Stiff Upper Lips (1999)

Every character you have ever thought was full of himself or herself from Merchant and Ivory, especially the author EM Forster is lampooned here, and the more you know of these books and movies the funnier it is. EM Forster was a homosexual at the start of the 20th century who wrote about the British view of class and being ethnocentric. The movie takes place in Italy and India, as do the EM Forster books. The characters have servants hauling around British turf, sending cricket balls and mallets to prisoners and proving themselves inept at everything from cooking to swimming while being sexually repressed and over educated. This movie has been seriously underrated.

Emily (Georgina Cates), a lovely young British blueblood, lives with her stuffy Aunt Agnes (Prunella Scales) in a beautiful mansion. Her brother, Edward (Samuel West) is bringing home a college friend, Cedric (Robert Portal) in hopes that he may be a good match for Emily. However, although Cedric can quote Homer and dresses meticulously, he is a snob who criticizes nearly everything, including the cucumber sandwiches Aunt Agnes serves for lunch. That, of course, may be the fault of Agnes butler, Hudson, for he is the only servant-cook-bottlewasher in the whole house, and he is too busy to worry about whether the cucumbers are sliced thinly enough. In any case, Emily doesn't really warm up to Cedric but does become quite heated when George (Sean Pertwee), the local poor boy, rescues her from a near-drowning. Emily gets a bad cold from her ordeal and Aunt Agnes decides to take everyone to sunny Italy, including George in the capacity of a servant. Nothing could please Hudson more, as he will have the time to actually sit down and rest. But, will Emily and George be able to hide their budding attraction in such a romantic venue? And, does Cedric have his eye on someone, too? This film is great fun, especially for those, like myself, who adore Merchant & Ivory, David Lean, and others. It sends up such films as A Room with a View, Chariots of Fire, and A Passage to India in a most amusing way. For example, Edward manages to trip the runners at Cambridge, who are attempting to beat the clock in a race around the school's courtyard, while Emily needs a horse, pulling a rope, to get her into her corset. Fun, fun, fun. The cast is truly great, with Peter Ustinov adding to the amusement as a tea plantation owner. West, as some may know, played the unfortunate clerk in Howard's End and it is wonderful to see him getting a chance to smile, for a change. Cates is lovely, Scales a stitch, and Portal's imitation of Daniel Day-Lewis's character in Room with a View is priceless. The scenery is also gorgeous, the costumes very fine, and the production values quite high. All in all, even if you have never seen a Merchant-Ivory or David Lean film, you will still find this an entertaining film. But, if you are a true fan of distinguished British cinema, you will vastly enjoy the opportunity to laugh at this worthy parody.

"Stiff Upper Lips" pokes fun at the crustiness of the British upper crust as it follows a silly ensemble of aristocrats from England to Italy to India and back. Those who groan at puns and mutter "humph!" at wry humor will likely enjoy "SUL" while those who don't will suffer the opposite reaction. How enjoyable this film is will depend solely on the sense of humor of the viewer. Funny or not, "SUL" is undeniably a jolly well done spoof.

The parody has a long and glorious tradition. Some actors (Leslie Neilson) have made a career of such films. I had never seen an English parody of English films before, and if "Stiff Upper Lips" is typical of them, I probably won't want to watch another. From my perspective, the film presented an interesting dichotomy: Respected actors (Prunella Scales and Peter Ustinov), good location, nice camera work, expensive costuming... for an insipid piece of tripe. It was pretty easy to recognize the comic references to "Howards End" or "Room with a View" or "Chariots of Fire", but the references weren't funny. The people weren't funny. The comic timing was poor. The running joke of English class prejudice was clumsy and poorly executed.I think this film attempted something noble, but just plain failed in a few key areas. It had a lot of potential... the writers and director should watch a few classics in the genre (Blazing Saddles, Hot Shots, Loaded Weapon 1) before attempting their next parody.All that being said, I am willing to give it the benefit of the doubt and say my American sensibilities may have gotten in the way of understanding the "English" humor. But I have a sneaking suspicion people back in the UK questioned the quality of this one, as well.