Funny and often laugh out loud hilarious story of two brothers (John Mills and Ralph Richardson),one of whom must outlive the other in order to win a Tontine started at their boys school and going to the final survivor of the class. What transpires is "The Wrong Box," a 1966 film directed by Bryan Forbes and also starring Michael Caine, Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Wilfred Lawson, Nanette Newman (Mrs. Forbes) and Peter Sellers.

The first ten minutes or so of the movie is hilarious, as it shows the demise of the other students over the years. Regarding the surviving Finsbury brothers, one side of has Caine and his grandfather Mills, who is desperate to win, so he summons his brother to his "deathbed" in order to kill him, in one of the funniest scenes in the movie. On the other side, Cook and Moore are Richardson's nephews, who have devoted themselves to keeping their uncle alive. They needn't have bothered because he can't be killed anyway. He walks away from a train crash, but there's a mix-up, and he's believed dead. The nephews are desperate to cover this up until Mills dies. When they go to bury what they think is his body, Cook makes Moore do it rather than put his hands in the dirt, insisting "petal-soft hands are the mark of a great ornithologist."

Both Richardson, as the fact-spewing brother, and Mills, as the crazy old coot with murder in his heart, are excellent, as is the rest of the cast. Michael Caine is young and handsome here. Peter Sellers as a shady, cat-loving doctor is a riot. Wilfred Lawson, who plays Mills' butler, nearly steals the film as the elderly servant so old he practically has rigor mortis. One of the best moments is when Michael Caine sends him to the door telling him to go slowly - it already takes him ten minutes to get there, and Lawson starts to go to the door and mumbles to himself, "I'll slow it down." Too much. The pretty ingénue, Newman, had been married to director Forbes for ten years before the making of this film. She's still married to him.

Lots of fun, with a crazy finale befitting the film.

THE WRONG BOX begins with a sort of prologue. A group of wealthy men have entered their young sons in a tontine--a lottery, of sorts, where the one who dies last receives the entry fee paid by everyone--plus, years and years of interest on this principal. I read a set of novels by Thomas Costain about such a contest but always wondered who would bother with such an arrangement? After all, the surviving member would almost certainly be too old and infirm to enjoy it.

The next portion of the film is the most humorous, as one by one you see the crazy ways that many in the tontine die. It's all done with a black sort of humor that I really enjoyed--and felt this was, by far, the best portion of the movie.

Eventually, there are only two members of the tontine still alive--two brothers who can't stand each other. One brother (Ralph Richardson) is the single most boring man on the planet. How he survived this long without someone killing him is beyond me, as the guy just talks and talks and talks--boring the daylights out of anyone unfortunate enough to come near him. His two nephews (Peter Cook and Dudley Moore) also can't stand him and begin scheming how they can get their hands on the money. There also is a niece and she's an oddball--part ultra-prude and part seething cauldron of passion. The other surviving brother (John Mills) seems to be in the worst health, but he, too, hates his brother and, if possible, he'd like to kill him--and he tries repeatedly. His grandson is played by Michael Caine--and he really, really likes his prudish (but hot) female cousin.

While I noticed some of the the reviewers absolutely adored this film (one declared it among the 10 best films ever made),my praise is much more muted. While I like dark comedies, this one seemed very uneven. Apart from showing all the funny deaths at the beginning, I really liked Richardson's character. He was so awful he was pretty funny. Likewise, I really liked the big part played by Peter Sellers as the demented doctor. The less than stellar portions were Cook and Moore (yes, I know they are a bit of an institution in the UK due to their TV work together) and the unnecessary and distracting intertitle cards. Also, some times the humor just seemed a bit flat here and there. Plus, in the end, there really wasn't any real resolution! Overall, a good comedy but not a great one in my estimation.

I saw The Wrong Box for the cast, who were undoubtedly some of the best actors of that time, and apart from the ending which was a little too rushed for my tastes I enjoyed every minute of this film. It is filmed beautifully, flowing well from one scene to the next, and the settings and costumes are luscious to look at. John Barry's score is as exciting and memorable as anything else this late great composer ever did, while the story was paced just right for me and very interesting and the writing and situations are unforced and always hilarious(with too many to list). Bryan Forbes I felt directed quite assuredly in alternative to slack, and the cast are simply to die for. Wilfrid Lawson and Peter Sellers especially are comedy gold, though Tony Hancock is also very funny, Michael Caine more than holds his own, John Mills and Ralph Richardson appeal even if their characters aren't as easy initially to warm to and Peter Cook and Dudley Moore are in their prime and seeing them together is worth the viewing alone. All in all, a real joy, can't recommend it enough. 9/10 Bethany Cox