Runtime: 90 minutes
Directed by: Gerald Thomas
Starring: Bernard Cribbins, Juliet Mills, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtry, Donald Houston
From:Anglo-Amalagated Film Distributors
It’s actually been years since I’d seen a Carry On movie from the 60’s. Yeah, those aren’t watched that often anymore and many from the 60’s were already witnessed by me. The same, I was happy to see one of the films that I have on DVD as part of a set purchased long ago; furthermore, I’m sure the Dr. Who fans will like that this starred Bernard Cribbins as the lead. Who knows what you guys will think of his name: ALBERT POOP-DECKER.
Yes, this had the randy and bawdy humor you’d expect from the franchise, albeit less frequently than typical. The setting is naval in general and specifically, the time of Horatio Nelson-the opening shows him passing away, establishing the year as 1805. It involves the War of the Third Coalition-the particulars aren’t important but it was Britain and several other countries versus France/Spain and several areas that would later become a part of Germany. Poop-Decker is inept but is forced to become part of the crew of the ship Venus. Juliet Mills cosplays as a guy to find a long-lost love.
An important detail: of course, the setting and plot wouldn’t easily allow for the inclusion of the distaff regulars to the franchise: Hattie Jacques, Joan Sims, etc. However, Jim Dale only appears for a few minutes and only two other regulars appear-at least they were Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey, portraying exactly the sort of archetypes you’d expect. Be that as it may, two familiar character actors make their only appearance in this universe: Donald Houston and Cecil Parker.
While atypical, the film was still silly and still entertained me. Nice ship sets was an asset, as was the inclusion of pirates in the final act. It won’t be all those months later that I finally see another Carry On picture-however, what I’ll select for next time should be more the archetypical movie you’d expect.
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