''The Rebel'' (US title: ''Call Me Genius'') is a 1961 British

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by Robert Day and starring

Tony Hancock Anthony John Hancock (12 May 1924 – 25 June 1968) was an English comedian and actor. High-profile during the 1950s and early 1960s, he had a major success with his BBC series '' Hancock's Half Hour'', first broadcast on radio from 1954, ...

. It was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The film concerns the clash between bourgeois and bohemian cultures.

Plot

Tony, a disaffected

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

office clerk, catches the train to

Waterloo Station Waterloo station (), also known as London Waterloo, is a major central London railway terminus on the National Rail network in the United Kingdom, in the Waterloo area of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is connected to a London Undergroun ...

every morning. Each commuter wears a

bowler hat The bowler hat, also known as a Coke hat, billycock, bob hat, bombín (Spanish) or derby (United States), is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown, originally created by the London hat-makers Thomas and William Bowler in 1849 and commissioned by ...

and carries an umbrella. In the City, Tony is one of many identical clerks in a dull office. One day his boss catches him drawing faces instead of working, and he is asked to produce his ledgers, which are full of poor quality caricatures. Back at his mid-terraced Victorian house lodgings, Tony dons his artist's smock, and resumes work on "

Aphrodite Aphrodite (, ) is an Greek mythology, ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, procreation, and as her syncretism, syncretised Roman counterpart , desire, Sexual intercourse, sex, fertility, prosperity, and ...

at the Waterhole", a horrendous and huge sculpture. His landlady Mrs Crevatte complains about the hammering noise. He explains he cannot afford a model and it represents "women as he sees them". She threatens to evict him if he does not remove the statue. As he remonstrates with his copy of

Van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade, he created approximately 2,100 artwork ...

's self-portrait on his wall, the statue crashes through the floor. At a local cafe he orders a coffee "with no froth". This annoys the owner, who tells Tony he has just bought an expensive froth-making machine. Inspired by a poster on the wall Tony decides to go to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He takes a train to

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

with his Aphrodite on a wagon to the rear; she is decapitated as the train goes through a tunnel. At the port, Tony is furious, but worse is to follow: while being loaded onto a ship it bursts through the bottom of its net and is lost in the sea. On the ferry he throws his bowler hat and umbrella into the sea; unfortunately it is raining heavily when he arrives in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. In Paris, Tony goes to a cafe in

Montmartre Montmartre ( , , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement of Paris, 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Rive Droite, Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for its a ...

and meets a group of English-speaking artists. He befriends Paul, who speaks passionately about art, and invites Tony to share his studio and flat. Tony loves the atmosphere in the studio. He critiques Paul's paintings: "Your colours are the wrong shape", he says. Paul admires the childlike style of Tony's work: "infantile art". Josey, a red-haired, blue-lipped beatnik visits and invites them to a very large mansion, filled with artwork. Here the Dalí-esque owner, Jim Smith, sleeps on the bookcase because he is writing a book. A group of young people all dressed alike hang on Tony's every word, and think he is fantastic. Inspired by Jim Smith, Tony sleeps on top of his wardrobe and brings a cow to live in the flat. He tries his first

action painting Action painting, sometimes called "gestural abstraction", is a style of painting in which paint is spontaneously dribbled, splashed or smeared onto the canvas, rather than being carefully applied. The resulting work often emphasizes the physical ...

. A disillusioned Paul decides to leave, and gifts Tony his art. As Tony's reputation spreads he is visited by Sir Charles Broward, an art collector and buyer who notices and is attracted to Paul's work. Sir Charles asks Tony if Paul's works are his and Tony says they were "a gift", which is misinterpreted. Tony's own work is labelled awful. After the first exhibition, he goes to a posh restaurant with Sir Charles and orders egg and chips. When pushed to choose something more, he orders snails, egg and chips, and a cup of tea. Sir Charles takes Tony to

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo ( ; ; or colloquially ; , ; ) is an official administrative area of Monaco, specifically the Ward (country subdivision), ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to ...

