THE MAGNET is an unusual Ealing Studios comedy, seemingly aimed at children but with plenty of satirical elements for the adults. It very much reminded me of a proto Children's Film Foundation movie and, indeed, director Charles Frend would go on to shoot such pictures. James Fox plays a boy who comes into possession of a rare magnet on the beach, before finding himself engaging in various escapades with oddball people. Some elements are predictable - he thinks the police are out to get him when in fact they want to reward him - but there's some local character here from the Liverpudlian kids and some strong talent from cameoing stars like Harold Goodwin, Sam Kydd and Thora Hird. The film moves at a solid pace and, although it's not always successful, it's certainly never dull.
Review of The Magnet
