This film is part of Rentals
Mr. Topaze
Charming character comedy, unseen for decades, starring Peter Sellers as a school teacher corrupted by big business.
Director: Peter Sellers
Overview
Unseen for decades and described by Peter Sellers' biographer Roger Lewis as a lost classic, this gently melancholy, bittersweet character comedy sees the enigmatic Sellers in engrossing form as a poor, provincial French schoolteacher slowly corrupted by big business. A fine array of actors, including Herbert Lom, Billie Whitelaw and Leo McKern, provide support for Sellers – who also directed.
Meek teacher Topaze, expertly played by Sellers at the peak of his powers, is a quiet man at the heart of a noisy film, surrounded by other characters writ large. Scripted by Pierre Rouve from a play by Marcel Pagnol, and Sellers' only credited feature as director, it was shot just as his first marriage was disintegrating. Speaking at the time to Herbert Kretzmer, who wrote the lyrics to I Like Money, the song featured in the film, Sellers confessed that it was only work keeping him going. "I've never been so low in my life. The days were all right. The days I worked. I worked non-stop. I set out to lose myself in work," he confessed. Available for the first time in decades, Sellers' performance in this unjustly neglected film certainly validates those efforts.
Related
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
Seven Psychopaths Seven Psychopaths
Comedy 2012 110 mins Director: Martin McDonagh
Three Billboards' director Martin McDonagh spins an epic and twisted tale of pets and gangsters, with an all-star cast.
Tamara Drewe Tamara Drewe
Comedy 2010 111 mins Director: Stephen Frears
The return of beautiful journalist Tamara Drewe (Gemma Arterton) awakens destructive passions in a Dorset village.
The Day Shall Come The Day Shall Come
Comedy 2019 88 mins Director: Christopher Morris
An impoverished Miami preacher is lured into terrorism by the FBI, in the latest explosive satire from comedy genius Chris Morris.
Happy-Go-lucky Happy-Go-lucky
Comedy 2008 118 mins Director: Mike Leigh
Sally Hawkins shines in her breakout role as the perpetually sunny Poppy, in Mike Leigh’s charming drama about the power of optimism.
The Angels' Share The Angels' Share
Comedy 2012 97 mins Director: Ken Loach
A young Glaswegian father-to-be discovers his nose for whisky and spots a chance to help his friends. Directed by Ken Loach.
Mindhorn Mindhorn
Comedy 2017 88 mins Director: Sean Foley
Julian Barratt is hilarious as the washed-up actor forced to reprise his 80s TV role as a sleuth with a robotic truth-telling eye, to help catch a deranged killer.
In the Loop In the Loop
Comedy 2009 106 mins Director: Armando Iannucci
Armando Iannucci returns to the world of his hit show The Thick of It as Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi) and Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) deal with a Middle-East crisis of their own making.
The Big Sick The Big Sick
Comedy 2017 120 mins Director: Michael Showalter
The hilarious, breakout indie comedy about a Pakistan-born comedian and his culture-clash relationship with an American grad student.
The Death of Stalin The Death of Stalin
Comedy 2017 107 mins Director: Armando Iannucci
Chaos and comedy ignite in Armando Iannucci’s acerbic satire, as Soviet officials frantically react to the passing of their glorious leader.
Ballywalter Ballywalter
Comedy 2020 90 mins Director: Prasanna Puwanarajah
Seána Kerslake is superb as caustic cab driver, Eileen, who makes an unlikely connection with regular passenger and local comedian, Shane (Patrick Kielty), in Prasanna Puwanarajah’s charming debut.
The Trouble with Jessica The Trouble with Jessica
Comedy 2023 89 mins Director: Matt Winn
An uninvited guest causes havoc at a dinner party in this highly entertaining and darkly comic satire.
Lolita Lolita
Comedy 1962 153 mins Director: Stanley Kubrick
With an Oscar®-nominated screenplay by Nabokov himself, Kubrick filmed a tale that was once thought unadaptable.
The Optimists of Nine Elms The Optimists of Nine Elms
Drama 1973 106 mins Director: Anthony Simmons
Peter Sellers is superb in a warm, wistful family drama, in which two Battersea kids forge an unlikely alliance with a faded music hall star.
The Slappiest Days of Our Lives The Slappiest Days of Our Lives
Comedy 1953 73 mins
A young Peter Sellers voices this compilation film of silent slapstick footage, featuring Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Laurel and Hardy.
Penny Points to Paradise Penny Points to Paradise
Comedy 1951 72 mins Director: Tony Young
The first screen outing for Goon Show stars Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan and Harry Secombe in a cheerful comic escapade set in Brighton.
Let's Go Crazy Let's Go Crazy
Comedy 1951 33 mins Director: Alan J. Cullimore
Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan shine in a series of sketches and multiple roles, in this madcap mixture of music-hall and anarchic comedy.
The Blockhouse The Blockhouse
Drama 1973 92 mins Director: Clive Rees
A rare serious performance by Peter Sellers drives this tale of eight men buried in a bunker for three years at the end of WWII.
South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic
Documentary 1919 81 mins Silent Director: Frank Hurley
An extraordinary story of survival in the wastes of Antarctica.
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
The Ballymurphy Precedent The Ballymurphy Precedent
Documentary 2018 108 mins Director: Callum Macrae
John Pilger's film on the conflict in Northern Ireland is a skilful mix of investigative journalism, documentary storytelling and reflections on contemporary history.
Utopia Utopia
Documentary 2013 111 mins Director: John Pilger and Alan Lowery
John Pilger's portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture is also an investigation into a suppressed colonial past, and rapacious present.
The Coming War on China The Coming War on China
Documentary 2016 113 mins Director: John Pilger
John Pilger’s prescient 60th film for ITV is both a warning and an inspiring story of resistance.
Girls Will Be Girls Girls Will Be Girls
Drama 2024 119 mins Director: Shuchi Talati
Teenage romance simmers in a strict Himalayan boarding school in this sublime coming-of-age tale. Winner of the 2024 Sundance audience prize.