Wrong Arm of the Law, The (Blu-ray Review)
- Review Date: Oct 23, 2025
- Format: Blu-ray Disc
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Director
Cliff OwenRelease Date(s)
1963 (September 16, 2025)Studio(s)
Robert Velaise Productions/Romulus Films (Kino Lorber Studio Classics)- Film/Program Grade: A
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: B
Review
Best known for his portrayal of the inept Inspector Clouseau in a series of Pink Panther films, Peter Sellers previously starred in a series of British comedies before Hollywood beckoned. The Wrong Arm of the Law stars Sellers at a significant period in his career. On the verge of international stardom, he was able to showcase his ability to play multiple characters and assume foreign accents for comic effect, talents that were to become his trademark.
“Pearly” Gates (Sellers) has a cushy life, running the prestigious Maison Jules haute couture fashion house in London, catering to the elite and dating one of his models, Valerie (Nanette Newman). But this is merely a front. He makes a far better living running a crime syndicate from the back of his shop. His clients’ gossip cues him in on plenty of lucrative targets. A cocky Cockney criminal, Pearly, along with his team, engineers elaborate robberies which are pulled off with meticulous planning... until now.
There’s a new gang in town, a trio of Australians who disguise themselves as police, catching criminals in the act after every job and pretending to make arrests as they make away with the original thieves’ ill-gotten gains. Because no arrests are actually made, Pearly comes to realize that someone in his organization is betraying him, and that the supposed cops are, themselves, robbers robbing the robbers.
Pearly and fellow mob boss “Nervous” O’Toole (Bernard Cribbins) form a truce and join forces with Scotland Yard to eliminate the foreign competition and return things to normal. Complicating the plan is the inspector put in charge of the operation, Fred “Nosy” Parker (Lionel Jeffries), whose bumbling incompetence manages time and again to undermine the operation.
Though Sellers is the star of The Wrong Arm of the Law, he’s not the film’s best ingredient. His Pearly is played on a single note and is only mildly funny. He does adopt an accent as the fashion entrepreneur and has a few good moments, but the excellent supporting cast elicits most of the laughs.
This is Lionel Jeffries’ film all the way. His inspector is, by far, the funniest character in the film and the linchpin of most of the gags. Because Inspector Parker is so dedicated to his job and the law in general, his inability to assess situations, play his part efficiently, defer to others, and work effectively with his associates, he’s a magnet for mishaps and chaos. Jeffries plays Inspector Parker as a stiff-upper-lip representative of the law whose main attributes are blundering and fumbling. Jeffries is perfect casting and the comic heart of the film.
Cliff Owen masterfully directs his talented cast and stages an exciting climactic comic car chase that starts with one unforeseen setback and escalates into a series of sight gags and slapstick reminiscent of the best of silent comedy. The script by Ray Galton, Alan Simpson and John Antrobus is fast-paced, witty, and cleverly silly. With most of the characters playing their roles with deadpan expressions, the comedy derives from the premise of phony cops on the loose being confused with real ones, and career criminals being inconvenienced in their otherwise smooth operations. Mistaken identity and the unlikely collaboration of the police and London’s underworld figures for a mutual goal also create opportunities for humor. The Wrong Arm of the Law is a smartly satirical film that develops, one comic building block at a time. The British sense of humor here is more subtle than in American films, but the payoff is extremely rewarding.
The Wrong Arm of the Law was shot by director of photography Ernest Steward on black & white 35 mm film with spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.66:1. The Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics features a 2023 HD Master from a 4K scan of the original camera negative by Studio Canal. London streets are rendered in crisp detail, as are police uniforms, bricks on buildings, patterns in clothing, and objects in the police station. There are no visible imperfections. During the outdoor chase sequence, streets look a bit too deserted, likely because they were blocked off for filming. Grayscale is nicely rendered, suggesting the film is fairly modern, not 62 years old.
The soundtrack is English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio. English SDH subtitles are an option. Dialogue is clear and distinct. The actors enunciate perfectly, which reflects stage training. Sound effects include car and trucks speeding through streets, a merry-go-round, and a small explosion. Composer Richard Rodney Bennett provides a suitably upbeat and jaunty score, reflecting the film’s silly antics and escalating comic confusion.
