The Inspector General

"The Kaye way to chaos and corruption."

1949 1h 41m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 59

ComedyRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

An illiterate stooge in a traveling medicine show wanders into a strange town and is picked up on a vagrancy charge. The town's corrupt officials mistake him for the inspector general whom they think is traveling in disguise. Fearing he will discover they've been pocketing tax money, they make several bungled attempts to kill him.

“The Kaye way to chaos and corruption.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Amazon Prime VideoSubscription

fuboTVSubscription

MGM+ Amazon ChannelSubscription

PhiloSubscription

MGM PlusSubscription

Pure FlixSubscription

OVIDSubscription

Fandor Amazon ChannelSubscription

FlixFlingSubscription

IndieFlixSubscription

Amazon Prime Video with AdsSubscription

IndieFlix Shorts Amazon ChannelSubscription

Great American Pure Flix Amazon ChannelSubscription

Shout! Factory Amazon ChannelSubscription

Cast

Danny Kaye
Georgi
Walter Slezak
Yakov
Barbara Bates
Leza
Elsa Lanchester
Maria
Gene Lockhart
The Mayor
Alan Hale
Kovatch
Walter Catlett
Colonel Castine
Rhys Williams
Inspector General

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Henry Koster
Writers: Philip Rapp, Harry Kurnitz
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

77 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Henry Koster, shot by Elwood Bredell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Johnny Green. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Rudi Fehr shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Danny Kaye and Walter Slezak and Barbara Bates carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The Kaye way to chaos and corruption.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0041509 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 59 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Henry Koster directs. Elwood Bredell behind the camera. Johnny Green scores. Rudi Fehr cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

177 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Henry Koster, shot by Elwood Bredell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Johnny Green. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Rudi Fehr shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Danny Kaye and Walter Slezak and Barbara Bates carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "The Kaye way to chaos and corruption.".
7IMDB entry: tt0041509 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 59 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Elwood Bredell
Original score: Johnny Green
Editing: Rudi Fehr
Costume design: Travilla
Makeup / hair: Perc Westmore
Runtime: 101 min · 1h 41m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: The Inspector General (1949)

Awards

Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Henry Koster

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2020-03-25
★ 7/10
Oh, I have no wife. None of my family had wives. My father didn't like wives. I mean, my mother didn't like my father's wives. Danny Kaye was a wonderful performer, he would sing, dance, tell jokes, turn his face into rubber and just generally come off as a quality humanitarian. The Inspector General showcases all of those talents. Directed by Henry Koster, The Inspector General is loosely adapted from Nikolai Gogol's classic Russian story, and it finds Kaye as a stooge of Walter Slezak's iffy tonic peddler who is mistaken by iffy officials of a small Russian town for the much feared and respected Inspector General. Cue mistaken identity mayhem as the music numbers, gags, visual contortions and all round slapstick ensues. Also along for the ride are Elsa Lanchester, Alan Hale, Barbara Bates and Gene Lockhart. It's more a safe and solid Kaye movie for the family to enjoy, rather than a high end classic like The Court Jester, but sometimes the high energy jinks of Kaye is all you need to lift the blues away. 7/10

Production companies