InspireGato
Film Perfection
PiraBit
if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.
Geraldine
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
GusF
Unlike the other films in the series, this is essentially a sketch comedy film held together by a loose plot. I was sceptical about the sketch format at first and it took a while to get going but I think that it worked very well. The funniest sketches feature Kenneth Williams taking a woman's pet chimp Yoki on a walk around London and taking in a chimp's tea party, Joan Sims getting extremely drunk at a wine tasting event, Sid James being mistaken for one of the finest living diagnosticians at a hospital and Kenneth Connor getting the wrong end of the stick and thinking that he has been hired to work as a spy. The latter is a great parody of pre-Bond British spy films. Those four actors are the strongest performers and get the best material on this occasion.As in sketch shows, not all of them work. The comedic potential of Charles Hawtrey (criminally underused in contrast to most of the other films) working as a bouncer at a strip club is wasted because we never actually see him do it. The four scenes in which Stanley Unwin spouts his trademark gobbledygook are just painful, frankly. On the bright side, as the matron in the hospital sketch, the prim and proper Joan Hickson provides a fantastic contrast to James' leering and dirty jokes. The film has a very good cast such as Hattie Jacques (who only appears in said hospital sketch), Esma Cannon, Fenella Fielding and Terence Alexander. However, the early regular Terence Longdon, making his final appearance in the series, and Bill Owen are basically relegated to cameos and Liz Fraser only has one scene worth mentioning after she parades around in her underwear at the beginning of the film.The aforementioned problems aside, however, it is an extremely funny film which produced plenty of belly laughs. What more can you ask for from a "Carry On" film?
Jackson Booth-Millard
This fifth film in the popular British series of alluring comedy films is probably the only one that doesn't really have a storyline, but the theme is a good hook. Basically a variety of characters are complaining that all jobs that are advertised are boring, and the ones they are interested in disappear. Then they are brought to the Helping Hands agency, run by Bert Handy (Sid James), a new enterprise that specialises in helping people in any kind of odd jobs, these jobs aren't just odd, they're strange in most cases. So Sam Twist (Kenneth Connor) is contacted to be a babysitter for Penny Panting (Fenella Fielding) who really wants company and then to make her husband jealous, Francis Courtenay (Kenneth Williams) is looking after a pet chimpanzee for a woman with flu, and Lily Duveen (Joan Sims) is taking invitation cards for a wine tasting evening which she boozes in. Bert gets himself into a job himself as well, when Sir Theodore (Kynaston Reeves) wants him to take his place in a hospital queue, but he ends up being mistaken for him not as a patient but an inspector, looking over the wards, and some new nurses in their underwear and bras. Francis gets two more jobs, first modelling in a bee-keepers helmet, and then with his knowledge of languages translating for a bickering couple with the wife being German, while Sam is desperate to quit smoking, but can't, oh and Gabriel Dimple (Charles Hawtrey) is helping out at a boxing match, and he ends up being the opponent in the ring when he is insulted, and he wins. Next Sam is over the moon when he thinks he has found a job as a top secret spy, he believes he is expected at the Forth Bridge in Scotland, but it was a mix up and he was actually meant to play the card game bridge. When he returns all the new employees of Helping Hands are teaming up to demonstrate some new products for the Ideal House exhibition, of course this doesn't go well as mishaps ensue while trying to work everything. The final scene sees Bert joining all his employees as they make what might be a last attempt to impress a high paying gibberish talking customer, repairing an old mansion falling apart, but in the end the guy changes his mind allows them to carry on regardless. Also starring Liz Fraser as Delia King, Bill Owen as Mike Weston, Hattie Jacques as Sister, Terence Longdon as Montgomery Infield-Hopping, Joan Hickson as Matron, Esma Cannon as Miss Cooling and Stanley Unwin as Landlord. The cast as usual make you laugh with their enjoyable individual characters, the film is filled with the usual double meaning dialogue, the saucy stuff, a little innuendo, and some slapstick that will certainly make you chuckle, a fun comedy. Carry On films were number 39 on The 100 Greatest Pop Culture Icons. Good!
petersj-2
This "Carry on" as other writers have noted has no plot but that does not detract at all from enjoying it because its like a series of delightfully funny sketches. Lets face it plot was never very important in this series any way. The sketches are fun. Some of course are more successful than others but there are moments in this Carry on that are simply priceless. One problem is the usual weak link in the series, Kenneth Connor. The producers must have been very fond of him because he is always given more to do than the others. The 39 steps send up is dull. He annoys me. It is not that he is a bad actor, far from it its that the characters he played do not hold up today. He is not quite as annoying as I usually found him and his scene with the great Finella Fielding is a joy. This wonderful actress graced the screen when ever we saw her. I wonder if she always played this character because she did it to perfection. What a brilliant actress! There are plenty of other great performers in this movie. Australians will recognise June Jago a small role and the great Ed Devereaux in an all all too short appearance as an insanely jealous husband. Of course the more one reads about the great Charles Hawtrey makes one wonder what was really going on in his mind in that scene with the incredibly cute boxer who strains his finger. Hawtrey is in great form here. Kenneth Williams is brilliant and he gives one of his best. The chimp scene is lovely and that little animal gives a great performance too. I hope there was no cruelty to the beautiful creature, one worries about these early films. Sid James is nicely restrained. Fine old actors like Esma Cannon and Joan Hickson are as always brilliant and although Hatti Jaques only has a small role, she lifts the film as always. The Joan Sims drunk scene is a master piece. She was always a winner. The scene when we are meant to be convinced she is fat does not work. I find her very attractive. This is one of her very best. The best performance comes from gobbledegook talker Stanley Unwin. I don't know how he does it but I have not laughed so much in a while. Esma Cannon's reaction to him are hilarious. A fun movie. For me it gets an 8.I must say it is Unwin who steals the film... remarkable and what an incredible gift. I cannot do it nor can many people.
Christopher Moore
This is a great Carry On. The unemployed group together (under Sid James aka Mr Handy) to provide 'services' to various people for a fee. Special treat is Stanley Unwin who is desperately trying to warn them of their impending eviction, but due to his gobbldygook language, they don't understand. Until Kenneth Williams (an equally skilled orator) comes to the rescue. Best bit definitely Kenneth Connor in the Gentlemans club. Almost as good - Kenneth Williams walking the Chimp, Kenneth Williams interpreting for the German Woman, Kenneth Connor and Joan Simms (No sweets, no draws), Stanley Unwin all the time, Charles Hawtrey boxing ..... no, there's too many good bits to recount.