, where he has dinner with a number of rich guests. One woman, Mrs Carreras, wishes to be painted by Tony. Her husband, after some debate, commissions a sculpture. Tony injures his fingers while hammering, and later at dinner Mrs Carreras hand-feeds him. Carreras offers to buy Tony's entire art collection for £50,000. On the Carreras' yacht, Tony dresses as a bird for the fancy dress party. Mrs Carreras dresses as a cat. He rejects her advances and she threatens to shoot him. On deck, he unveils the statue to everyone's horror—it is a copy of his Aphrodite—and Mrs Carreras accuses him of assaulting her. The statue drops through the ship and Tony escapes on the yacht's launch. Still dressed as a bird, Tony goes to the airport and says he wants to fly to Britain. "Wouldn't you rather take a plane?" the attendant quips. He returns to Mrs Crevatte's, finding Paul living with her and working in an office, though still painting as a hobby. Tony persuades Paul to lend him some new paintings, promising to explain later. Showing these paintings at the London exhibition, Tony reveals that Paul is the true artist and "the rubbish" is Tony's work. Leaving Paul to enjoy his newfound fame and fortune, Tony returns to Mrs Crevatte's and resumes work on his Aphrodite - with Mrs Crevatte as the model.

Cast

as Anthony Hancock *

George Sanders George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous charac ...

as Sir Charles Broward *

Paul Massie Paul Massie (born Arthur Dickinson Massé; July 7, 1932June 8, 2011) was a Canadian actor and academic. He later became a theater professor for the University of South Florida during the 1970s. He remained with the faculty until his retirement a ...

as Paul *

Margit Saad Margit Saad (30 May 1929 – 7 August 2023) was a German actress who worked largely in German film and television, with occasional English language appearances. Biography Margit Saad was born in Munich, Germany, the daughter of a Lebanese lingu ...

as Margot *

Grégoire Aslan Grégoire Aslan (born Krikor Kaloust Aslanian (); 28 March 1908 – 8 January 1982) was a Swiss-Armenian actor and musician. Early life He was born to an Armenian family in Switzerland or in Constantinople, according to different sources. He m ...

as Carreras *

Dennis Price Dennistoun John Franklyn Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor. He played Louis Mazzini in the Ealing Studios film ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and the omnicompetent valet Jeeves in 1960s television adaptation ...

as Jim Smith *

Irene Handl Irene Handl () (27 December 1901 – 29 November 1987) was a British character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films; she also wrote novels. Life Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the younger of two daughters of an Aus ...

as Mrs Crevatte *

John Le Mesurier John Le Mesurier (, born John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley; 5 April 191215 November 1983) was an English actor. He is probably best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC television situation com ...

as office manager *

Liz Fraser Elizabeth Joan Winch (14 August 1930 – 6 September 2018), known professionally as Liz Fraser, was a British film actress, best known for being cast in provocative comedy roles. Early life Fraser was born in Southwark, London. Her year of b ...

as waitress *

Mervyn Johns David Mervyn Johns (18 February 18996 September 1992) was a Welsh stage, film and television actor who became a fixture of British films during the Second World War. Johns appeared extensively on screen and stage with over 100 credits between 1 ...

as manager of art gallery *

Peter Bull Peter Cecil Bull, (21 March 1912 – 20 May 1984) was a British actor who appeared on the stage and in supporting roles in such films as '' The African Queen'', '' Tom Jones'' and '' Dr. Strangelove''. Peter Bull wrote twelve books. Biograph ...

as manager of art gallery *

Nanette Newman Nanette Newman (born 29 May 1934) is an English actress and author. She appeared in nine films directed by her husband Bryan Forbes, including ''Séance on a Wet Afternoon'' (1964), ''The Whisperers'' (1967), '' Deadfall'' (1968), ''The Stepfor ...

as Josey *

Marie Burke Marie Burke (born Marie Rosa Altfuldisch, later Holt, 18 October 189421 March 1988) was an English actress of stage, cinema and television. She appeared in over 40 films between 1917 and 1971, and appeared in TV series between 1953 and 1969. ...

