30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia

Production: Columbia. Director Joseph McGrath; Producer Walter Shenson; Screenplay Dudley Moore, Joseph McGrath, John Wells; Camera Billy Williams; Editor Bill Blunden; Music Dudley Moore; Art Director Brian Eatwell
Crew: (Color) Available on VHS. Extract of a review from 1968. Running time: 85 MIN.
With: Dudley Moore Eddie Foy Jr Suzy Kendall John Bird Duncan MacRae

Generously endowed with the better comedic elements of satire, knockabouts, subtleties, pie-in-the-face, etc, film is almost a virtuoso performance by Dudley Moore. He stars, is credited with the original story, composed and conducted music - played by the Dudley Moore Trio.

Close to his 30th birthday Moore, with an amazing spurt of energy, launches a desperation drive to achieve two ambitions, writing a successful musical comedy and getting married.

From this plot establishment, Moore and friends take off on a romp that involves a false broken arm, getting away from it all, losing girl, finishing musical and so on, with such a sense of camp that audiences are bound to be laughing long after the last frame.

Moore’s versatility is central focus with a remarkably underplayed performance that sets pace and keeps it on track; his storyline is a single joke that undoubtedly grew during the filming, and his music and lyrics are like early Noel Coward set in rock idiom.

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