Morgan!

A film that acheives what it sets out to be. It is an immature and unreasonable storyline that takes no account for anyones feelings but those of our hero, Morgan... But 1966 was a time of big brush strokes, not subtle pointers. Most of the situations and characters are cardboard and stereotypical, but done with a sense of style and flair that allows you not to get bogged down in it all. When at the end of the film, the seemingly battered and beaten Morgan still has the clenched fist of rebellion, it's time for a hot cocoa and then off to bed clutching Das Kapital in your rebellious mitts, with a wistful smile on your face for the simple values of yesteryear, when it was good versus evil. I gave it 9 0ut of 10. Very watchable and great fun

This movie was funny as hell. David Warner is an ace-- a great comedic actor, and the entire cast should have received awards. All the ingredients for a great comedy were there-- gorilla suits, slapstick comedy at a wedding celebration involving a gorilla, the main character being insane-- what more could you ask for. I saw the movie on late night t.v. and I rolled out of bed laughing.

An uncredited actor who also did an outstanding job in this movie was Billy Reil, playing the part of inspector Kowalski. It was especially funny when he thought the bad guy was heading for his office and he ended up konking his secretary over the head with a flower pot.

There aren't too many whimsical comedies with a Trotskyite sub text, so for that alone let us give thanks, but there's a whole lot more to enjoy here. Vanessa Redgrave for one, looking wonderful as the posh girl who dumps her eccentric husband in favour of stability, shows a real gift for light comedy, Karel Reisz's direction is always inventive and makes good use of inserts from King Kong and Tarzan, and then there's the world's most wonderful couple: Arthur Mullard and Irene Handl.

Warner's performance as Morgan depends how you feel about children who refuse to grow up, though he does become more sympathetic eventually. The Trotsky element comes from writer David Mercer, a renowned playwright and communist of the day and though class figures prominently in the film, it is never didactic. The screenplay is based on a TV play he'd wrote and in a unusual reversal of roles was watered down somewhat for the cinema. The ending turns into the full-blown surrealism that always threatened and there's a great, almost-last line from the Morgan himself: "I've gone all furry".

In 1966 when I lived in London I fully expected to see this movie. Many of my friends, especially the girls, were raving about it. Funds diverted to beer, or girls, deprived me of the chance. So it has taken me nearly forty years to actually see it. Thoroughly of the time, and yet it must have seemed so radical even then. I watched it as a chaser to Alfie (Michael Caine) and it was interesting to compare the styles of two icons of British female acting, Redgrave and Asher, in one evening. Both movies dealt with serious and potentially unattractive issues; adultery, abortion, promiscuity and mental illness and injected enough humor into the screenplay to keep ones attention the while. I am prompted to revisit "Up the Junction" and " A Taste of Honey" with Rita Tushingham, another sixties icon.

David Warner is, to my mind, one of the most gifted actors working in films today. He is able to take just about any role in just about any film and invest it with life and interest. In fact, he is the sole reason to ever want to see a great number of films. That said, "Morgan" is a treat because it's one of the few films where Warner gets to play the lead. He doesn't get the girl and he's stark raving mad throughout, but he's still the lead.

This film is very much of its time, but it's still quite enjoyable. Morgan's anarchist antics are always unpredictable and sweet in a psychotic kind of way. And considering the main character's obsession with gorillas, it's interesting to see the film now in light of Warner's appearance in Tim Burton's remake of "Planet of the Apes." Must have felt like deja vu to him.

Recommended for David Warner fans and people who like their comedies a little off-kilter.