AllMovie

The first of the wonderful Aldwych Theater farces to hit the silver screen was the frantically hilarious Rookery Nook. The title refers to a country house where Gerald Popkiss (Ralph Lynn) heads for a good long rest. Gerald sends word to his wife Clara (Margot Grahame) to join him then retires for the night. Meanwhile, pajama-clad Rhoda Marley (Winifred Shotter), who has been thrown out of her home by her stepfather, takes refuge in the Rookery Nook living room. It isn't long before Gerald's cousin Clive (Tom Walls), sent to the country house to make certain that Gerald behaves himself, makes the acquaintance of the startled Rhoda -- and that's when the fun begins. Best bits include the lifeboat drill presided over by the scatterbrained Poppy Dickey (Doreen Bendix) and such dialog exchanges as "I'm a man of peace"/ "You'll be a man of pieces in a minute". Filmed exactly like a photographed stage play, Rookery Nook is hardly an advance in the art of the cinema, but that doesn't stop it from being unbearably funny.