Ticket to Paradise

So obscure it's even missing from Chibnall & MacFarlane's book on British 'B' movies, this is the first review ever posted on the IMDb of this likeably stupid rehash of 'The Lady Eve' and 'Roman Holiday' made on what probably paid for the wigs on those films.

A single sound stage on an obscure stretch of the Thames populated by the likes of Raymond Rollett and Denis Shaw (the former playing a Yorkshireman called Higginbottom and the latter as a taxi driver called Giuseppe) pretends to be an obscure village on the Italian Riviera in which Vanda Hudson & Claire Gordon as a couple of venal, big-haired blondes spilling out of their clothes prey on the hero; but fortunately there's also nice Patricia Dainton to provide real romance.

It would appear that very few people have seen this film but it passes some time quite pleasantly even if it's very obvious that the cast got no where near Italy for the filming. Way back in 1961 only the wealthy could afford trips to Italy etc. From the UK so it would be reasonable to assume in the Italian village that the lead male character was a man of some substance. He earned £10 a week which wasn't a bad pay then but not enough to afford holidays abroad. The good old days when holiday resorts were not flooded with those whose main interest was alcohol consumption to excess.

I assume all the reviewers saw this on talking pictures where forgotten or dreadful British films get a second chance of life and this suffers from a similar problem of other films from the period in a very weak script and an incredible amount of of padding.

This is a not unfamiliar story line of two people pretending to be something that they were not. You could say that it doesn't bore,nor on the other hand is it very exciting. If the distributor was lucky this would attach to a successful film and earn it's fair share of Eady Levy.

I watched this film for Patricia Dainton, an admirable actress who certainly does not disappoint. As other reviewers have noted, the story is pretty lightweight but Patricia Dainton and Imrys Jones make a likeable couple and there are enough interesting characters and amusing incidents to hold the viewer's attention for the fairly short duration of the action.

Apart from the leading lady I also enjoyed the music which was provided by a small combo of piano accordian mandolin guitar and a couple of others. At any rate there were no syrupy strings to be heard and it sounded authentically Italian.