The greatest movie ever made..!

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Ambrose Claverhouse is the archetypal Kenneth More part.He's like Jeremy Clarkson without the malice.A 30 - something fairly innocent little boy obsessed with sex and motor - cars in no particular order.Some people have taken exception to the fact that he and his pals are quite posh,well,yes he's middle class,but his twin obsessions are shared by many working class blokes.Perhaps it's all right for Darren from Dagenham to be a petrolhead ladies man but not Charles from Chelsea - but that's the Brits for you ,most of us are snobs of one kind or the other. Driving back from Brighton last weekend I got caught up in the last stages of the Veteran Car Club Rally near the "Black Lion" at Patcham and in a Proustian moment the sweet,silly and ultimately rather sad memories of "Genevieve" swept over me so completely I had to pull up at the side of the road. It is a completely frivolous movie that nobody thought for a moment was going to be any more than a colourful bit of froth to brighten the lives of England's austerity - blighted movielovers. But somehow the basic good nature and decentness of Messrs More and Gregson,the determination and spirit of Mesdames Sheridan and Kendal combined to create an alchemy that spelled gold at the 1955 Box Office and created a legend that has lasted over half a century. Perhaps not appealing to 21st century eyes for it's unfailing cheeriness and good humour,there is not an ounce of meanness or cynicism in it. Clearly such innocence cannot be allowed to have ever existed. Well,I'm here to tell you it did. In real life the VCC Rally is one way,London to Brighton.For the movie Mr More and Mr Gregson turned the return journey into a race with,ultimately,"Genevieve" herself as the prize.In one of the great scenes in British cinema Mr Gregson within sight of the finishing line in "Genevieve" is hailed by an elderly gentleman who proceeds to tell him how he courted his wife fifty years earlier in just such a car. Mr Arthur Wontner only has a few lines but his old - time charm and courtesy are absolutely captivating.Mr Gregson listens patiently to his reminiscences as Mr More goes driving gaily past apparently to win the race but in fact he gets stuck in the tramlines and is whisked away at the last second,the prize slipping from his unbelieving hands. Certainly the world has changed since this picture was made.I'll leave it to you to decide whether it is for the better or not.

Alan & Wendy McKim, Ambrose Claverhouse & Rosalind Peters are two classic car enthusiast couples taking part in the annual London to Brighton car rally. For the return trip the gentlemen enter into a friendly wager to see who can reach Westminster Bridge first, but what started out as friendly rivalry turns into a very intense contest indeed.I think what stands out the most in Genevieve {Genevieve being the name of the McKim's car} is the wonderful screenplay from William Rose. Full of British sensibilities and sexual tension, Genevieve ranks as one of the best British films from the 50s. Both couples seem poles apart but the men are bound by a machismo sensibility, whilst the women are both astutely charming in loyalty with a bullish awareness of the situation. John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall are all excellent in the lead roles, the colour booms out from the screen, and Larry Adler's harmonica backed score is a perfect musical delight.Charming, breezy, and a British comedy classic, Genevieve really is a spiffing film for any day of the week. 9/10

Genevieve is a great nostalgic movie and was always meant to be.However at the time it was made in 1953, the only nostalgic value intended was the featured vintage motor cars themselves.But now 54 years later and with the passing of time, the contemporary setting of an England now long since gone, has attained a nostalgic value of its own, doubling the nostalgia theme and making this film more interesting and enjoyable than ever.John Gregson and Kenneth More play vintage car owners all set to make their annual pilgrimage to Brighton in the London to Brighton Antique Car Rally. With them on this eventful trip is Gregson's wife played by Dinah Sheriden and More's latest bit of squeeze, a hard drinking, trumpet playing upper crust fashion model played by Kay Kendall.Although the Gregson and More characters are in essence best friends, the yearly car rally brings out in them an overwhelming and bitter rivalry on the subject of who's museum piece car is better.Taunts, break downs, gloats and insults are exchanged between the two all the way down to Brighton building up the tension between them which finally explodes the following day on their return run, when Gregson finally pushed to the limit bets an astronomical (for it's day) £100, that Genevieve, his 1904 Darracq can beat More's 1904 Spyker back to London.Then the action turns hilariously nasty as sabotage, double crossings and dirty dealings take a hand, as each is determined to beat the other to Westminster Bridge by hook or by crook.This is a contradiction of the word race as speed does not play a factor at all, as both cars are so old and out of condition that between the frequent breakdowns the most they can do is about 50 mph.It needs to be said however that although, the plot, the dialogue, the acting and the directing are faultless, there is only one star of this entire film and that is the great English country side.Village pubs, Village Greens, country life and clean, clear uncongested roads, all now practically a thing of the past are once again brought to life in glorious Technicolour. A cinematic trip back to a bygone age.Its also worthy of note that the attitude of people back then was a lot better too. Special notice was made to the two motorcycle Policemen, who do not overreact to a race being held on a public highway, a fight breaking out on a village green and are only slightly stern when a false crime is reported. They even manage to show sympathy and mercy in the right situation. Such a refreshing change seeing that how today you can get hauled off to prison for being armed with a cigarette with intent to smoke. How things have changed.A great film and a great British Comedy.

I just finished watching 'Genevieve' again for the first time in over 30 years, and as usual checked the reviewers' comments here on IMDb. Since my dad was very into old cars and in fact took part in one of the Veteran Car Club's runs at about the time the movie was made, perhaps the following nitpicks may be of interest.1. The cars were VETERAN cars, not 'vintage' as widely asserted. Old cars (in the UK) anyway are classed as "Veteran" if built before 1904, "Edwardian" if built between 1904-1910, and "Vintage" if built between 1910-1930. Pre-WW2 non-mass-produced cars were deemed "Post-vintage thoroughbred", and that was it.2. The annual November event is not a 'race', it's a 'run'. Street racing was and is forbidden, and definitely invalidates auto-insurance coverage. OK the movie plot climaxes in an unofficial race (home to London the next day), but that's moviemaker's license. I loved the disclaimer during the opening titles from the Veteran Car Club saying "Our members would NEVER do anything like that".3. Kay Kendall's character's dog is not a St. Bernard or a Shepherd, it's a Mastiff. A nice one too! 4. I too recognise many of the films locations - most of them nowhere NEAR the Brighton road.5. Those who find the comedy unfunny are clearly no students of human nature, and that is indeed a tragedy.6. My greatest joy in recognising great character actors in supporting roles, was not even Joyce Grenfell as the hotel clerk (when I was a student at what is now Brighton University in the sixties, I digged with landladies just like that), but to see Geoffrey Keen cast as a motorcycle speed cop just astonished me! "Genevieve" is now a cornerstone of my private video collection - just as wonderful as I remember it.