 Carry On Sergeant
1 9 5 8 (UK)
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
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'.
Article text © Robert
Ross: Carry On Companion |
