6.2/10
Senior Film Conservator

A definitive 6.2/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Those Were the Days remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
Honestly, it depends on how much you love watching people run in circles. If you have a soft spot for 1930s British comedy and don't mind a plot that feels like it was stapled together in a hurry, you'll probably get a kick out of Those Were the Days. If you need your movies to make logical sense or have a quiet, contemplative tone, you are going to be checking your watch every five minutes.
The whole movie feels like a stage play that someone forgot to take off the stage. People are constantly popping in and out of rooms, and there’s this weird, frantic energy where everyone is just barely missing each other. It’s exhausting, but in a way that feels intentional.
Will Hay is doing his thing here, and honestly, he carries a lot of the weight. He’s got that specific look of someone who is perpetually about two seconds away from total social ruin. It reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in The Fourflusher, just with more top hats and less actual composure.
The pacing is all over the place. It starts off slow, like a dusty lecture, and then suddenly hits 100 miles per hour once the characters arrive at the venue. It’s jarring. It’s almost like the director realized halfway through that they were running out of film stock and decided to just sprint to the finish line.
It’s not as polished or as dark as something like (Broken Blossoms), but it isn't trying to be. It’s just a bit of light, noisy fluff. Sometimes that’s enough. Just don't expect it to change your life or anything. 🎩