Review: The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968)


Astonishing bungling of the British involvement in the Crimean War circa the 1850s, with all of the commanding officers seemingly barmy. Loony Lord Cardigan (Trevor Howard) and petty and blustery Lord Lucan (Harry Andrews) are bickering brothers always trying to one-up each other, whilst elderly Lord Raglan (Sir John Gielgud) is a senile old fool who doesn’t even seem to know who the enemy is! David Hemmings and Peter Bowles are two of the poor unfortunates having to serve under these nutbags, with Hemmings having a particularly bad time under the foolish and stuffy Cardigan. Vanessa Redgrave is Hemmings’ love interest.



Insufferable, maddening, gobsmackingly dull 1968 Crimean war saga from director Tony Richardson (“The Entertainer”, “Tom Jones”, “The Hotel New Hampshire”), is not so much absurdist as entirely absurd. It’s like a Monty Python sketch (The line ‘A tiger?...In Africa?’ from “Meaning of Life” comes immediately to mind) stretched to over two hours and with all the humour excised. Instead we have a plot that makes no sense, and some insufferable windbag characters (‘I Say, tally-ho, old chap!’- Someone kill me...please!), several of whom are barking mad, and one of whom is arguably the director. I understand the intent here in presenting the madness of war, and a war presided over by pompous, senile old farts who cost many, many lives. I get that. However, the manner in which it is presented, is ridiculous, incoherent, and irritating in the extreme.



Hemmings isn’t bad in the lead, but Howard (never worse, not even in the awful “Twinky”) and Gielgud are particularly embarrassing in a great cast gone to senseless waste. Best thing is the cute animation by Richard Williams serving as commentary throughout. An absolute mess, the screenplay is by Charles Wood (the similarly absurdist- but slightly better “How I Won the War”, the excellent Beatles film “Help!”).



Rating: D-

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