Bonus materials on the Region A Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber Studio Classics includes the following:
- Audio Commentary by Laurence Lerman
- The Long Arm of the Screenwriter (19:45)
- Trailer (3:12)
- Two-Way Stretch Trailer (2:53)
- The Ladykillers Trailer (1:26)
- The Party Trailer (2:02)
- I’m All Right, Jack Trailer (3:08)
Audio Commentary – Film journalist Laurence Lerman notes that The Wrong Arm of the Law takes place in pre-swinging London and stars Peter Sellers ”right at the cusp of becoming an international sensation.” The film was targeted to a homegrown British audience. Filled with one-liners, comic thieves and equally comic police, the film is referred to as “a highly entertaining little gem.” Though Sellers is the star, already adept at playing multiple roles and adopting assorted accents, the film is an ensemble piece. Lionel Jeffries was known for playing “eccentric, very Britishy kinds of roles.” He was in the musicals Chitty Chatty Bang Bang and Camelot as well as the sci-fi picture The First Men in the Moon. By the 1970s, he moved on to writing and directing, and was a beloved figure in the British film industry for many decades. During production, Sellers confided to Jeffries, “Lionel, I’ve made a mistake. I’ve picked the wrong part.” Jeffries’ career was bolstered by Peter Sellers’ rising popularity. Commentator Lerman provides brief career overviews of the supporting cast members, singling out Graham Stark, a friend of Sellers who appeared in several films with him. Stark also played the put-upon waiter in Victor/Victoria. British comedy had changed little up to the end of the years after World War II. With peace came all kinds of social upheavals and popular screen entertainment changed. Ealing Studios became known for British comedies reflecting what was happening in contemporary England. Their films were more satirical, with a sense of absurdity. Some of these include the crime comedy caper films King Hearts and Coronets, The Lavender Hill Mob and The Ladykillers, films that reflected Britain’s post-war spirit. The Wrong Arm of the Law represented a new set of comic sensibilities. Director Cliff Owen was active from the late 1940s to the mid 70s. During World War II, he served as radio operator and disc jockey where he was introduced to drama. After the war, he got into filmmaking and worked on comedies, thrillers, war films and dramas as assistant director. He worked for Alfred Hitchcock on the feature Under Capricorn and worked extensively in British television on such shows as The Avengers and ITV Playhouse. “A clear-eyed and efficient director,” Owen leaned more toward the comedic in the second half of his career. The Wrong Arm of the Law was one of the twelve most popular films released in the U.K. in 1963.
The Long Arm of the Screenwriter – The Long Arm of the Law co-screenwriter John Antrobus discusses his career. He was in the military, but felt it wasn’t a good fit for him and dropped out. He knew he could write and decided to give it a try professionally. Through connections, he got an agent and eventually wrote scripts for TV and radio programs. He found he had a facility for writing comedy. He tried being a comedian, but was too nervous to succeed. He had visions of being a playwright and his The Bed Sitting Room eventually opened in a West End theater in London. His success, however, led him to drink excessively. He got sober in the late 1960s and re-invented his career. Antrobus recalls that the making of The Wrong Arm of the Law was “just like magic.” It was fun and there were no obstacles. Though Peter Sellers was the star, Lionel Jeffries stole the picture. The film was a popular, critical, and financial success. Antrobus and Peter Sellers agreed to do a BBC show but, as Antrobus states, Sellers “disappeared.” He went off to Hollywood for a project. Later, Antrobus was asked by Sellers to come to Hollywood to doctor the script of The Fiendish Plot of Fu Manchu. Antrobus concludes the interview by plugging his book, Goon But Not Forgotten, containing his comic take about working as a screenwriter.
The Wrong Arm of the Law is a wonderful farce as only the British could make. The film renders the term “silly” a plus rather than a detriment, since the script is so well-constructed in accentuating human foibles, targeting bureaucracy and taking revered institutions down several notches. It’s worth a look for its sheer fun component and a terrifically wacky performance by Lionel Jeffries.
- Dennis Seuling