Whisky Galore! (1949 film)

Whisky Galore!
File:Whisky galore uk dvd cover.jpg DVD cover
Directed by	Alexander Mackendrick
Produced by	Michael Balcon
Written by	Compton MacKenzie (also novel) Angus MacPhail
Starring	Basil Radford Bruce Seton Joan Greenwood Gordon Jackson
Music by	Ernest Irving
Cinematography	Gerald Gibbs
Edited by	Joseph Sterling
Production company	Ealing Studios
Distributed by	GFD (UK)
Release dates	16 June 1949 (1949-06-16) (UK)
Running time	82 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Whisky Galore! (released in the US as Tight Little Island) is a 1949 Ealing comedy film from the novel Whisky Galore by Compton MacKenzie. Both the film and the novel are based on the real-life 1941 shipwreck of the S.S. Politician near the island of Eriskay and the unauthorised taking of its cargo of whisky. The plot deals with the attempts of Scottish islanders to take advantage of an unexpected windfall, despite opposition from British authorities. It starred Basil Radford, Bruce Seton, Joan Greenwood and Gordon Jackson. This was the first film directed by Alexander Mackendrick.

Plot

The inhabitants of the isolated Scottish island of Todday in the Outer Hebrides are largely unaffected by wartime rationing, until the supply of whisky runs out in 1943. Then gloom descends on the disconsolate natives.

In the midst of this catastrophe, English Sergeant Odd (Bruce Seton) returns on leave to court Peggy (Joan Greenwood), daughter of storekeeper Joseph Macroon (Wylie Watson). Meanwhile, Macroon's other daughter, Catriona (Gabrielle Blunt), has just got engaged to meek schoolteacher George Campbell (Gordon Jackson), though his stern, domineering mother (Jean Cadell) refuses to give her approval.

Things take an unexpected turn for the better when the freighter S.S. Cabinet Minister runs aground in heavy fog late one night and begins to sink. The Biffer (Morland Graham) and Sammy MacCodrun (John Gregson) row out to investigate and are ecstatic to learn from its departing crew that the cargo consists of 50,000 cases of whisky.

Captain Paul Waggett (Basil Radford), the stuffy English commander of the local Home Guard, orders Odd to guard the cargo, but Macroon casually remarks that, by longstanding custom, a man cannot marry without hosting a party in which whisky must be served. Taking the hint, the sergeant allows himself to be "overpowered", and the locals manage to offload many cases before the ship goes down. MacCodrun persuades Campbell to participate, though he had been sent to his room by his mother for a prior transgression. This proves fortunate, as Campbell rescues the Biffer when he is trapped in the sinking freighter. The whisky also fortifies teetotaller Campbell's courage enough so he can stand up to his mother regarding Catriona.

A battle of wits ensues between Waggett, who wants to confiscate the salvaged cargo, and the wily islanders. Waggett brings in Macroon's old government nemesis, Mr. Farquharson (Henry Mollison), and his men to search for the whisky, but the forewarned islanders manage to hide the bottles in various ingenious places, including ammunition cases which Waggett ships off-island. When this is discovered, Waggett is recalled to the mainland to explain himself, leaving the locals triumphant.

Cast

• Basil Radford as Captain Paul Waggett
• Catherine Lacey as Mrs. Waggett
• Bruce Seton as Sergeant Odd
• Joan Greenwood as Peggy Macroon
• Wylie Watson as Joseph Macroon
• Gabrielle Blunt as Catriona Macroon
• Gordon Jackson as George Campbell
• Jean Cadell as Mrs. Campbell
• James Robertson Justice as Dr. Maclaren
• Morland Graham as the Biffer
• John Gregson as Sammy MacCodrun
• James Woodburn as Roderick MacRurie
• James Anderson as Old Hector
• Jameson Clark as Constable Macrae
• Duncan Macrae as Angus MacCormac
• Mary MacNeil as Mrs. McCormac
• Norman Macowan as Captain MacPhee (as Norman MacOwan)
• Alastair Hunter as Captain MacKechnie
• Henry Mollison as Mr. Farquharson
• Frank Webster as First Mate
• Compton MacKenzie as Captain Buncher
• Finlay Currie as the narrator (uncredited)
• A. E. Matthews as Colonel Linsey-Woolsey (uncredited)

Production

The plot underwent some modification and condensation from the novel, with a lot of the background removed; in particular, the two islands were merged into the single island of Todday and some religious issues were left out.

The film was shot on the island of Barra in 1948. The summer of 1948 brought heavy rain and gales, and the shoot ran five weeks over its planned 10-week schedule while the budget more than doubled. The first cut of the resulting footage did not please Ealing studio head Michael Balcon, but Charles Crichton stepped in to re-edit it.

Director Mackendrick, who was raised in Glasgow, sympathised with the pompous, high-minded, but spoilsport attempts of Waggett to foil the looting. Mackendrick later said: "I began to realise that the most Scottish character in Whisky Galore! is Waggett the Englishman. He is the only Calvinist, puritan figure – and all the other characters aren't Scots at all: they're Irish!"

In the US, both the novel and the film were called Tight Little Island, as a ban existed at the time on using the names of alcoholic drinks in titles. In France, the film was retitled Whisky à gogo, which gave its name to the discothèque in Paris of the same name.

Sequel and remake

Mackenzie wrote the screenplay for an unsuccessful sequel, Rockets Galore!, which was made by the Rank Organisation and released in 1958. The filming of a remake was taking place in August 2015 on Ardeer beach with Eddie Izzard in the role of Captain Waggett.

References

Notes

Bibliography

• The Great British Films, pp 128–30, Jerry Vermilye, 1978, Citadel Press, ISBN 0-8065-0661-X

External links

• Whisky Galore Britmovie British movie community
• Whisky Galore! at IMDb
• Whisky Galore! at AllMovie
• Whisky Galore! at screenonline
• Whisky Galore - a musical! at Stagescripts (Theatrical Publishers and Rights Holders)