial' Marts". Variety. 23 May 1973. p. 5. Retrieved 10 May 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  2. ^ "Never Mind the Quality Feel the Width". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  3. ^ "BFI | Film & TV Database | NEVER MIND THE QUALITY FEEL THE WIDTH (1972)". Ftvdb.bfi.org.uk. 16 April 2009. Archived from the original on 15 January 2009. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  4. ^ "Never Mind The Quality, Feel The Width - See Also - British Comedy Guide". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  5. ^ "Never Mind the Quality Feel the Width". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 40 (468): 54. 1 January 1973 – via ProQuest.
  6. ^ "Never Mind The Quality Feel The Width - Sky Movies HD". Skymovies.sky.com. 1 April 2003. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
[edit]


Stub icon

This article related to a British comedy film of the 1970s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Never_Mind_the_Quality_Feel_the_Width_(film)&oldid=1243962782"