The harrowing tale of one Scottish islands' extensive alcohol addiction, to the extent that most of them can barely function without it. One young man regresses to a childlike state where his life is controlled by his mother, a woman who can't enjoy anything without having consumed alcohol. Another man is even affected so badly he can't get out of bed until he has a drink.
OK, the story isn't meant to be harrowing. It's an Ealing Comedy and it has fun with the notion but it's clear this film wouldn't have been made today- at least not in this style.
The inhabitants of the isolated Scottish island of Todday are largely unaffected by Second World War rationing but then the whisky runs out. The island falls into a state of misery, apart from the Macroon sisters who both become engaged to be married. But when a freighter is grounded near the island, the residents are delighted to discover it's full to the brim with whisky. An engagement party is called but Captain Waggett (Basil Radford), and English commander of the Home Guard, tries to confiscate the cargo.
Compared to other Ealing comedies I've seen this has more humour in it, giving us genuine funny moments as well as the general light-hearted feel that most Ealing comedies have. The plot is not similar to many others from the studio, with a small band trying to outwit the authorities, which always works well. The concept here of the islanders trying to hide the whisky is a strong one and that's probably because the film was based, loosely I suspect, on a true story, when the cargo ship SS Politician round aground near the island of Eriskay and the locals were able to salvage whisky from it.
The Scottish-ness of this film is part of the reason it works so well. Everyone speaks with highland accents, which are lovely and really work for comedy. The film was shot on location on the island of Barra which really adds to the atmosphere of the film, even if the bad weather meant the film went over budget. There's also a great use of the long-lasting conflict between the Scots and the English, with the stuck-up Waggett representing much of what the Scots disliked about the English (and some still do).
Sometimes the film goes too far- boats and vehicles being covered with boxes of whisky yet somehow functioning perfectly normally is not very convincing and Waggett's determination is taken too far- surely he wouldn't be bothered enough to go to as much trouble as he does here?
One of Ealing's finest films thanks to its strong concept and both the script and production of the film sticking closely to it.
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