I See Ice

I See Ice
I See Ice
Directed by	Anthony Kimmins
Written by	Austin Melford; Anthony Kimmins;
Produced by	Basil Dean
Starring	George Formby; Kay Walsh; Cyril Ritchard;
Cinematography	Gordon Dines; Ronald Neame;
Edited by	Ernest Aldridge
Music by	Ernest Irving
Production; company	Associated Talking Pictures
Distributed by	Associated British
Release date	10 February 1938;
Running time	84 mins
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

I See Ice is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Anthony Kimmins and starring George Formby, Kay Walsh and Betty Stockfeld.^[1] The film depicts the adventures of a photographer working for a London newspaper. It features the songs "In My Little Snapshot Album", "Noughts And Crosses" and "Mother What'll I Do Now".^[2]

Plot

The farcical adventures of a prop man (George Formby) with a touring ice ballet. Inventing a new sort of candid camera in his spare time, and concealing it in a bow-tie, our hero gets into a mess of trouble when he takes an incriminating photo of an important man; pulls a communication cord; winds up in jail; referees a hockey match; finds himself in a stage show dressed as a cossack; woos an attractive young ice skater (Kay Walsh); and eventually wins a job on a newspaper.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Cast

George Formby as George Bright
Kay Walsh as Judy Gaye
Cyril Ritchard as Paul Martine
Betty Stockfeld as Mrs. Hunter
Garry Marsh as Galloway
Frederick Burtwell as Detective
Ernest Sefton as Outhwaite
Gavin Gordon as Night Club Singer
Ernest Jay as Theater Manager
Andreas Malandrinos as Lotus Club Manager
Gordon McLeod as Lord FeiMead
Archibald Batty as Colonel Hunter
Elliott Mason as Mother on Train
Roddy McDowall (age 9) uncredited - Child on train

Critical reception

Hal Erickson wrote in Allmovie that although the film is "well directed and exceptionally well cast (Kay Walsh and Cyril Ritchard appear in support), I See Ice wouldn't amount to a hill of beans without the presence of the ebullient Formby, who halts the action every once in a while for one of his unsubtly risque comic songs. Not surprisingly, the film was infinitely more popular as a "regional" than as a big-city attraction"/^[5]
Halliwell's Film Guide wrote, "fair star comedy with good production".^[2]
TV Guide wrote, " wild little comedy with Formby performing uproariously as usual."^[4]

References

^ "BFI | Film & TV Database | I SEE ICE! (1938)". Ftvdb.bfi.org.uk. 16 April 2009. Archived from the original on 13 January 2009. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
^ ^a ^b ^c "I See Ice". Georgeformby.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
^ "I See Ice! | BFI | BFI". Explore.bfi.org.uk. Archived from the original on 11 July 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
^ ^a ^b "I See Ice Trailer". TV Guide. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
^ Erickson, Hal. "I See Ice (1938) –". AllMovie. Retrieved 13 March 2014.