bkoganbing Before the Beatles came along to personify post World War II British music there was a battle between Tommy Steele and Cliff Richard as the top pop boy singer of the United Kingdom. Both these guys like Elvis Presley did some films that were tailored to the image they projected and this one The Young Ones suits Richard's clean cut image. Unlike the Beatles who had those Liverpudlian accents that took a bit of getting used to when they spoke, Richard's was a clear and proper diction.Almost as precise as Robert Morley's who plays Richard's tycoon business father. It's almost like a Frank Capra film with the generations battling each other until the young one teaches the old one to be cool.Morley is building a huge office building and the youth club that Richard belongs to is targeted for demolition. With no place for his pals to hang out the younger ones decide to use that tried and true method handed down from Mickey and Judy, put on a show.The plot of course is just an excuse for Richard and his back up band The Shadows to perform a lot of numbers, some good ones too. That opening sequence was quite cleverly done using almost the whole city of London as a backdrop. Richard is a pleasing performer and he's given a good opportunity to display his wares.As an actor not that good especially when stacked up against Robert Morley who looks like he's having a great old time as the Scrooge like father. But the numbers are staged well and this is a film that really shows London at the turn of the 60s.

blanche-2 Cliff Richard stars in The Young Ones, or Wonderful to be Young, from 1961, also starring Robert Morley, Carole Gray, and The Shadows.This is a typical teenage movie with the "Hey, kids, let's put on a show" theme. The kids in this case are British, and their club is being closed due to the sale of the building for a high-rise. What no one knows is the developer, Hamilton Black (Robert Morley) is none other than the father of Nicky (Cliff Richard). Nicky, of course, works on behalf of his cronies but his back always goes out when they have to meet with the old man.There's a renewal clause in the master lease, but Black is a good chess player - they can renew, but it's going to cost them 1500 pounds, a princely sum, up front. The kids decide to raise the money by putting on a show.Like "Summer Holiday," "The Young Ones" is an exuberant, tuneful teen movie, with lots of singing and dancing. Richard doesn't force his acting - he says his lines in a natural manner, and his looks and charm do the rest. His early inspiration was Elvis, and some of his singing is definitely Elvis-like. But it's a different voice and persona -- he's a very smooth singer and his boyish handsomeness, unlike Elvis', is very nonthreatening. I can't imagine anyone breaking his records or coming out against him in a pulpit.This is a very fun film. One can't help being impressed by Richard's longevity - 55 years later, he still looks great, he's still singing, and he's a Sir. He's almost Elvis-lite, a pop icon without the demons that caused us to lose Elvis all too soon.

Wizard-8 I should come out with a confession before I start to review this movie, and that is that until recently, I was pretty ignorant of Cliff Richard. All I knew until about a month ago was one or two of his songs, and I hadn't seen any of his movies. My explanation for that is that I live in North America, where Richard had nowhere the impact he had in England. But recently I rented "Summer Holiday", and now this movie.In this movie, Richard does come across as a kind of likable fellow, one you wouldn't mind meeting in real life (unlike a lot of music stars). However, he is lacking the edge that other musicians who went into movies had (like Elvis and the Beatles). He's pleasant but kind of forgettable. It doesn't help that the songs he sings here are as forgettable as his character here. The script is also very forgettable - it's the old "Let's put on a show!" story, and it unfolds VERY slowly. Had they made fun of this plot or added some memorable elements, things would have been livened up considerably. There's also the question as to why a millionaire's son doesn't have the money himself to pay off the relatively small sum the youth club needs... but I won't get into that.Far from the worst movie ever made, and not really a bad movie. But if you are interested in the cinematic doings of Richard, I suggest you rent "Summer Holiday" instead, which is somewhat more memorable.

dfarmbrough ... The Shadows come off best here with their few lines and great instrumentals undermining the potential datedness of pop stars' movie appearances. However Cliff really rocks and even if the cinematic techniques would be bettered in the follow-up Summer Holiday, the music is just superb.The basic plot of this is so similar to The Blues Brothers it's uncanny. I should be very surprised if John Landis and Dan Aykroyd hadn't seen The Young Ones.Forget about Grazina Frame's dubbed voice, forget about the square old pop played by Robert Morley, and remember the great songs and the unbelievably handsome Cliff!