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Small Hotel
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Wikipedia article
'Small Hotel' is a 1957 British comedy film directed by David MacDonald and stars Gordon Harker, Marie Lohr, John Loder, and Janet Munro. It is based on the play of the same name by Rex Frost.Opening credits: Small Hotel
Premise
Albert, a crafty old waiter in a country hotel known as 'The Jolly Fiddler', teaches the younger staff how to maximise their tips and get rid of surplus food in the kitchen.
He suddenly finds he must work new tricks on management after being told he is too old for the job and will be replaced by a hard-nosed young waitress, named Miss Mallet.
Cast
*Gordon Harker.....Albert
*Marie Lohr.....Mrs. Samson-Fox
*John Loder.....Mr. Finch
*Irene Handl.....Mrs. Gammon
*Janet Munro.....Effie Rigler
*Billie Whitelaw.....Caroline Mallet
*Ruth Trouncer.....Sheila
*Francis Matthews.....Alan Pryor
*Frederick Schiller.....Foreigner [speaking in German and then in English]
*Derek Blomfield.....Roland
*Dorothy Bromiley.....Rosemary
Critical reception
'TV Guide' gave the film two out of five stars and called it an "Average comedy"; in the 'Radio Times', David McGillivray also rated the film two out of five stars, calling it "no great shakes as comedy, but interesting as a vehicle built around a much-loved British star at the end of his career" whereas 'Britmovie' noted, "Twenty years after appearing on stage in this lively Rex Frost play, in his penultimate film Gordon Harker reprises the role of a belligerent hotel waiter having to use all his wit and cunning to save his job. This low-budget film features Harker in typically jovial form, dominating comic proceedings with typical polished expertise, and with a less assured cast this thin comedy wouldnt be worthwhile. There are early roles for Billie Whitelaw and Janet Munro, and the doughty Irene Handl is cast as the hotels spirited cook."
It was one of 15 films selected by Steve Chibnall and Brian McFarlane in 'The British 'B' Film', their survey of British B films, as among the most meritorious of the B films made in Britain between World War II and 1970. They especially praised the performances of Lohr, Handl and Harker.Steve Chibnall & Brian McFarlane, 'The British 'B' Film', Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2009, pp. 27273.
References
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