- Based on the novel by Arthur Le Bern, Robert Hamer's It Always Rains on Sunday is a unique British noir set in London's East End just after the conclusion of World War II. The basic story is that an escaped convict named Tommy Swann (John McCallum) desperately approaches his ex-fiancée, Rose Sandigate (Googie Withers), for help. Rose has long since moved on with her life, having dropped the barmaid's apron for that of a housewife, but Tommy's arrival sparks a glimmer in her eye. Before long, he's hiding out in the upstairs bedroom while the rest of the family goes about their daily business downstairs.
- Incidentally, I can appreciate why Rose might not be all that enamored of her family. Husband George (Edward Chapman) is mostly interested in playing darts and napping between meals. George's daughter Vi (Susan Shaw) is carrying on with a married musician (Sydney Tafler) whose wife (Betty Ann Davies) is wise to his games. George's other daughter Doris (Patricia Plunkett) seems decent enough, although her overprotective boyfriend (Nigel Stock) is hardly an asset. And then there's young Alfie (David Lines) who uses Vi's dalliances to extort a free mouth organ from the musician. One can hardly blame Rose for fondly reminiscing about Tommy, although reality never quite lives up to her memories.
- Although I've focused on the Sandigate family, the film's many other characters prove at least as compelling. There's a trio of Cockney hoodlums (Jimmy Hanley, Alfie Bass, John Carol) trying to peddle stolen roller skates, an equally ineffectual police detective (Jack Warner), and a newspaper reporter (Michael Howard) who couldn't find a story if it punched him in the face (which eventually happens). Oddly enough, the most sympathetic character in the entire film is probably the local mob boss (Sydney Tafler), who comes across as a real mensch even if he does occasionally fix a fight. The scenery (location and staged alike) and eruptions of slang so successfully immerse the audience in East End culture that we might emulate Rose and remember this film as being just a little better than it actually was.
