The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953) with Marv from ’Pods Like Us’

2024-08-19

The revamped Review It Yourself continues. The podcast with the sigh. Film reviews for the eternally unimpressed. Sean goes it alone without Sarah, already!? I know.Sean is joined by Marv from the 'Pods Like Us', 'When They was Fab' and 'Toppermost of the Poppermost' podcasts to discuss the classic Ealing Studios film The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953).Will Sean and Marv remain unimpressed by the film?Discussion Points:-Marv describes how his Grandad introduced him to hours and hours of train films.-The heart behind the...

The revamped Review It Yourself continues. The podcast with the sigh. Film reviews for the eternally unimpressed.

Sean goes it alone without Sarah, already!? I know.

Sean is joined by Marv from the 'Pods Like Us', 'When They was Fab' and 'Toppermost of the Poppermost' podcasts to discuss the classic Ealing Studios film The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953).

Will Sean and Marv remain unimpressed by the film?

Discussion Points:

-Marv describes how his Grandad introduced him to hours and hours of train films.

-The heart behind the film, the classic British "small force against adversity" story.

-The strength in a simple yet effective story.

-A libellous, passive aggressive float: what's not to love!

-An accidental shotgun shoot-out.

-Sean enjoyed the film, so his notes are horrendous.

-The subtle social commentary in the film.

-Marv and Sean seriously discuss the social impact of closing a railway to a small village, and The Beeching Cuts (1963-1965). The Beeching Cuts were a series of major service changes and line closures, headed by Richard Beeching of the British Railways Board.

Raised Questions:

-Have they ever bettered Technicolor?

-Is this one of the most quintessentially British films ever made?

-Does the humour work if you live outside of the UK?

-Is this film sweet or quaint?

Was the film prophetic?

-How had Sean never seen an Ealing film before?

-A perfect film for a rainy day with a cup of tea, with cake and sandwiches?

-Does the length of the film help with rewatch-ability?

Podcast Shout-outs:

-Stew from 'Stew World Order'.

-Bill from 'Bill Reads Bad Reviews'.