Trouble in the Glen
Encyclopedia
Trouble in the Glen is a 1954 British
comedy film
directed by Herbert Wilcox
and starring Margaret Lockwood, Orson Welles
and Forrest Tucker
. It is loosely based on Maurice Walsh
's 1950 novel of the same name.
, millionaire Sanin Cejador y Mengues (Welles) reassumes the title of laird of Glen Easan, which he inherited from his grandfather, Sandy Menzies. Obstinate in nature, Mengues soon finds the climate inhospitable, and the language and customs of the Highland people exasperating. While fishing on the loch with his equally stubborn, distantly related cousin Angus, who works as a fishing or hunting guide for the estate, Mengues hooks and then loses a large trout, and the confrontation escalates from Gaelic epithets and an overturned boat to Mengues firing Angus. When the locals then refuse to work for him and his cattle roam unmanaged over the glen, Mengues, advised by Oliver Dukes (Archie Duncan), his factor from Glasgow
whom the villagers distrust, closes a heavily used road that leads through his property.
By the time American widower, Major Jim "Lance" Lansing (Tucker), a former Air Force
pilot who was stationed in Scotland during World War II
, returns there, the disgruntled villagers are burning the laird in effigy. After a quick drink at the pub, where he befriends tinker
and former paratrooper Malcolm MacFie (John McCallum), Lance reunites with his old friends the Carnochs, who act as guardians of Lance's young daughter Alsuin (Margaret McCourt), who adores Lance but is unaware that he is her father. Stricken with polio, the bedridden Alsuin is hard-hit by the closing of the road, which inspires her made-up fairy tales and provides people to call to her as they pass.
At her request, Lance, whom Alsuin calls "Sir Lancelot", proceeds to the Mengues estate to talk to the laird about the road. Finding the gate locked, he climbs the fence, but before approaching the castle, detours to the loch and takes a swim.
Mengues' feisty daughter Marissa (Lockwood) spots him trespassing and steals his trousers while he is in the loch. Later, dressed in the clothes he has left, Lance shows up at the castle and manages to meet Mengues, who will only advise him, as a fellow foreigner, to "leave Scotland."
Lansing, however, rallies the people of the glen and eventually, they prevail upon Mengues to restore peace, but not before a brief and unconvincing fistfight between Lansing and Dukes. Mengues apologizes to all by explaining that he has recently learned the difference between a lord and a laird. A lord, he says, takes care of the people and land belonging to him, while a laird belongs to the land and the people.
With peace restored, the road re-opens, and during the wedding festivities of Lance and Marissa, Mengues, dressed in a kilt, promises Alsuin, who knows now that Lance is her father, that they both will be dancing within six months. Tinker chieftain Parlan (McLaglen) and Malcolm enjoy the party from the window, until they realize it is an excellent night for poaching.
Cinema of the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has had a major influence on modern cinema. The first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by William Friese Greene, a British inventor, who patented the process in 1890. It is generally regarded that the British film industry...
comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by Herbert Wilcox
Herbert Wilcox
Herbert Sydney Wilcox was a British film producer and director.-Early life:Wilcox's mother was from County Cork, Ireland, but he was born in Norwood and attended school in Brighton...
and starring Margaret Lockwood, Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
and Forrest Tucker
Forrest Tucker
Forrest Tucker was an American actor in both movies and television from the 1940s to the 1980s. Tucker, who stood 190 cm tall and weighed 93 kg , appeared in nearly 100 action films in the 1940s and 1950s.-Early life:Forrest Meredith Tucker was born in Plainfield, Indiana, a son of...
. It is loosely based on Maurice Walsh
Maurice Walsh
Maurice Walsh was an Irish novelist best known for the short story The Quiet Man which was later made into an Oscar nominated movie directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. Walsh was born in 1879 in Ballydonoghue near Listowel, Co. Kerry, Ireland...
's 1950 novel of the same name.
Plot summary
After moving from South America to the Scottish HighlandsScottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
, millionaire Sanin Cejador y Mengues (Welles) reassumes the title of laird of Glen Easan, which he inherited from his grandfather, Sandy Menzies. Obstinate in nature, Mengues soon finds the climate inhospitable, and the language and customs of the Highland people exasperating. While fishing on the loch with his equally stubborn, distantly related cousin Angus, who works as a fishing or hunting guide for the estate, Mengues hooks and then loses a large trout, and the confrontation escalates from Gaelic epithets and an overturned boat to Mengues firing Angus. When the locals then refuse to work for him and his cattle roam unmanaged over the glen, Mengues, advised by Oliver Dukes (Archie Duncan), his factor from Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
whom the villagers distrust, closes a heavily used road that leads through his property.
