The Children's Foundation - Vol 5

Take a trip down memory lane and leave your troubles by the wayside, well, at least for several hours: the BFI’s THE CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION Bumper Box – Vol 5 will transport you back to a time when childhood seemed much more innocent and an altogether happier experience – free of nowadays anxieties and social media-induced stress.

A whopping nine films (each between 50 to 60 minutes long) on three DVDs, plus an exciting array of Special Features… Better make sure you have plenty of biscuits at hand, not to mention a never-ending supply of tea!

Disc 1 kicks off with THE SECRET TUNNEL (dir. William C. Hammond; 1948), a fast-paced little caper about a group of nifty art thieves and antique smugglers who steal a precious Rembrandt painting from the vault of an impressive country estate by means of a secret tunnel leading from said vault. Enter Roger Henderson (Tony Wagner), the young son of a wealthy estate owner (Murray Matheson) who, together with his friend John (Ivor Bowyer), the son of butler Mr. Wilson (Gerald Pring), stumbles across the secret tunnel by accident…and now the two lads make it their mission to find the stolen painting and those responsible for the theft. Suffice to say it’s easier said than done as a cat and mouse game is about to ensue… CIRCUS FRIENDS (dir. Gerald Thomas; 1956) revolves around the Marlow Circus which, like every year, has arrived in order to use the field of Farmer Beasley (Meredith Edwards). However, Beasley, a mean man by any stretch of the imagination, isn’t happy about the arrival because circus owner Bert Marlow (John Horsley) failed to pay him for the previous year due to poor earnings. After a compromise is struck, the circus is allowed to use the field but visitors seem few and far between. As an ‘insurance’, Beasley and his bumbling farm hand George (Sam Kydd) take Pinto, the favourite pony of Marlow’s kids. With the help of Judy, the kids’ Alsatian dog, they leave no stone unturned in getting Pinto back… with hilarious consequences! It’s back to Napoleonic times in THE PIPER’S TUNE (dir. Muriel Box; 1962) – a rip-roaring adventure about a group of savvy (and ever so well-spoken) kids attempting to outwit Napoleon’s armies by protecting a mountain escape route from being discovered by French soldiers. Entertaining, pacey and no doubt there was a budget!

Disc 2 starts with THE RESCUE SQUAD (dir: Colin Bell; 1963) in which a group of kids come up with various madcap plans to retrieve their toy plane, after it accidentally lands on top of an old and abandoned tower. Soon, mayhem abounds everywhere as various members of the town’s people are unwittingly thrown into the chaotic situation. DAYLIGHT ROBBERY (dir: Michael Truman; 1964) is cracking entertainment throughout and concerns three kids who are mucking about at a nearby pond when the girl accidentally drops an expensive and rather large transistor radio battery into the water. Off they go into town to fetch a birthday present for Mum in a British Home Store branch (remember them?) in Oxford Street. Instead, they spot transistor radio batteries on display and decide to pinch one… too bad that the theft coincides with the stores’ closing time and their intention of returning the battery to the shelf ends with the kids locked inside the store instead. As they soon find out, they are not alone because a group of thieves try to break into the neighbouring bank via the store. Will the kids manage to alarm the outside world? This is not a film for those suffering from vertigo, as half of the time the kids are chased around a half-built, multi-storey building in construction lifts – Health and Safety would never allow it these days! Featuring Janet Munro, Gordon Jackson, Ronald Fraser and James Villiers in small guest roles, this is spiffing stuff! ALL AT SEA (dir: Ken Fairbairn; 1969) is a so so little yarn about a group of school kids on an educational cruise ship trip along the Mediterranean. Some of the pupils get mixed up with Mr. Danvers (Norman Bird), an art thief with connections to an international crime syndicate in Tangiers. It’s all a bit silly and far-fetched really.

Disc 3 presents THE HOSTAGES (dir: David Eady; 1975) – a tense ‘home invasion’ thriller played out in rural surroundings. Jailbreakers Joe Blake (Ray Barrett) and Terry Sladen (Robin Askwith – here playing against his usual comedy-type) seek refuge in an isolated farm or so they think, after having witnessed a middle-aged couple driving into town together with their daughter. Alas, three of the parent’s younger kids are still remaining on the farm and now find themselves in almighty peril, particularly because Blake sustained a leg injury during his prison break and Sladen is a loose cannon altogether – for starters, making sure the phone line is cut. What precisely are Blake and Sladen’s plans and how are the children going to alert the police? Back in the day, this may have been a tad frightening for very young viewers though it’s all well acted. ROBIN HOOD JUNIOR (dir: Matt McCarthy / John Black; 1975) is rollicking great fun, starring Keith Chegwin as young Robin who, together with his merry band of other outlaw kids, rides to the rescue of Marian (Mandy Tulloch) when she finds herself in the claws of her greedy and mean uncle, Baron de Malherbe (Maurice Kaufmann). This is a clever spin on the Robin Hood legend with plenty of derring-do. The kids in particular ought to be applauded for engaging in risky action without jump mats or other safety measures… crikes! Nowadays, the film company would be sued to high heaven! Finally, THE BOY WHO NEVER WAS (dir: Frank Godwin; 1980) sees Gordon Hagan in a double role as Salu / Ubu in a tale of deliberately mistaken identity and kidnapping – all part of a plan to assassinate the President (Harcourt Curacao) of Busundi, a small African nation. When said President arrives in Britain for an important meeting at an embassy, it’s a race against time for Salu and his new found friends Charlie (Paul Atlantis) and Nobby (Christian Bulloch) to avert cold-blooded murder…

As per usual with BFI, there’s plenty of bonus material among the fantastically restored films, including a fully illustrated booklet, new docu ‘Danger at the CFF’ and various short films, out of which A GOOD PULL-UP (1953) is at its slapstick best! It sees Peter Butterworth as incompetent handyman ‘Dickie Duffle’ who, after offering his services, unwittingly turns a worker’s café into a food fighting arena!