Comedy

The Mouse That Roared

- They're taking over the country in an invasion of laughs!

The Duchy of Grand Fenwick decides that the only way to get out of their economic woes is to declare war on the United States, lose and accept foreign aid. They send an invasion force (in chain mail, armed with bows and arrows) to New York and they arrive during a nuclear drill that has cleared the streets.

Release Date : 1959-07-17

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Highroad ProductionsOpen Road Films

Production Country : United Kingdom

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : Grand Duchess Gloriana XII / Prime Minister Count Rupert Mountjoy / Tully Bascombe

Original Name : Peter Sellers

Gender : Male

Character Name : Helen Kokintz

Original Name : Jean Seberg

Gender : Female

Character Name : Will Buckley

Original Name : William Hartnell

Gender : Male

Character Name : Professor Alfred Kokintz

Original Name : David Kossoff

Gender : Male

Character Name : Benter

Original Name : Leo McKern

Gender : Male

Character Name : General Snippet

Original Name : MacDonald Parke

Gender : Male

Character Name : United States Secretary of Defense

Original Name : Austin Willis

Gender : Male

Character Name : Roger

Original Name : Timothy Bateson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Cobbley

Original Name : Monte Landis

Gender : Male

Character Name : Air Raid Warden

Original Name : Alan Gifford

Gender : Male

Character Name : BBC Announcer

Original Name : Colin Gordon

Gender : Male

Character Name : Pedro

Original Name : Harold Kasket

Gender : Male

Character Name : Soviet Ambassador (uncredited)

Original Name : Guy Deghy

Gender : Male

Character Name : Spectator (uncredited)

Original Name : Eve Eden

Gender : Female

Character Name : Army Captain (uncredited)

Original Name : Bill Edwards

Gender : Male

Character Name : Ada - Lady in Waiting (uncredited)

Original Name : Mabel Etherington

Gender : Female

Character Name : Lady in Waiting (uncredited)

Original Name : Muriel Greenslade

Gender : Male

Character Name : Fenwickian (uncredited)

Original Name : Fred Haggerty

Gender : Male

Character Name : Maybury (uncredited)

Original Name : Juba Kennerley

Gender : Male

Character Name : O'Hara (uncredited)

Original Name : George Margo

Gender : Male

Character Name : American General at the Pentagon (uncredited)

Original Name : Lionel Murton

Gender : Male

Character Name : U.S. Policeman (uncredited)

Original Name : Bill Nagy

Gender : Male

Character Name : Reporter (uncredited)

Original Name : Robert O'Neil

Gender : Male

Character Name : American General (uncredited)

Original Name : Pat Ryan

Gender : Male

Character Name : Sergeant (uncredited)

Original Name : Stuart Saunders

Gender : Male

Character Name : Fenwickian (uncredited)

Original Name : Fred Stroud

Gender : Male

Character Name : American Admiral (uncredited)

Original Name : John Tatum

Gender : Male

Character Name : Telephone Operator (uncredited)

Original Name : Mavis Villiers

Gender : Female

Character Name : Bird Seller (uncredited)

Original Name : Fred Wood

Gender : Male

Reviews

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2024-07-03

Peter Sellars plays just about everyone in this light-hearted comedy about a tiny European Grand Duchy that comes up with a cunning plan to address it's shocking balance of trade problems. It decides to invade the United States! Armed with little more than halbards, helmets and lances, they sail into New work harbour and take the place unopposed. What's going on? They fully expected to be arrested so that would allow Prime Minister "Rupert of Mountjoy" (Sellars) to present the case of his Sovereign "Gloriana" (Sellars) to stop a Californian vineyard from flooding the market with their own cheap plonk version of the only product "Grand Fenwick" has to offer the world - wine! Well, as it happens they arrive just as the local citizenry are taking part in a mandatory nuclear drill and so the place is deserted. The plucky "Tully" (yep you've guessed) alights on a plan to capitalise on their advantage by kidnapping the acclaimed scientist "Kokintz" (David Kossoff) who is developing his mighty "Q-bomb" and getting back home. Once there, the little country finds itself the centre of global attention the likes of which has never been seen; everyone is terrified of this ticking contraption and "Tully" is entirely besotted with the professor's disgruntled daughter "Helen" (Jean Seberg). Two solutions seem equally possible - either "Grand Fenwick" is going to be the wealthiest country in the world - or, well, there just won't be a world! Sellars does well here but it's Kossoff who generates the best laughs as the eccentric boffin and Austin Willis also delivers quite entertainingly, if briefly, as the entirely befuddled US Defense Secretary. It's not exactly laugh out loud, but it's sheer preposterousness takes quite an enjoyable ping at the whole principle of weapons of mass destruction, of the big guy stepping on the little one and is quite good fun.