Carry On Sergeant (1958)
 Carry
On Sergeant was the beginning of the long running Carry On
series. Producer Peter Rogers' main coup was his casting of
William Hartnell in the title role, his combination of aggression
and affection is invaluable.
Fellow refugees from ITV were Norman Rossington and Charles
Hawtrey, while others included Bob Monkhouse, Gerald Campion,
Terence Longdon, Kenneth Williams and Kenneth Connor.
While the comic vignettes were given the full flamboyant
treatment by the eccentric squad members, Monkhouse wanders
through the proceedings as an everyman caught up in frustrating
bureaucracy.
It is he who is separated from his young wife (Shirley Eaton)
and bluffs and whines his way through the hellish National Service
system. It is undoubtedly Connor who leaves the deepest comedic
paw print on the film.
 While the dubious romantic ducking and diving and stolen kisses
of Monkhouse (pictured at left) and Eaton are at the plot's centre, the real joy of
the script is the army environment and the battle between
officialdom and the man in the street.
The finest moments come from the recruits' failure at every
turn of their basic training: the priceless unease of Connor as he
swings on the rope, Williams' high-brow objections to the bayonet
practice, Rossington's bumbling and eventual quick skill at
dismantling the rifle.
The ultimate message of the film is the love and affection that
the recruits hold for the dreaded figure of Hartnell who has a
wager with the sardonic figure of Sergeant Terry Scott that this,
his last batch of recruits before retiring, will win the title of
'star squad'.
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