On the Beat (1962)
Basic clowning
31 August 2002
Norman Pitkin has dreams of being a police officer like his dear old dad. However he is too short to make the force and instead works as the parking attendant for the fleet. Despite repeating attempts hs can't make the force until it's noticed that he's the spitting image of a suspected criminal, Giulio Napolitani. Pitkin is recruited to infiltrate the gang and take evidence.

I'm a big Wisdom fan – but not the extent that I can't see when he has a weak spell. This film is a rerun of a similar theme a few years before when Pitkin tried to join the army. However this is not as funny as that as it is mostly very basic clowning with only a couple of funny, clever routines. The plot relies on the old-lookalike chestnut but doesn't use it until the last 20 minutes or so. It's still funny but lacks energy and the wit of some of his better routines.

Wisdom is as good as always and does his best whether the material is limited or not. He is impressive as two characters despite the fact that they aren't very funny. The problem is that he doesn't have a good support cast. Sure there's a few faces that you'll recognise from other more famous films but where's the regulars? Jerry Desmonde and Mr Grimsdale are both great actors/characters and they make a Wisdom film better. Here the support cast can't lift the film at all.

Overall it's still enjoyable even if it is very basic clowning that will mainly please kids, but this is not one of Wisdom's best.
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