cinehunch
A FILM WORTH A CLOSER LOOKTHE FEATURE PRESENTATION
IF THIS ONE STAYED WITH YOU
Keep the feeling.
SIMILAR PICKS / A PERSONAL CONNECTION
01
Why this pick
Like The Smallest Show on Earth, this warm British ensemble comedy finds renewed purpose in a modest, slightly threadbare entertainment world, with affectionate character humour rather than broad farce.
02
Why this pick
A gentle Ealing-style celebration of determined locals rescuing a beloved obsolete institution, buoyed by eccentric teamwork, tidy comic escalation, and a fondness for British everyday life.
03
Why this pick
For the pleasure of Rutherford and mid-century British comic eccentricity, this is brisker and more mischievous, but shares the earlier film’s delight in a ramshackle community and cheerful disorder.
04
Why this pick
Its polished Ealing wit and carefully built comic predicament echo the charm of Dearden’s film, while replacing the decrepit cinema with another distinctly British collision between idealism and practicality.
05
Why this pick
This affectionate Ealing comedy similarly follows innocent newcomers negotiating an unfamiliar urban world, with gentle satire, vivid supporting players, and a relaxed, character-led comic rhythm.
Finding the atmosphere, tension and little details that made this one stay with you.
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01 / THE STORY
Travers and McKenna play Matt and Jean, a young couple (they were married in real life) with a longing to visit exotic places such as Samarkand. Matt inherits a cinema from his great uncle. When they look over their new property, they first mistake the modern Grand for it. They are soon disillusioned to learn that the cinema they actually own is the old decrepit Bijou Kinema (nicknamed the "flea pit"), which is sandwiched between two railway bridges. Along with the cinema come three long-time employees: Mrs. Fazackalee (Rutherford), the cashier and bookkeeper; Mr. Quill (Sellers), the projectionist; and Old Tom (Miles) the commissionaire, doorkeeper and usher.
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02 / FACES IN THE FRAME
Jean Spenser
Old Tom
Mr. Hogg
Bell
Emmett
Girl in Cinema
Matt Spenser
Mrs. Fazackalee
