A very funny film depicting the exploits of a Hebridean Scotsman and his search for a wife on the Scottish mainland. Though the dialog and comments by the characters often made me feel that you had to be either a Scottish Highlander or from Cape Breton Island in Canada to get some of the jokes (which are hilarious), I found the depiction of the locals to be both truthful and exaggerated, depending on the character. A previous commenter made reference to the "Irish" sound of the characters' speech. It is my experience that the Hebredians DO speak English in a rather Irish sounding way and not with the "burr" of the mainlanders. This to me makes the film easier to understand. I recommend the film highly.
17 Reviews
Light Entertainment
loza-127 May 2005
The story of a simpleton being sent from an island to the mainland to look for a bride who is not a Catholic nor a Campbell and has a good pair of legs for climbing the hills does not sound very promising. But the story works fairly well.
In the chase by the police across a midgeless Highlands, one is minded of the police chasing Hannay in Hitchcock's The 39 Steps. But as this is a comedy, the chase lacks any tension.
However, the performances are pretty good. George Cole came across well as a Scotsman.
Some of the humour is quite amusing; and even if the comedy situation is a bit silly, the dialogue is not.
The scenery is beautifully shot, and coupling it with the choir from Campbelltown is a masterstroke.
The film is enjoyable and well worth watching.
In the chase by the police across a midgeless Highlands, one is minded of the police chasing Hannay in Hitchcock's The 39 Steps. But as this is a comedy, the chase lacks any tension.
However, the performances are pretty good. George Cole came across well as a Scotsman.
Some of the humour is quite amusing; and even if the comedy situation is a bit silly, the dialogue is not.
The scenery is beautifully shot, and coupling it with the choir from Campbelltown is a masterstroke.
The film is enjoyable and well worth watching.
The Bridal Path
billnelles24 September 2006
This is a little gem of a movie, made in more innocent times. It's about a man who leaves a small island and travels to the Scottish Mainland in search of a bride. A succession of unfortunate events befall him, and a number of well-known British character actors make appearances. Bill Travers is a square-jawed, handsome devil, but his character has a certain amount of smug machismo that would not play well nowadays. The small town Scotland of the 1950's is very well captured, and the ending is pure Judy Garland Wizard of Oz. Don't go looking for happiness - it's back home where you left it.
This time, Bill Travers' wife, Virginia McKenna, doesn't appear. To see them at their best in black and white 50's England, watch their superb movie "The Smallest Show on Earth", also starring Margaret Rutherford and a young Peter Sellers, who plays an elderly projectionist with a penchant for silent moves and the bottle.
This time, Bill Travers' wife, Virginia McKenna, doesn't appear. To see them at their best in black and white 50's England, watch their superb movie "The Smallest Show on Earth", also starring Margaret Rutherford and a young Peter Sellers, who plays an elderly projectionist with a penchant for silent moves and the bottle.
Slight and whimsical but very enjoyable
bob the moo28 August 2002
On a small Scottish island a ruling is made by the elders that no more first cousins will be allowed to marry in order to stop inbreeding and all that comes with it. Sadly for Ewan he is due to marry his first cousin. With the romance off Ewan travels to the mainland in order to get himself a wife. However several cases of mistaken intentions and mistaken identity find Ewan on the run from the police and trying to get back home.
I found this o the backwaters of channel 4 at about 4 am! I taped it as I always try to see as many different things as I can, rather than just relying on my multiplex to show me what exists in the cinematic world. The plot is very basic and a bit strange in that it admits that the islanders are inbred. However our hero is a huge man who appears strapping and not inbred at all! He sets off to find a wife but instead only fins whimsical misunderstandings and innocent humour. It's all very slight and never very funny but it has an affable mood about it and is warming if not hilarious.
Some of the accents are a bit off but most are OK. Travers plays the giant hero well and is as innocent a man as the role required. People like Cole and Terry Thomas with Scottish accents are a bit iffy but are amusing especially Cole who was an old hand in film by 1959, having been a child actor.
Overall this is enjoyable and is interesting to see now because it's a type of film not made any more. I can't think of a single film that is recent that is as whimsical as this. The photography is great and Scotland looks beautiful in the constant sun (really that's how it is!). An enjoyable, if slight, experience.
I found this o the backwaters of channel 4 at about 4 am! I taped it as I always try to see as many different things as I can, rather than just relying on my multiplex to show me what exists in the cinematic world. The plot is very basic and a bit strange in that it admits that the islanders are inbred. However our hero is a huge man who appears strapping and not inbred at all! He sets off to find a wife but instead only fins whimsical misunderstandings and innocent humour. It's all very slight and never very funny but it has an affable mood about it and is warming if not hilarious.
