Down Among The Z Men

Starring: Harry Secombe, Michael Bentine Director: Maclean Rogers Original UK Premiere: 1952 Dvd Release: 24th June, 2002 Number Of Discs: 1 Format: Black & White, PAL, Region 0 Encoding

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DVD Extras: Down Among the Z Men offers little to recommend, with the DVD lacking in any extras whatsoever. Being taken from an original fifties print, the black & white picture is of reasonable quality yet cannot help but look extremely dated. At best it is the sort of curio that would pass time on a Sunday afternoon but it is hard to consider this a particularly essential DVD release. –-

Although they made their name in the medium of radio, the legendary Goons also made brief forays into the world of television and, with Down Among the Z Men, film. It captures the team at a very early stage in their career, with Michael Bentine still in the fold, & with their unique, anarchic brand of humour still in its infancy. Sadly, the style & feel of the film does little to suit their comedy style. While radio offered an opportunity for their imaginations to run riot, here the four find themselves tied to a few stock characters, most of whom would make a more animated appearances later in their career. The plot, with its tale of eccentric professors & evil spies, sees a series of musical numbers & a variety performance crow barred into the proceedings. Those who wish to add to an already existing Goons collection may want to consider this, but anyone wondering what all the fuss is about should head straight for the many radio collections available & hear the sound of true genius at work.

Sir Harry Secombe was a Welsh entertainer, with a fine tenor singing voice & a talent for comedy. He was one of the original Goons, appearing in the radio series as Neddy Seagoon, the protagonist of the shows ridiculous plots. He had first met Spike Milligan, the founder of the Goons, during army service in World War II in North Africa. He shared his birthday 8 September with the third member of the trio, Peter Sellers. Secombe appeared in many stage musicals, including Pickwick & The Four Musketeers & had several chart successes, the song most associated with him being If I Ruled the World. He also appeared as Mr. Bumble in Lionel Bart s film Oliver!. Later in life, Secombe attracted new audiences as a presenter of religious programmes, such as the BBC s Songs of Praise & ITVs Highway. He was knighted in 1981. After suffering a stroke, he was forced to abandon his television career, but made a documentary about his condition in the hope of giving encouragement to other sufferers. I suffer fools gladly because I am one of them. My voice is not so much bel canto as can belto.

Editors Choice: The Magnificent 7 Deadly Sins, Doctor In Trouble, Down Among The Z Men, View DVDology

Michael Bentine was a comedian, comic actor & member of the Goons. Bentine was born in Watford, of Anglo- Peruvian parentage. In World War II he served as an RAF Intelligence officer & took part in the liberation of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. He had acted before the war & afterwards he decided to become a comedian, specialising in off-the-wall humour, often involving cartoons & other types of animation. For example, a prominent feature of his series, Its a Square World, was the imaginary flea-circus. He was also a television presenter & writer. He appeared in the Goon Show film Down Among the Z Men & at the time seemed perhaps the most comfortable of the cast in working in a visual medium. In later life, his interests included parapsychology. This partly arose as a result of the premature death of his son. http.//www .rbadsign .demon .co .uk/michaelbentine .html.

Editors Choice: Michael Bentines Potty Time, Down Among The Z Men, View DVDology

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