The Counterfeit Constable

The Counterfeit Constable

Directed by	Robert Dhéry Pierre Tchernia
Written by	Colette Brosset Aubrey Cash Robert Dhéry Jean L'Hôte Francis O'Neill Pierre Tchernia Suzanne Wiesenfeld
Produced by	Henri Diamant-Berger
Starring	Robert Dhéry Ronald Fraser Diana Dors
Cinematography	Jean Tournier
Edited by	Albert Jurgenson
Music by	Gérard Calvi
Production company	Compagnie Industrielle et Commerciale Cinématographique
Distributed by	S.N. Prodis
Release date	10 October 1964 (1964-10-10)
Running time	90 minutes
Country	France
Language	French

The Counterfeit Constable (French: Allez France!) is a 1964 French comedy film directed by Robert Dhéry and Pierre Tchernia and starring Ronald Fraser, Diana Dors and Arthur Mullard.^[1]

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Plot

A French rugby supporter, in England for a match at Twickenham, is accidentally elbowed in the face and loses two teeth. He goes to the dentist who fits new teeth and tells him he musn't open his mouth for two hours, to allow the cement holding them to set properly. He starts to wait, and in the waiting room he sees the uniform of another patient, who's a policeman. He tries it on for fun, and while wearing it by sheer chance he saves Diana Dors, a movie star who lives next door. He is congratulated by police chiefs who take him for a true police officer. He can't tell them he isn't because he can't open his mouth and besides, he doesn't speak English. He becomes lost in London, and many misunderstandings and misadventures follow. And to make matters worse he needs to return home to France urgently as he is due to be married.

Main cast

Robert Dhéry as Henri Martineau
Colette Brosset as Lady Yvette Brisburn "Vévette"
Diana Dors as herself
Ronald Fraser as Sergent Timothy Reagan
Henri Génès as Gros Max
Jean Lefebvre as le supporter saoul avec le coq
Jean Carmet as le porte drapeau
Bernard Cribbins as Bob, l'agent 202
Jean Richard as un français dans le bus
Raymond Bussières as un français dans le bus
Pierre Tornade as un français dans le bus
Richard Vernon as Lord Brisburn
Catherine Sola as Nicole
Percy Herbert as l'agent Baxter
Amy Dalby as Mrs. Throttle
Robert Rollis as le supporter avec le bonnet tricolore
Colin Blakely as l'aveugle
Colin Gordon as le dentiste W. Martin
Georgina Cookson as L'assistante du dentiste
Robert Burnier as le supporter tarbais
Robert Destain as le supporter cinéaste
Pierre Doris as un français dans le bus
Mark Lester as Gérald
Arthur Mullard as le malfaiteur
Godfrey Quigley as Inspecteur Savory
Margaret Whiting as la femme de l'agent 202
Pierre Olaf as le standardiste du commissariat

Production

Diana Dors was then living in Los Angeles but returned to Europe to make the film.^[2]

Location shooting took place around London. Interiors were shot at Shepperton Studios and the Billancourt Studios in Paris. The film's sets were designed by the art director Jean Mandaroux.

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Shot partly in England and mainly in English (with Dhéry miming mutely), this is a farce rich in characteristically zany Dhéry situations, none of which, unfortunately, comes off. All that emerges is a hectic bustle which remains obstinately unfunny."^[3]