as Madame Laurent *

Oliver Reed Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor, known for his upper-middle class, macho image and his heavy-drinking, "hellraiser" lifestyle. His screen career spanned over 40 years, between 1955 and 1999. At the ...

as Artist in cafe *

Mario Fabrizi Mario Edgio Pantaleone Fabrizi (25 June 1924 – 5 April 1963) was an English comedian and actor of Italian descent, noted for his luxuriant moustache. He was active in Britain in the 1950s and early 1960s. Life Fabrizi was born to Italian pa ...

as coffee Bar attendant *

Bernard Rebel Bernard Rebel (6 October 1901, Poland – 30 September 1964, London, England) was a Polish-born British actor. His work included the role of Wormtongue in the 1955-56 BBC radio series ''The Lord of the Rings''. Selected filmography * '' Crook ...

as art dealer * John Wood as poet * Victor Platt as dockside official * Neville Becker as artist

Production and themes

The film was made by

Associated British Picture Corporation Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970 when it was absorbed into EMI. ABPC also owned appr ...

and distributed by Warner-Pathé (ABPC's distribution arm). ''The Rebel'' attempts to transfer Hancock's radio and television comedy persona to the big screen, and several regular supporting cast members of ''

Hancock's Half Hour ''Hancock's Half Hour'' was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy series, broadcast from 1954 to 1961 and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The radio series starred Tony Hancock, with Sidney James, Bill Kerr and,at various ...

'' also appeared, including

and

. The since-demolished railway station used at the beginning of the film, was Bingham Road in the Croydon suburb of

Addiscombe Addiscombe is an area of south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. It is located south of Charing Cross, and is situated north of Coombe and Selsdon, east of Croydon town centre, south of Woodside, and west of Shirley. ...

, named Fortune Green South for the film. The theme of railway station commuters' regimentation and dress codes had been depicted before. In his 1898 work The Return,

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the Eng ...

wrote: "Their backs appeared alike-almost as if they had been wearing a uniform". Hancock told the identically-dressed existentialists that before becoming one himself, he had worn a uniform as a commuter. The imagery was also used in 1952's ''

Something Money Can't Buy ''Something Money Can't Buy'' is a 1952 British comedy drama film directed by Pat Jackson and starring Patricia Roc, Anthony Steel (actor), Anthony Steel and Moira Lister. It was written by Jackson and J.L. Hodson, and distributed by Rank's Gen ...

'', during Anthony Steel's daydreaming reverie sequence, working at the local government office. In ''The Rebel'',

existentialist Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and value ...

themes are explored by mocking Parisian intellectual life and portraying the pretensions of the English middle class. Galton and Simpson had previously satirised pseudo-intellectuals in the ''

'' radio episode "The Poetry Society" (1959), in which Hancock attempts to imitate the style of the pretentious poets and fails, and is infuriated when his idiot friend Bill does the same and wins their enthusiastic approval. The film also includes scenes parodying modern art. The scene showing Hancock splashing paint onto a canvas and riding a bike over it is a lampoon of the work of Action Painter William Green, while the childlike paintings of Hancock, referred to as the 'infantile school' or the 'shapeist school', parody the

naive Naivety (also spelled naïvety), naiveness, or naïveté is the state of being naive. It refers to an apparent or actual lack of experience and sophistication, often describing a neglect of pragmatism in favor of moral idealism. A ''naïve'' may b ...

style. In 2002, the London Institute of 'Pataphysics organised an exhibition consisting of recreations of all the art works seen in the film. There is still dispute whether the drawings and paintings, attributed to Hancock and his roommate, were all produced by the same artist, Alistair Grant (1925–1997). or whether Hancock's poor quality 'Infantilist School' artworks were actually produced as a joke by the British modernist painter,

John Bratby John Randall Bratby RA (19 July 1928 – 20 July 1992) was an English painter who founded the kitchen sink realism style of art that was influential in the late 1950s. He made portraits of his family and celebrities. His works were seen in tele ...