Some of the accents are a bit off but most are OK. Travers plays the giant hero well and is as innocent a man as the role required. People like Cole and Terry Thomas with Scottish accents are a bit iffy but are amusing especially Cole who was an old hand in film by 1959, having been a child actor.
Overall this is enjoyable and is interesting to see now because it's a type of film not made any more. I can't think of a single film that is recent that is as whimsical as this. The photography is great and Scotland looks beautiful in the constant sun (really that's how it is!). An enjoyable, if slight, experience.
The Groom Path.
morrison-dylan-fan17 June 2019
Warning: Spoilers
With Father's Day coming up,I took a look on a DVD sellers page for a film I could get to watch with my dad on the day. Having picked up Intimate Relations (1937-also reviewed) from UK company Network,I was happy to spot another British Comedy which my dad had mentioned seeing on TV ages ago,this led to me stepping onto the path.
View on the film:
Going to the Scottish Highlands to track McEwan's search for a bonny lass,co-writer/(with Geoffrey Willans) director Frank Launder & cinematographer Arthur Ibbetson map out a whimsical Comedy atmosphere thrown from winding panning shots of McEwan running against the beautiful rugged terrain. Falling into mishaps with the locals, the score by Cedric Thorpe Davie finely pitches McEwan's problems with a Folk score that digs thorns into his sides, whilst remaining playful for McEwan's issues with every local he meets. Saying goodbye to the remote Scottish island as McEwan lands on the mainland in their adaptation of Nigel Tranter's novel,the screenplay by Launder and Willans hilariously lay Scottish clichés down thickly,from not a minute going by where "Oh aye" does not appear, to the gun-toting locals and incompetent police giving the perceived outsider McEwan a less than warm greeting.
Going from place to place with McEwan in his attempt to find a would-be bride, the writers let the comedy flourish to its most ripe form during these exchanges,with McEwan catching the wrong eye of a banker and the slap-stick high jinks of McEwan outwitting the local police, covering the fact that the whole misunderstanding the film is built on, could easily be solved. Hoping to meet a woman of his dreams but instead finding a wonderful supporting cast of George Cole, Terry Scott and Dilys Laye, Bill Travers gives a warm, embracing performance as McEwan, with Travers having McEwan land on every fish out of water misstep,as he tries to get off the path.
View on the film:
Going to the Scottish Highlands to track McEwan's search for a bonny lass,co-writer/(with Geoffrey Willans) director Frank Launder & cinematographer Arthur Ibbetson map out a whimsical Comedy atmosphere thrown from winding panning shots of McEwan running against the beautiful rugged terrain. Falling into mishaps with the locals, the score by Cedric Thorpe Davie finely pitches McEwan's problems with a Folk score that digs thorns into his sides, whilst remaining playful for McEwan's issues with every local he meets. Saying goodbye to the remote Scottish island as McEwan lands on the mainland in their adaptation of Nigel Tranter's novel,the screenplay by Launder and Willans hilariously lay Scottish clichés down thickly,from not a minute going by where "Oh aye" does not appear, to the gun-toting locals and incompetent police giving the perceived outsider McEwan a less than warm greeting.
Going from place to place with McEwan in his attempt to find a would-be bride, the writers let the comedy flourish to its most ripe form during these exchanges,with McEwan catching the wrong eye of a banker and the slap-stick high jinks of McEwan outwitting the local police, covering the fact that the whole misunderstanding the film is built on, could easily be solved. Hoping to meet a woman of his dreams but instead finding a wonderful supporting cast of George Cole, Terry Scott and Dilys Laye, Bill Travers gives a warm, embracing performance as McEwan, with Travers having McEwan land on every fish out of water misstep,as he tries to get off the path.
Whimsy will take you only so far
malcolmgsw18 March 2023
Warning: Spoilers
.This is basically a one joke film. Traders is dying up all the likely women in Glasgow to find himself a bride. The problem is that this makes him out to be naieve bumpkin.
When repeated for the sixth time it becomes rather tiresome.
All the usual Scottish actors are present,Jackson,Mcrae,McMillan. To add to this are English actors such as George Cole,struggling manfully with a Scottish accent,and Terry Scott.
What redeems all this is the excellent colour photograph of Douglas Slocombe and the choral background of local fortunes arranged by Cedric Davie.
This is the sort of film churned our by the British film industry in the fifties to combat tv.
When repeated for the sixth time it becomes rather tiresome.
All the usual Scottish actors are present,Jackson,Mcrae,McMillan. To add to this are English actors such as George Cole,struggling manfully with a Scottish accent,and Terry Scott.
What redeems all this is the excellent colour photograph of Douglas Slocombe and the choral background of local fortunes arranged by Cedric Davie.
