The Chain

Talking Pictures have preceded this film with a warning that this film belongs to an earlier era and thus might offend some viewers. Tempos fugit!

When I met the veteran cameraman Wolfgang Suschitzky this was a film he recalled with particular pleasure. It deals with a situation probably only too familiar with people of all classes. The cast varies throughout the film but it's beating heart is Warren Mitchell who talks more like a philosophical social worker than a mere labourer, who declares that his job "Ain't a job, this is a public service!" commiserating with his clients that moving house is a trauma second only to bereavement and divorce.

This is TV drama at its best. The plot is tightly constructed, involving seven linked house moves. Jack Rosenthal's writing is exceptional, blending comedy and pathos in just the right proportions, and the very realistic London settings are an integral part of the drama.

The script is delivered to perfection by a team of top-quality actors, led by Warren Mitchell and Bernard Hill as the linking furniture removers. The introduction suggests an overall 'seven deadly sins' theme, and on reflection that can be picked out. But the stories intertwine and grip the viewer so effectively that broader messages are of little consequence. The recent revival of Rosenthal plays on BBC's arts channel is a reminder of the high quality of TV drama in the 1970s and 1980s, now sadly diminished. And the overall IMDB rating is a complete mystery, given the votes actually cast for The Chain.

No negative comments by your other quite perceptive reviewers and rightly so. I agree with all of them as to this wonderful film's outstanding qualities and especially as to its being highly underrated. It's a kind of vignette movie like "Quartette" or "Tales of Manhattan" yet all the vignettes are thematically connected in time and process, each throwing light on the others and on the film as a whole. It's simply a classic in conception and brilliant execution. Bravo to all concerned.

...but not to the east side, "Jeffersons"-style. Rather, a study of the mind sets of the various social classes in London. The film might be simply described as 'a day in the life of London' as several people move houses, each to a more upscale neighbourhood, each to the house of the next one in the film. A 'nice little movie' is an apt description - there are no car chases, no action heroes, no blonde bombshells, just a study of what makes people tick. I grew up in Canada, but lived in London at age 20, and am somewhat familiar with the areas in question, and can't help but smile to myself as I watch this film. The philosophical musings of the moving crew boss can be a little confusing, particularly with his heavy accent, but all-in-all, it's a simple set of sub-stories to follow, each with its own particular flavour. A must-see for the film festival crowd, similar movies would be the West German-made "Aria" and the internationally directed "Night On Earth".

This film was written by one of the greatest TV writers of the 20th century,Jack Rosenthal.However it seems to be almost completely forgotten,the last review being dated 2009.I had forgotten about it till I saw it recently on London Live.Difficult to understand why.It is a numerous look at the stresses and strains of moving house.It has a first rate cast with lots of well known faces.The best known being Warren Mitchell in charge of the removers.Though why he had to wear that dreadful wig is a mystery.Probably the funniest character is that played by Nigel Hawthorne as a link in the chain who pays for his desire to do things on the cheap.Maybe the fact that this film has been forgotten is due to the fact that this film came out in the year when cinema attendances hit rock bottom.