Release and reception

''The Rebel''s British premiere was at the Plaza Cinema in London's West End on 2 March 1961, following a screening at the Beirut Film Festival.

Box office

According to the ''Motion Picture Herald'', the film was the 6th most popular movie at the UK box office in 1961. ''Kinematograph Weekly'' called the film a "money maker" at the British box office.

Critical

An anonymous reviewer (most likely Dudley Carew) in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', at the time of the film's British release, said Hancock had "made the transition from small to large screen" in this film "with gratifying success". On its release in the US, under the title ''Call Me Genius'' (retitled as there was an existing TV series with the same name), the film was not well received.

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though some ...

in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote: "Norman Wisdom can move over. The British have found a low comedian who is every bit as low as he is and even less comical". He thought it was derivative. A reviewer writing for the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

Screenonline Screenonline is a website about the history of British film, television and social history as documented by film and television. The project has been developed by the British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and tele ...

website commented: "In this film, comic rebellion places artists as the antithesis of workers and there is a kind of lazy shorthand at work that conflates artists with Paris, existentialism, angry young men, beatniks and beat poets. Cod philosophical discussions of what art is about permeate the film, but this reflects the times accurately". Galton and Simpson wrote in January 2012 that the best review they ever received was from artist

Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. His early career as a painter was inf ...

who reportedly described it as the best film made about modern art.

Accolades

Hancock was nominated for the

BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles The British Academy Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles is a discontinued British Academy Film Award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) until 1984. The category has had several name c ...

in 1962.

Quotes

On Mrs. Crevatte seeing one of Hancock's pictures on the wall: * Mrs. Crevatte: ''What's this 'orrible thing?'' * Hancock: ''That, is a self-portrait.'' * Mrs. Crevatte: ''ooh ov?'' * Hancock: ''Laurel and Hardy!!'' On Mrs. Crevatte first encountering Hancock's ''

at the Waterhole'' * Mrs. Crevatte: ''Here, have you been having models up here - have there been naked women in my establishment?'' * Hancock: ''Of course there haven't. I can't afford thirty-

bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Bob (surname) * Bob (dog), a dog that received the Dickin Medal for bravery in World War II * Bob t ...

an hour. I did that from memory. That is women as I see them.'' * Mrs. Crevatte: ''Oh! as You poor man!'' The abstract expressionist painting scene: * Hancock: ''It's worth 2000 quid of anybody's money that is!'' A definition of

Existentialism Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...

* Josey: ''We only live in the present; there is no future. Why kill time when you can kill yourself?'' * Upon seeing a young Clerk (a 'Reginald', he pejoratively conjectures), on the opposite railway carriage seat: '' If this train’s still running in 1980, he'll still be on it.'' As he takes his leave of the Paris Art World at his final exhibition: * Hancock: ''Ladies and gentlemen, I shall now bid you all good day. I'm off! I know what I was cut out to do and I should have done it long ago. YOU'RE ALL RAVING MAD!! None of you know what you're looking at. You wait 'til I'm dead, you'll see I was right!''

DVD release

Using new high definition transfer the film was released on DVD in 2019 by Network Distributing Limited.

Novelization

Concurrent with the opening of the film, May Fair Books released a paperback novelization of the screenplay. It was By-lined "Alan Holmes", which was a pseudonym for Piccadilly Western novelist

Gordon Landsborough Gordon Holmes Landsborough, (1913–1983), English publisher, author and bookseller, was in the forefront of change in the paperback publishing and bookselling industries in England during the 1950s to 1980s. Considered a "maverick publishing g ...

References

External links

''The Rebel''
then-and-now location photographs a
ReelStreets
* Bingham Road Halt as ''Fortune Green South'' i
''The Rebel''
b
British Railway Movie Database
Metadata * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rebel, The (1961 film) 1961 films 1961 comedy films British comedy films British satirical films Films shot at Associated British Studios Films about rebels Films directed by Robert Day Films based on television series Films about fictional painters Films about the visual arts 1960s satirical films Films set in London Films set in Paris 1960s English-language films 1960s British films Films about landlords