You might think that by 1964 the world was all swinging sophistication, but no it was like this, I remember. I had recently started working, in a bank. It was hand written ledgers and an outside toilet! Yep, life revolved a fair bit around getting girls and then making sure you didn't get them pregnant and then 'having to get married'. Everyone is s bit too old here, of course, although David Hemmings looks like a little angel. Oliver Reed puts in a good performance as the leader although it's hard at the end to take his more introspective ponderings. Great direction by Michael Winner, there not many people have said that, and the movie speeds along with some excellent sequences, especially the wedding celebration on the beach, played more like a wake. Winner is an under rated director, he did a couple of others of this ilk, then I like his Innocents and there is Death Wish. I liked the hated Death Weekend but in general his career went downhill and it stops people giving the earlier films a chance. Well worth watching, if only to appreciate that the mid 60's in Britain were still much like the 50's, except with teenagers.
The Girl-Getters
1964
Action / Drama
Plot summary
There are two weeks left in the British summer holiday season. Coastal resort towns like Roxham survive by the throngs of summer tourists, largely shutting down in the off-season. Steve Taylor--Tinker to his friends--knows the routine better than most; he's a tourist photographer. He heads an unofficial group of lads who work "the system" as they call it. He uses his photographer position to take photographs and get the local addresses of potential female conquests for the week, this information which is shared among the group. They fan out on the weekend to the social gatherings where the females would be congregating before settling on their choices for the week. They do whatever they must to get the chosen into bed, these conquests eventually leaving Roxham with the promise of "a future" that will never happen. As he has settled in Roxham, Tink, during the off-season, has sexual relationships with local women--some married--who he largely ignores during the tourist season. This week, Tink initially sets his sights on a mysterious woman seated in first class on the train. However, Tink eventually hooks up with Nicola, a model and part of the upper class. Unlike his other conquests, Nicola knows about the system and enters into the week with Tink with her eyes wide open. As the tourist season comes to a close, Tink and Nicola come to a resolution which was foreseen by only one.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
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the mid 60's in Britain were still much like the 50's, except with teenagers
The subject matter might have dated, but it's a good-looking movie
THE SYSTEM is yet another 'gang film' for youthful star Oliver Reed, who made loads of these pictures over the years. It's not on the same level as THE DAMNED, THE PARTY'S OVER, or even BEAT GIRL, but it does have elements of interest for British film fans although I wish the subject matter had been a little darker.
Reed plays the leader of a gang of young men (including David Hemmings, of course) who spend the summer months in a beachside tourist trap, preying on the young beautiful women who come to visit. The men take it in turn to woo the women by means of a special system they have devised which sees the females divided equally between the group. However, the threat of real love is ever present, which may break up the group.
It's fair to say that a film like THE SYSTEM has dated a lot since first release as the characters and general social milieu have long since disappeared. What one seemed progressive now feels very tame, although Reed's acting remains strong and the supporting cast do very well. This was an early film in the career of Michael Winner, who does his best to deliver a beautifully-shot production.
Might be a touchstone for select viewers...otherwise, credits more promising than the picture
British lads chase available birds around the seaside; avid shutterbug who 'collects' young lovelies may have found the girl who has won his heart and not just his libido. As directed by Michael Winner, photographed by Nicolas Roeg, and starring a somewhat-green yet still charismatic Oliver Reed, "The Girl-Getters" is full of blooming talent yet is a rather mediocre drama about would-be jaded boys and girls contemplating sex (the hunt for a willing girl seems to be more exciting to the guys than the actual conquest). It's hard to get an accurate reading on the youthful Reed: his heavy lids and soft, persuasive bedroom voice ooze false sincerity--but when put on the spot by the teasing model who sort-of fancies him, he suddenly becomes a deadly serious grown-up contemplating his feelings. The rock 'n roll music and pre-Swinging London fashions (and morals) are interesting, but Winner's quasi-documentary style is scattershot, and the plot doesn't gather much momentum. *1/2 from ****