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Erich Kästner’s beloved novel has been adapted for film or television six times since its publication in 1929; this 1935 British version was the first in English. Believed lost for decades, it was recently rediscovered by the BFI and has now been restored. The film moves the action from Berlin to London, where Emil goes to stay with his grandmother and cousin. Thereafter, the tale of Emil’s adventures with a gang of streetwise London children faithfully follows the original plot.
CinemaSerf
Dec 2, 2024 · via TMDB
John Williams is "Emil", a young lad who is the victim of a robbery whilst travelling on a train to visit his grandmother. Suspicious of the "Man in the Bowler Hat" (George Hayes) it falls to him and group of London street urchins to recover this quite substantial amount of cash. Some British cinema-goers may recall the Children's Film Foundation films, and this comes across very much as they do. Essentially for children, this adventure gives a collection of youngsters the chance to have some fun on screen and for the Saturday morning audience to join in. The oddly placed audio effects spoil it rather, but it is still a well produced little effort with a solid cast, a little scripted humour and Williams and Clare Greet as his grannie manage to keep this moving along quite well. Not really for the grown ups, but as an example of what kept us all amused almost a century ago, it is still worth a gander
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
George Hayes
The Man in The Boeler Hat
Mary Glynne
Mrs. Blake
Clare Greet
Grandma
George Merritt
PC
John Singer
Thesday
Derek Blomfield
Jerry
Robert Rietti
Professor
Milton Rosmer
Director
Erich Kästner
Novel
Frank Launder
Scenario Writer
Billy Wilder
Screenplay
Toast
The Lincoln Lawyer
Horror in Happy Swamp
Onnenpotku
Sherlock Holmes Faces Death
Lupin the Third: The Fuma Conspiracy
The Fountain for Suzanne
Das Spinnennetz
Minä ja mieheni morsian
Age of Consent
R.I.P.D.
The Servant
Wind in the Willows
When Jeff Tried to Save the World
Combat Academy
Harriet the Spy: Blog Wars
Ridiculous and Ill-Advised
25 O'Clock in Shinjuku
Maigret at Bay
Paradise: Disturbed
Paddington 2
The Getaway
Ocean's Eight
The Killers
Army of Thieves
The Assassination Bureau
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F
The Thursday Murder Club
The Girl on the Train
Death on the Nile
Ripley's Game
The Pope of Greenwich Village
Bulletproof 2
Confess, Fletch
God Is a Bullet
Parker
The Anderson Tapes
Brothers
Welcome to the Punch
Money Train
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The Stranglers - Live '78, SF
1978
Saddle Leather Law
1944
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
Leaderboard →Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.
Movie Trivia
Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.
What movie experience do you prefer?
What is your favorite movie genre?
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