By the time American widower, Major Jim "Lance" Lansing (Tucker), a former Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
pilot who was stationed in Scotland during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, returns there, the disgruntled villagers are burning the laird in effigy. After a quick drink at the pub, where he befriends tinker
Scottish Travellers
Scottish Travellers, or the people termed loosely Gypsies and Tinkers in Scotland, consist of a number of diverse, unrelated communities, with groups speaking a variety of different languages and holding to distinct customs, histories, and traditions...
and former paratrooper Malcolm MacFie (John McCallum), Lance reunites with his old friends the Carnochs, who act as guardians of Lance's young daughter Alsuin (Margaret McCourt), who adores Lance but is unaware that he is her father. Stricken with polio, the bedridden Alsuin is hard-hit by the closing of the road, which inspires her made-up fairy tales and provides people to call to her as they pass.
At her request, Lance, whom Alsuin calls "Sir Lancelot", proceeds to the Mengues estate to talk to the laird about the road. Finding the gate locked, he climbs the fence, but before approaching the castle, detours to the loch and takes a swim.
Mengues' feisty daughter Marissa (Lockwood) spots him trespassing and steals his trousers while he is in the loch. Later, dressed in the clothes he has left, Lance shows up at the castle and manages to meet Mengues, who will only advise him, as a fellow foreigner, to "leave Scotland."
Lansing, however, rallies the people of the glen and eventually, they prevail upon Mengues to restore peace, but not before a brief and unconvincing fistfight between Lansing and Dukes. Mengues apologizes to all by explaining that he has recently learned the difference between a lord and a laird. A lord, he says, takes care of the people and land belonging to him, while a laird belongs to the land and the people.
With peace restored, the road re-opens, and during the wedding festivities of Lance and Marissa, Mengues, dressed in a kilt, promises Alsuin, who knows now that Lance is her father, that they both will be dancing within six months. Tinker chieftain Parlan (McLaglen) and Malcolm enjoy the party from the window, until they realize it is an excellent night for poaching.
Cast
- Orson WellesOrson WellesGeorge Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
- Sanin Cejador y Mengues - Forrest TuckerForrest TuckerForrest Tucker was an American actor in both movies and television from the 1940s to the 1980s. Tucker, who stood 190 cm tall and weighed 93 kg , appeared in nearly 100 action films in the 1940s and 1950s.-Early life:Forrest Meredith Tucker was born in Plainfield, Indiana, a son of...
- Major Lansing - Margaret Lockwood - Marissa Mengues
- Victor McLaglenVictor McLaglenVictor Andrew de Bier Everleigh McLaglen was an English boxer and World War I veteran who became a successful film actor.Towards the end of his life he was naturalised as a U.S. citizen.-Early life:...
- Parlan MacFie - John McCallumJohn McCallum (actor)John Neil McCallum, AO, CBE was an Australian theatre and film actor. He was also a television producer.McCallum was born in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1918, son of theatre owner and entrepreneur John Neil McCallum Sr., who built and for many years ran the 2,000 seat Cremorne Theatre on the banks of...
- Malcolm MacFie - Eddie ByrneEddie ByrneEddie Byrne was an Irish actor. Outside Ireland he is probably best known for his minor role as General Vanden Willard in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, but fans of cult sci-fi might also remember him as the skeptical Inspector Mulrooney in The Mummy and as the kindly Dr. Reginald Landers in...
- Dinny Sullivan - Archie DuncanArchie Duncan (actor)Archie Duncan was a Scottish actor born in Glasgow.Duncan's father was a Regimental Sergeant Major in the army and his mother a postmistress...
- Oliver Dukes - Gudrun UreGudrun UreGudrun Ure is a Scottish actress, most famous for her portrayal of the titular character in Super Gran. She also starred in the pilot of a series called Life After Life, written by Yes Minister creator Jonathan Lynn...
- Dandy Dinmont - Moultrie KelsallMoultrie KelsallMoultrie Rowe Kelsall was a Scottish film and television character actor, who began his career in the industry as a radio station director and television producer...
- Luke Carnoch - Margaret McCourt - Alsuin
- Alex McCrindleAlex McCrindleAlex McCrindle was a British actor. He is best known for his role as General Jan Dodonna in Star Wars.-Biography:...
- Keegan - Mary MackenzieMary MackenzieMary Mackenzie was an English actress. One of her earliest credited TV roles was in 1950 on BBC's Sunday Night Theatre, as Miriam in an adaptation of H. G. Wells' The History of Mr Polly, a role she returned to in the 1959 BBC serialization.-Early and personal Life :Mackenzie was born and lived in...
- Kate Carnoch - Peter Sinclair - Angus
- Jack WatlingJack WatlingJack Watling was a British actor.-Early life:Watling trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts as a child and made his stage debut in Where the Rainbow Ends at the Holborn Empire in 1936...
- Sammy Weller