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The Mouse That Roared
RatingCustomer rating is 4 of 5
BrandSELLERS,PETER
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Categories General AAS   General   Down on Their Luck   Unlikely Heroes   Classic Comedies   Peter Sellers   Comedy   Gordon, Colin   Hartnell, William   Kossoff, David   McKern, Leo   Seberg, Jean   Sellers, Peter   Arnold, Jack   All Sony Pictures Titles   ( M )   Today's Deals on DVD & Blu-ray   Movies & TV on DVD and Blu-ray Disc Trade-In   DVD   DVD Deals   Widescreen   1950 - 1959   English   Closed Caption   Standard Edition   Grade Level (feature_five_browse-bin)   Audio Type (feature_six_browse-bin)  

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Description
Sellers stars in three roles in a story of a little country this plans to locate financial safety by losing a war to the U.S., but whose plans go awry when it wins.
Genre: Aspect Film-Comedy
Rating: UN
Open Date: 8-JUL-2003
Media Type: DVD
The Mouse This Roared (1959) is mostly remembered as a tour-de-force by a peerless comic actor, Peter Sellers, playing all three of the principal roles. It's worth seeing for this reason alone, but the film is in addition one of the much memorable satires of nuclear geopolitics produced during the cold war and, along together with another Sellers vehicle, Dr. Strangelove, offers an unbeatable illustration of the paranoia and helplessness engendered by this period.

The Mouse This Roared tells the story of the fictional European principality of Grand Fenwick. Finding itself on the wrong end of a trade dispute together with the United States, and noting America's generosity in rebuilding the countries it had fought in World War II, Grand Fenwick's rulers hit upon the idea of declaring war on the U.S., losing, and then reaping a Marshall Plan-style handout. The plan, proposed by Grand Fenwick's prime minister (played by Peter Sellers), is approved by the monarch (in addition played by Peter Sellers), who dispatches an invasion force under the command of Grand Fenwick's hapless Field Marshal (in addition played by Peter Sellers). Due to a series of happenstances and misunderstandings, however, Grand Fenwick's plan goes terribly wrong... --Andrew Mueller

Customer Reviews
Customer rating is 4 of 5  Mouse that scored   2010-02-17
By C. McGhee (Hutchinson,Ks.)
We all might try this. A small almost non-existent country in the Alps is going bankrupt because the wine they export has been undercut by the big boys. The solution is to declare war on the U. S. & wait for your inevitable defeat. The U. S. will then rebuild the country just as they always rebuild what they destroy in war.

Peter Sellers who I don't like much plays three roles in this farcical look at the Duchy of Grand Fenwick. There are good supporting roles & I do enjoy this show. I'm just not sure why I like this. I like the Pink Panther shows but most of the rest of his work I don't. Anyhow few plans work out as first thought & this one is no exception. Over the top zaniness rules as usual for Sellers. 4 Stars.
Customer rating is 5 of 5  Awesome classic   2009-12-15
By Kristi Shafer (Washington)
This DVD is great quality. This is one of my all time favorite movies....surely a classic.
Customer rating is 5 of 5  The mouse that roared   2009-10-23
By Bookworm1 (Southington, Ohio)
A classic example of film making without need for many $$$$ spent on special effects and blowing things up--Great comedy of the old War mentality prevelant at that time.
Customer rating is 4 of 5  Fun movie, but was Peter Sellers ever as funny as we remember him?   2009-08-02
By Wayne A. (Belfast, Northern Ireland)
This is a savvy Cold War "comedy"--an adaptation of a very sharp little book that probably ranks alongside "Strangelove" and "The Russians are Coming" as a satiric classic of that era. The premise itself dates well because it's the story of a small country trying to manage in a world of Superpowers. It's also a lesson in how small countries can cynically play Superpowers off one another in order to gain perks--a point that's missed by a lot of reviewers.

I dearly love this old chestnut but it's full of problems, nearly enough to earn it a three-star rating. Right off, the directing is uninspired. Second, rather than play it straight from the book and cast it more appropriately, the producers decided to gimmick the film by having Sellers play three separate roles, one of which--the elderly Duchess--isn't even in the original book (but it's probably there so Sellers can appear in drag). This multi-role idea was a mercifully brief trend in (largely) British comedies of the 50s and early 60s, the best (and best realized) British example probably being Alec Guinness's multiple performances in "Kind Hearts and Coronets." Sellers' singular (and late) working of this gimmick is in "Strangelove" of course, which is the best-known example of this multi-role acting for modern audiences--British or otherwise. "Strangelove," I'd argue, was such a success that it (along with the Pink Panther films, and a few other well directed efforts like "The Party") camouflaged Sellers' otherwise highly variable, often surprisingly disappointing, output. A good example of how lackluster Sellers could be is "Casino Royale" where Woody Allen and David Niven provide the solid laughs and Sellers, not atypically, performs as if his mere presence is hilarious, and it isn't.

"The Mouse that Roared"'s sequel--"The Mouse on the Moon"--is revealing too. Sellers is absent (he refused the part) yet the ever-undervalued Ron Moody does a far more memorable job with the role of Prime Minister--in fact his is one of my favorite comedy performances. Margaret Rutherford replaces Sellers as the senile Duchess, bringing a certain high-comedic weight to the dithering and bumbling--Rutherford, unlike Sellers, could often be innately funny onscreen. "The Mouse that Roared" is a classic, but "The Mouse on the Moon" is the better film (directed by Richard Lester) with a far meatier cast and superior production. It suffers only from a less novel, regrettably second-hand premise, and the presence of Bernard Cribbins who manages to be somewhat less interesting than Sellers in the same role in the first film. Cribbins' puzzle-headed "ordinary bloke" character, used here, probably played great in the UK but never traveled well. Terry Thomas also adds a lot to this film.

"The Mouse that Roared" is a fun film and essential viewing, but as the years slide by it's looking a tad shopworn and awkward. I would have preferred it without Sellers at all or with Sellers only playing the bland Tully Bascombe, and Moody and Rutherford in the other roles. "The Mouse that Roared"--in this increasingly multi-power world--is also a film begging for a really sharp remake.
Customer rating is 4 of 5  Peter Sellers At His Best   2009-05-12
By M. Johnsen (Chino Hills, CA)
A great movie on a pretty darn good DVD.

Sellers is excellent in his many roles he plays. This cold war comedy really surprised me with its wit and cleverness.

Overall, if you enjoyed Sellers in Dr. Strangelove, this film is a must see.



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