This is the sort of film churned our by the British film industry in the fifties to combat tv.
Touching, Extremely Funny; One of the Best Comedies Ever Produced
silverscreen88824 June 2005
Few films are consistently nominated as the "funniest film ever made". "The Bridal Path" should rank high on such a list in the English-speaking world for many reasons. Its story is deceptively simple to set forth, however. Ewan MacEwan needs a wife. He lives on the remote Scottish island of Eorsa, his wife has died and his children need someone too. So he sets out for the mainland, to find a mate. What happens to him then should not happen to a nice, sincere and out-of-place wife-hunter--but it does, in spades. Bill Travers is in top form as Ewan, aided by a very large case of players who flit in and out of his misadventures; their numbers include George Cole, Gordon Jackson, Fiona Clyde and lovely Bernadette O'Farrell of the "Robin Hood" TV series' fame. This remarkable and memorable bit of whimsy and Scottish humor was served up by British comedy veteran FranK Launder. He and Geoffrey Williams adapted an hilarious novel to the screen, one which offers brushes with police and irate citizens, the old country-boy-misunderstands-the city caper, the troubles Ewan gets into trying to bring up the subject of a wife--and his exact list of requirements for the position--and much much more. The production is lovely in full-color, breezy, swift-paced or leisurely just where it needs to be one or the other. How Ewan finally finds the wife he has been looking for in his own backyard when he has to return home provides a perfect climax and happy ending to one of the best-loved comedies ever to be sent to the US as a bundle from Britain. An utter delight, and much less known than it deserves to be.
Great film!
bkennedy-327 January 2005
I haven't seen The Bridal Path in years. It used to be shown occasionally in the US but it is becoming rare that anything but American films are aired on TV. I remember the movie very well however and loved the sound track that included a Gaelic Choir in the background as Ewan tramped the West Highlands searching out a wife. The shopping list the elders gave him was hilarious. (good legs for the chickens etc) One of the funniest scenes was after he had befriended a police dog (following his arrest) they later loosed the same dog on him in pursuit. (He having escaped) Ewen was jumping into a row boat and the Alsatian jumped in and sat down beside him wagging his tail! The cinematography was beautiful as well with the glorious highlands in colour. Along with the funny story, the music and the spectacular shots it is burned in my mind as a terrific wee film. I wish it were out on DVD! Tapadh leibh, Brian Mac Sheumais Ceanadach
"We haven't had trouble like this in Scotland since Rudolf Hess landed".
richardchatten12 January 2022
More a travelogue than a story. The plot is actually rather creepy, with Bill Travers roaming the highlands seeking a wife as if he was visiting a market; and encountering comely lassies who find him irresistible everywhere he goes.
Rendered picturesque however by the rich Technicolor location photography by Arthur Ibbetson in the days when Scottish policemen wore check bands on their caps and by the Campbelltown Gaelic Choir on the soundtrack; the usual familiar faces are joined by a young Annette Crosbie and Graham Crowden both in their big screen debuts.
Rendered picturesque however by the rich Technicolor location photography by Arthur Ibbetson in the days when Scottish policemen wore check bands on their caps and by the Campbelltown Gaelic Choir on the soundtrack; the usual familiar faces are joined by a young Annette Crosbie and Graham Crowden both in their big screen debuts.
Gentle, humorous look at a simple (and probably vanished) lifestyle
musicaustralia2 February 2002
A whimsical and thoroughly enjoyable film that only the British could have made and then, only in the 1950s. The gentle giant hero; the stereotypical and yet reassuring secondary characters; and the most beautiful scenery combine to make this charming film well worth the look.
No blood; no special effects; no nudity (we do get a glimpse of a woman changing at the beach which was probably pretty racy in 1950s Britain); and no improbable explosions. Just a peculiar reliance on something called 'story'. There aren't any real baddies in the film just a crowd of Englishmen and some incompetent but well meaning policemen.
Well written and very funny. Most of the gags still work very well. Even my teenage son sat through this film and laughed.
Heart-warming, comforting and, in the end, highly moral film that depicts Island life with it's minor prejudices (Catholics and Campbells) with a beautiful understanding and deeply affectionate approach. Nigel Tranter, the author of the original book, wrote many great stories about Scotland and I can recommend both this film and his books wholeheartedly.
No blood; no special effects; no nudity (we do get a glimpse of a woman changing at the beach which was probably pretty racy in 1950s Britain); and no improbable explosions. Just a peculiar reliance on something called 'story'. There aren't any real baddies in the film just a crowd of Englishmen and some incompetent but well meaning policemen.
Well written and very funny. Most of the gags still work very well. Even my teenage son sat through this film and laughed.
