Spikeopath The Bulldog Breed is a Norman Wisdom vehicle that's directed by Robert Asher & co-written by Wisdom with Henry Blyth & Jack Davies. Plot sees Wisdom as Norman Puckle, a hapless grocer's assistant who is hopelessly in love with Marlene (Penny Morell). When she spurns his offer of marriage he attempts to commit suicide, but he proves to be inept at that as well. Finally settling on jumping off of "Lover's Leap" as a sure fire way to die, he is saved at the last minute by a Naval Officer who seduces him with talk of life as a sailor, where the girls are plenty and life is totally great. Buying into it Norman enrols, but he quickly finds that it's a tough life, that he is hopeless as a sailor and that the commander wants to fly him off into outer space!.The Bulldog Breed comes at a time when Wisdom was most prolific on the big screen, in a 17 year period from 1953 to 1969 Wisdom was the lead star in 15 movies. While during this time he was lending support to a number of ensemble and TV pictures too. It's inevitable that during a busy period such as this that the quality of entertainment will vary, this effort falls some where in the middle on the list of Wisdom's best movies. The formula remains the same as Wisdom plays plays a bumbling but lovable dope who creates carnage where ever he goes. The comedy set pieces are many, with a "man overboard" sequence of events the particular highlight. While it also serves as an interesting snap shot of the times. Where The Bulldog Breed differs from many of Wisdom's most fondly thought of film's is with its darker tones of suicide and sexual suggestion (the latter beautifully brought to life by the sultry Liz Fraser). It's an odd mix of a film, and one that has proved to divide Wisdom purists. Newcomers to his work are most likely better off choosing something else as a starting point to his movie output. 6/10Footnote: The film marks early appearances of Michael Caine and Oliver Reed who share a scene together with Wisdom. While fans of British soap Coronation Street will find value in seeing actors Johnny Briggs and William Roache also appearing in the piece.

Andrei Pavlov Well, kind of, because it's freaking funny. Why? It's about the first man in space. "The Russians?" Even worse. The laughable disaster of "Pitkin" kind.Again I'm writing a few words about a Norman Wisdom movie. And again I've got nothing bad to say. A great comedy from the good old black-and-white era. Finally in my DVD collection. I especially like the way this movie jumps from one subject to another (while some other reviewers are tend to consider it a drawback). Delivery service - suicide topic - Royal Navy - space travelling. And Mr Norman Wisdom delivers. He delivers his top-notch performance from the beginning of this picture till the very end adding ridiculous "Aye aye, sir" to his character's incompetent actions. And I was thoroughly surprised by the ladies' actions. The scene where some hot chick lures Norman into love-making is dynamite. How daring for 1960.Congratulations, Mr Norman Wisdom. You've made me laugh again. And not just once or twice during the movie but continuously. The fabulous highlights of the film for me are: Norman's collision with the local band, the three ways of "doing oneself in", the famous "man overboard" scene (I especially like the gun play here), the three ways of Norman's "trials" (gymnastics, diving-costume, mountains), the ridiculous "Attention!" boxing scene and a bit further - a reprise of it, and space travel with Norman pushing every button to get any result. The movie has also a very neat bunch of puns (look up the reference of this comment – it is a brilliant example).And don't tell me the movie's rating is lower than 7 out of 10. It must rub shoulders with Mr Charlie Chaplin's films on the top list. That's what I think.10 out of 10 (yes, I know it is too subjective, so what?). Thanks for attention.

MARIO GAUCI Entertaining but disjointed star farce in which Norman joins the Navy after being jilted by the girl of his dreams; in fact, the plot takes in all of the following and more: a scuffle outside a cinema (one of the bullies who beat up Wisdom is none other than Oliver Reed!), several hilarious attempts at suicide (by far the best scenes in the film), the star doing conjuring tricks, some rather silly shipboard shenanigans (as when Norman throws the entire crew overboard), an amusing court-martial sequence (featuring John Le Mesurier as the Prosecutor), a lengthy mountain-climbing episode and even a climax which sends the star into outer space! The film's trick effects utilize some crudely effective animation, and a reliable supporting cast highlights Ian Hunter (as the ship's Admiral), David Lodge (usually the brunt of Wisdom's antics), Edward Chapman (as the inventor of the rocket) and Liz Fraser (from the delightful Peter Sellers vehicles I'M ALL RIGHT, JACK! [1959] and TWO WAY STRETCH [1960]).

Davo123 'The Bulldog Breed' is one of my favourite Norman Wisdom films, but not one of his best.It is interesting because of the space flight angle, and the film certainly captures the mood of the era.In many respects this is a sad film; Puckle is portrayed as a rather tragic character, who never really finds his niche.The whole films carries a slight air of depression about it, which is not helped by the melancholy music score.There are several funny scenes, notably the 'man overboard' scene, the diving lesson, and the mountain climbing episode. In all of these though, the comedy is diluted by the overall gloom of the film.A hidden gem in the film are the brief, uncredited, appearances of Michael Caine and Oliver Reed in the cinema foyer scene.