Carry On Spying

Carry On Spying (1964)

Runtime: 87 minutes

Directed by: Gerald Thomas

Starring: Most of the typical crew

From: Anglo-Amalagated Film Distributors

Once again I was in a mood to view a comedy so I chose this Carry On movie in particular as it will be awhile before the new Bond movie arrives.

Not only does this poke fun at the early 007 pictures, but also the likes of Casablanca, The Third Man, and some other films. Much to my amusement, this has more than one thing in common with The Living Daylights, of all Bond movies to be made after this. The MacGuffin was a “chemical formula” that the Society for the Total Extinction of Non-Conforming Humans wishes to acquire; yes, STENCH. Unfortunately for MI6, they have to use bumbling Agent Simpkins (Kenneth Williams) and three trainees... who are Charles Hawtrey, Bernard Cribbins and a voluptuous lady named HONEYBUTT (Barbara Windsor making her debut in the franchise) who at least is more than a pretty face as she has a photographic memory.

It has what you expect from the series: wordplay, puns, visual humor, sex gags, etc. If you enjoy old spy flicks, this may be especially appreciated by that crowd. Such aspects as code names, scenes in smoky nightclubs, exotic locations, and clandestine communications that are actually obvious to anyone paying attention... all those are parodied. While it does not have the most laughs out of the Carry On pictures I've seen, this gave me enough laughs to where I was satisfied, especially during these times. Plus, for those of you into such things, for a few minutes Hawtrey wears tiny shorts as part of a disguise (another aspect that was spoofed) that even Japanese boys in kaiju movies would think were too small; there's also more than one moment of cross-dressing.

The third act seems to run out of steam a bit but overall this was still a good time.