The Sentimental Bloke is a 1932 Australian film directed by F. W. Thring and starring Cecil Scott and Ray Fisher. It is an adaptation of the 1915 novel Songs of a Sentimental Bloke by C. J. Dennis, which had previously been filmed in 1919.
Premise A larrikin is reformed due to the love of a good woman.
Cast Cecil Scott as the Bloke Ray Fisher as Doreen Tal Ordell as Ginger Mick Athol Tier as Artie Edna Morecombe as Effie Keith Desmond as Uncle Dora Mostyn as Ma William Carroll as the Stror at Coot Leslie Gordon as Erb Katie Towers William Ralston Barney Egan
Production Dennis was hired to adapt his own story. Dialogue was rewritten by Dennis in prose and updated to the modern era. It placed greater emphasis on supporting characters than the 1919 film, adding a detective plot about Uncle Jim being conned over his discovery of gold in his orchard.Fitzpatrick p 174
The female lead, Ray Fisher, was signed by Thring to a five-year contract. She later married champion jockey Billy Cook.
Raymond Longford later claimed he worked on the film as an associate."Raymond Longford", Cinema Papers, January 1974 p51 According to Jack Murray, assistant to cinematographer Arthur Higgins, Thing was a director in name only and the real director was Higgins.Fitzpatrick p 173 It was Efftee's most expensive film.Fitzpatrick p 178
Reception The film ran for five weeks at a cinema in Melbourne. Thring later estimated the film earned £2,000 at one theatre alone and it was the third most popular Australian movie of the year after On Our Selection and The Squatter's Daughter.
Variety called it 'undoubtedly the best Australian production yet made".
Thring claimed in the long run he lost £5,000 on the movie due in part because of studio overhead.
The film was released in England but received poor reviews.
See also Cinema of Australia
References
Fitzpatrick, Peter, The Two Frank Thrings, Monash University, 2012
External links
The Sentimental Bloke at Oz Movies