You see him, through mental gymnastics and charm, stringing these people along and you understand that this isn’t new behavior.īut Johnny’s not a bad guy necessarily. Johnny “borrows” some newspapers and music magazines (presumably for research into the latest trends) from a kiosk, manages to talk deli owner Leon (Eric Pohlmann) into paying *him* for sandwiches, and repeatedly tries to duck out on his responsibilities to his ladyfriend Maisie (Sylvia Syms), a local burlesque performer who is patiently waiting for Johnny to further her career. He’s like Wimpy from Popeye, but predatory. He manipulates and puts pressure on his friends along the local London high street, trying (and frequently succeeding) to get something for nothing from them, promising to pay them back later.
The bones of this earlier, knives out version are there: Johnny (Lawrence Harvey) is a schemer. The film Expresso Bongo, from director Val Guest, is based on a stage play co-written by Julain More and Wolf Mankowitz (who adapted the play for the screen) which was reportedly a more scathing indictment of the business side of the music business than the films ends up being.
But if Expresso Bongo were to be remade it would most likely lose a few of its more interesting details. That’s the dream, right? The fact that A Star Is Born has been remade as often as it has, and that the last iteration was a heavy awards contender points to there being some itch in us as viewers that these kinds of stories scratch.
There’s something that’s universal about the story at the heart of Expresso Bongo: a talent agent who’s at least half a con-man, turning an unassuming local heartthrob into an international star. Released on Blu-ray January 18 from Kino Lorber. Unrated but contains brief toplessness from an educational burlesque number Starring Laurence Harvey, Sylvia Syms, Yolande Donlan, Cliff Richard Written by Wolf Mankowitz, based on the musical by Mankowitz and Julian More
0 kommentar(er)
