The Knack...and How to Get It

The Knack …and How to Get It is a 1965 British comedy film directed by Richard Lester based on the play by Ann Jellicoe. The film depicts the sexual competition between three roommates — the aggressive, womanizing drummer Tolen (Ray Brooks), the shy, paranoid schoolteacher Colin (Michael Crawford), and the neutral artist Tom (Donal Donnelly) — when a young girl from out of town, Nancy (Rita Tushingham), enters their London world. Making the film ... more

The Knack …and How to Get It is a 1965 British comedy film directed by Richard Lester based on the play by Ann Jellicoe. The film depicts the sexual competition between three roommates — the aggressive, womanizing drummer Tolen (Ray Brooks), the shy, paranoid schoolteacher Colin (Michael Crawford), and the neutral artist Tom (Donal Donnelly) — when a young girl from out of town, Nancy (Rita Tushingham), enters their London world. Making the film immediately after working with The Beatles on A Hard Day’s Night and just prior to Help, Lester made major changes to the play, adding his own touch through direct address, unexpected oddly-edited sequences, humorous subtitles, and a Greek chorus of disapproving members of "the older generation". The film had Lester's distinctive visual look. Talking about the film in the 1980s, actor Ray Brooks said: "He’s a very visual man...They reckon that you could take any frame from Help, The Knack, and A Hard Day’s Night and you could put it on the... less