Not many people have the problem of How to Murder a Rich Uncle, and considering how things turn out for Sir Henry and his clan, that's just as well. Uncle is a nifty little black comedy that almost works, and it's a shame that the filmmakers couldn't have lifted the film over that "almost." Murderous comedies of this sort are terribly difficult to pull off. One must make the characters doing the plotting likable enough to want to spend the time with, but not likable enough to want see succeed. And there must be no lack of ingenuity in figuring out the murder attempts that inevitably must go wrong; otherwise, the film will become repetitious. Uncle does rather well in achieving its first goal; it doesn't totally get over this difficult hump, but it does so adequately. Unfortunately, the second hump is more difficult. The law of diminishing returns sets in as the various machinations go wrong, and this damages the film somewhat. That said, there's enough good in Uncle to make it worth viewing, especially for those with a fondness for such similar comedies as Kind Hearts and Coronets. Nigel Patrick lacks the overwhelming talent that an Alec Guinness would have brought to the part, but on his own terms he's quite good, and Charles Coburn is a delight. Wendy Hiller is slightly off form here, but Katie Johnson and Anthony Newley are quite good, and there's a nice early turn from Michael Caine as well.
by Craig Butler
review
