Rooney
Directed byGeorge Pollock
Screenplay byPatrick Kirwan
Based onnovel Rooney by Catherine Cookson
Produced byGeorge H. Brown
StarringJohn Gregson
Muriel Pavlow
Barry Fitzgerald
CinematographyChristopher Challis
Edited byPeter Bezencenet
Music byPhilip Green
Production
company
George H. Brown Productions
Distributed byRank Organisation
Release dates
  • 24 March 1958 (1958-03-24) (London, England)
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom]]
LanguageEnglish

Rooney is a 1958 British comedy film directed by George Pollock and starring John Gregson, Muriel Pavlow and Barry Fitzgerald.[1] It was based on the 1957 novel of the same name by Catherine Cookson.[2]

Plot

The film depicts the life of James Ignatius Rooney, a Gaelic sportsman at the weekends, and a Dublin rubbish collector during the week.[3]

Cast

Production

Clive Donner said he was offered the job of directing the film after having made his feature debut with The Secret Place but he turned it down.[4]

Critical reception

Bosley Crowther in The New York Times gave the film a mixed review though he added that, "we must say, John Gregson goes at the title role of the happy young bachelor dustman with a lively good nature and comic will";[5] while Tony Sloman in the Radio Times gave the piece three out of five stars, calling it "really quite charming";[6] and Allmovie found the film "Stronger on characterisation than plot," noting that "The film is at its best when the camera roams around the misty streets of Dublin, and at its worst when it pauses for sentiment."[7]

Box office

Kinematograph Weekly listed it as being "in the money" at the British box office in 1958.[8]

References

  1. ^ "Rooney (1958)". Archived from the original on 14 January 2009.
  2. ^ Goble, Alan (1 January 1999). The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 9783110951943 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ Goble, Alan (1 January 1999). The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 9783110951943 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ Fowler, Roy (8 March 2000). "Interview with Clive Donner - Side Ten". British Entertainment History Project. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  5. ^ "Movie Review -- Screen: Irish Comedy; John Gregson Starred in Sutton's 'Rooney' - NYTimes.com". The New York Times. 23 March 2023.
  6. ^ "Rooney – review - cast and crew, movie star rating and where to watch film on TV and online". Radio Times.
  7. ^ "Rooney (1958) - George Pollock - Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related - AllMovie". AllMovie.
  8. ^ Billings, Josh (18 December 1958). "Others in the Money". Kinematograph Weekly. p. 7.

External links


Films directed by George Pollock
Categories