Heart-warming, comforting and, in the end, highly moral film that depicts Island life with it's minor prejudices (Catholics and Campbells) with a beautiful understanding and deeply affectionate approach. Nigel Tranter, the author of the original book, wrote many great stories about Scotland and I can recommend both this film and his books wholeheartedly.
Does more for Scotland than the Scottish Tourist Board!
philiphatfield15 September 2004
Bill Travers revives his "Geordie" character from that film four years earlier but now gets the accent just about right, this time as Ewan MacEwan the Hebridian country-boy Islander who makes a last effort to find and marry a mainland girl to avoid the dreaded consanguinity (the marrying of blood relations) on his island community . A series of misunderstandings and various escapades,lead to him constantly missing breakfast, dinner and tea. Pursued by the police he is finally arrested in mistake for "Mike Flanagan" leader of the "Dynamite Mob" of Glasgow salmon poachers (just as he is about to sit down for ANOTHER meal , appropriately, poached salmon!). Finally escaping the police and a pair of harpy man-eating sisters he decides there's no place like home, where, the girl of his dreams has been waiting all the time! This is a splendid heart-warming film. There are some lovely glimpses of Oban and the surrounding countryside in the 50s indeed one can visit most of the film's locations in a day out from that town. The island of Beigg (Eorsa in the book)is filmed at Easdale with the nearby Clachan bridge the site of the New Inn. Castle Stalker near Appin North of Oban sits on its islet in a blue loch north of Oban, exactly as it does today, whilst the King's House Hotel in Glencoe is where Ewan is finally nabbed by the long arm of the law. The cast include the "usual suspects" many of whom appear in many of the Scottish comedies of the time including the excellent Jameson Clark the perennial policeman. However the best line in the film goes to another copper, the splendidly dour George Cole addressing his subordinate Gordon Jackson on hearing that the notorious Flanagan Gang have been cornered at the King's House Hotel "This looks like the biggest thing we've had in this district for years Alec - get the bicycles out". Heartily recommended.
One to watch
doug-coull7 March 2003
A hidden gem
ghart273 January 2001
This is a hidden gem, because hardly anyone seems to know of this funny story of the search for a kindred spirit through marriage. Perhaps we don't all live in a situation corresponding to the offshore Scottish islands, but the hilarious exaggeration of this setting is extremely effective. I just hope that those who live in the Hebrides and Shetland don't mind it too much.
Hidden gem
evans-1547526 September 2021
Local Hero for an earlier generation
scotty1231 August 2002
This film deserves to be better known. If you liked Local Hero or Gregory's Girl, you will probably enjoy this one as well. It has the same quirky charm and unbelievably good weather to display the beauties of the Celtic fringe of Scotland. Some of the accents sound more Irish than Scottish, Bill Travers particularly, but he does make valiant efforts.
Not a deep film but a real delight, and well worth keeping to put in the VCR on a miserable winter's night.
Not a deep film but a real delight, and well worth keeping to put in the VCR on a miserable winter's night.
A Nice Film
Picgoer8 July 2022
Bill Travers looked great in a kilt!
This is a nice, charming and very watchable little film. It's the sort of film to watch on a Sunday night to calm down before the rat race starts again on Monday.
Whilst the premise seems contrived, in fact it would not be unusual for island and other isolated communities to seek partners from elsewhere, it still happens!
The scenery is fabulous and the sun is shining! The ensemble cast, many well known faces, all add to the pleasure in watching this film.
It's not great drama but eminently watchable.
This is a nice, charming and very watchable little film. It's the sort of film to watch on a Sunday night to calm down before the rat race starts again on Monday.
Whilst the premise seems contrived, in fact it would not be unusual for island and other isolated communities to seek partners from elsewhere, it still happens!
The scenery is fabulous and the sun is shining! The ensemble cast, many well known faces, all add to the pleasure in watching this film.
It's not great drama but eminently watchable.
Delightful.
plan9919 September 2023
A joy to watch from start to finish very well cast and acted and a very funny script. The glorious scenery in colour must have done wonders for Scottish tourism at the time.
Without a doubt one of the best comedy films of the 1950s and 1960s if not of all time. It's been a few decades since I last watched it so I had forgotten most of it so it was like seeing it for the first time and I loved it, again.
The Gaelic Choir music suited it very well. Several actors and actresses in this who would become a lot better known in the following decades.
A must watch for all lovers of quaint and quirky comedy films.
Without a doubt one of the best comedy films of the 1950s and 1960s if not of all time. It's been a few decades since I last watched it so I had forgotten most of it so it was like seeing it for the first time and I loved it, again.
The Gaelic Choir music suited it very well. Several actors and actresses in this who would become a lot better known in the following decades.
A must watch for all lovers of quaint and quirky comedy films.
See also
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