1951 / 85m - UK
Drama
1.5*/5.0*
The Man in the White Suit poster

Watches

May 24, 2021

1.5*/5.0*

A slice of rather simplistic social critique. While the film hides behind its central plot for a good 30 minutes, it quickly becomes apparent that everything has to make way for an "important message", as director Mackendrick shuns every form of subtlety to get his warning across.

Stratton is an inventor who is looking for the perfect fabric: threads that don't break and repel dirt. He gets himself hired at various mills and does some lab work on the side in each of them, until he finally hit the jackpot. While this fabric sounds perfect, it has the potential to bring an entire industry down.

The performances are mediocre, characters are very one-dimensional, and the plot feels like a big setup. The film is often categorized as a comedy, but the whiny tone doesn't help its case. At least the plot was rather light, and the runtime was limited, other than that there wasn't too much to enjoy here.