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The Bulldog Breed
From The Army's Funniest Private...To The Navy's Most Riotous Seaman!
Norman Puckle, a well-meaning but clumsy grocer's assistant, can't seem to do anything right. After being rejected by Marlene, the love of his life, he attempts suicide, but can't even do that. He is saved from jumping off a cliff at 'Lover's Leap' by a Royal Navy petty officer. He persuades Puckle to join the Royal Navy, where he'll meet 'lots of girls'. Life in the Navy proves not to be as rosy as it's been described, and Puckle fails at every task during basic training. But despite this, he's regarded by the Admiral in charge of a rocket project to be a 'typical average British sailor', and chosen to be the first man to fly into outer space in an experimental rocket.
- Original title
- The Bulldog Breed
- Language
- EN
- Country
- GB,US
- Budget
- —
- Revenue
- —
CinemaSerf
Nov 17, 2024 · via TMDB
I always think it was a little unfair to compare Norman Wisdom to others when so often he was entirely his own man, putting his own unique comedy spin and timing to good use creating a fun atmosphere for a British population still recovering from the effects of WWII. Here, he's the hapless "Puckle" whose girlfriend - well a gal he rather likes but who doesn't remotely reciprocate - rejects his offer of chocolates and leaves him contemplating suicide. Luckily, he is deterred from such drastic action by a passing sailor who reckons that if things really are that bad, he ought to join the Royal Navy. For all the wrong reasons, he attracts the attention of the Admiral (Ian Hunter) and now various escapades see him lurch from the frying place to the fire, via a chilly mountaintop, before being put to work on a top secret rocket project that we just know is doomed to failure! Hunter takes on the role usually portrayed by the likes of James Robertson Justice, and he does it well providing a foil for star who is having fun with this fairly low budget affair. The production mixes what looks like stock footage with some studio photography (where you can often see the full effects of the polystyrene and the scenery with clear joins in it) but that doesn't really matter. Assisted by a plethora of familiar faces from British cinema, this is really all about a man who knew how to make a generation laugh and using a combination of light slapstick, military stuffiness and the occasional daft one-liner, he manages to do just that - reminding us that is was, after all, the ordinary folk who fought and won the war!
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
Norman Wisdom
Ordinary Seaman Norman Puckle
Ian Hunter
Admiral Sir Bryanston Blyth
David Lodge
Chief Petty Officer Knowles
Robert Urquhart
Commander Clayton
Edward Chapman
Mr. Philpots
Eddie Byrne
Petty Officer Filkins
Peter Jones
Diving Instructor
John Le Mesurier
Prosecuting Counsel
Terence Alexander
Defending Counsel
Sydney Tafler
Speedboat Owner
Brian Oulton
Bert Ainsworth
Harold Goodwin
Streaky Hopkinson
Johnny Briggs
Johnny Nolan
Frank Williams
Mr. Carruthers
Joe Robinson
Tall Sailor
Liz Fraser
NAAFI Girl
Penny Morrell
Miss Marlene Barlow
Claire Gordon
Blonde on Yacht
John Arnatt
Briggs (uncredited)
Michael Caine
Sailor in Cinema Fight (uncredited)
Cyril Chamberlain
Jimmy (uncredited)
Roland Curram
Control Room Radio Operator (uncredited)
Larry Dann
New Dalton's Boy (uncredited)
Robert Desmond
Sailor on Bridge of Warship (uncredited)
Sheila Hancock
Doris (uncredited)
Imogen Hassall
Girl in Cinema Queue (uncredited)
Glyn Houston
Gym Instructor (uncredited)
Roy Lansford
Prisoner Escort (uncredited)
Philip Locke
Teddy Boy in Cinema Fight (uncredited)
Bryan Pringle
Physical Training Instructor (uncredited)
Oliver Reed
Teddy Boy in Cinema Fight (uncredited)
William Roache
Space Centre Operator (uncredited)
Leonard Sachs
Yachtsman (uncredited)
Robert Asher
Director
Norman Wisdom
Screenplay
A Song of Lisbon
Something of Love
Sayedaty El Gameela
Blotto
The Four Troublesome Heads
Another Fine Mess
Sailors, Beware!
The One-Man Band
The Hoose-Gow
Their Purple Moment
Chickens Come Home
Angora Love
Bacon Grabbers
Do Detectives Think?
Putting Pants on Philip
Early to Bed
A Jitney Elopement
Call of the Cuckoo
Catch Us If You Can
45 Minutes from Hollywood
Top Secret!
Monkey Business
Shadow of the Thin Man
The Pink Panther Strikes Again
Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story
The Man in the White Suit
Beau Hunks
Much Ado About Nothing
Who's Minding the Store?
Porridge
The Trouble with Angels
YES DAY
Playing with Fire
Taking Care of Business
Carry On Regardless
The Errand Boy
Cadet Kelly
Zero Charisma
Alice in Wonderland
Sneakerella
