Two Way Stretch
Dir: Robert Day
1960
****
Classic British comedy starring the much loved (and greatly missed in most cases) Peter Sellers, Wilfrid Hyde-White, David Lodge, Bernard Cribbins, Maurice Denham and Lionel Jeffries. Definitely an influence to the long running popular British TV series Porridge and any other prison comedy for that matter - I'm sure Bruce Jay Friedman and Sidney Poitier must have watched it before making Stir Crazy and Arthur Hiller definitely did as he pretty much used the idea in his 1990 film 'Taking care of business'. Three lovable convict escape prison for one night to commit the perfect crime, a great idea in itself but made one hundred times better (funnier) by the absolutely killer script. From the offset when the Guard comes to see the inmates, knocks on the door and hears the reply "Come in, it's open" it had me chuckling. Great British classic comedy.