The first of the long-running Carry On series was released in 1958. A modest
comedy, it centred around the exploits of a group of men called up to the
postwar British army, and the attempts of their superiors to turn them into
proper soldiers. Against all the odds, and with the help of the men
themselves, the group becomes the best unit on the base.
The first film was in some ways an obvious blueprint for all the films to
come, whilst in others it is very different. Obviously enough, the actor and
actresses that became the Carry On team were not actually the stars of the
film. First-billed are William Hartnell and Bob Monkhouse, neither of whom
returned to the series. Indeed, the Carry On team are found in supporting
roles, but almost universally steal the comedy plaudits from the stars of
the film; they also have the strongest 'entrances' into the film. It's easy
to see why they were recalled so often to the series. Also, not all of those
who would become the team are present; missing from the cast, for example,
are Sid James and Joan Sims. Those who became the recurring stars are almost
all playing the type of characters for which they would become famous, and
would repeat to varying degrees throughout the rest of the series. It's fair
to say from this evidence that the Carry On stars almost wholly are playing
versions of themselves, or the way they are perceived by the public.
The best performances belong to those who would establish themselves as
Carry On stars. Both Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey give excellent
performances, but two really outstanding turns are from Eric Barker and
Kenneth Connor. The strength of the former's performance lies in the script,
whilst it is Kenneth Connor's comic timing that make his performance a joy
to watch.
The script is really quite superb; most characters are well-rounded, and the
dialogue they are given is sharp and witty. The dialogue in particular given
to Kenneth Williams and Eric Barker is superb.
The film is full of warmth, and although the ending might be now a little
too neatly tied up, it leaves on feeling positive again about the human
race. Indeed, the film is centrally about human relationships on all levels,
from the Monkhouse/Eaton pairing to the squad/Hartnell relationship.
Compared to the later films, the emphasis here is almost wholly on love and
friendship, and not just sex. After all, this was 1958, and sex wasn't
invented until the sixties. There's a definite change between this film and
later films, and it's arguable whether this was because of the change in
writer and the arrival of Sid James.
The plot is also interesting (compare with England! - and see how Kenneth
Connor started as he meant to go on, without his trousers), with a number of
subplots that allow the action to move along, giving the director something
else to cut to when he thinks the audience might be getting bored. Indeed,
the direction and the editing are first rate. The editing in particular is
ahead of its time; few segments last very long, and individual cuts are
relatively quick, in much the same way that soaps create their narrative
now. The art direction and photography allow a certain degree of realism to
shine through, and the music superbly enhances the comedy. Bruce Montgomery
set a style that would be perfected by Eric Rogers a few films down the
line. There's quite an attention for detail in all aspects of the
production, from the costumes to the sets and sound effects; listen to the
parade ground sound effects during the scenes in the barracks.
The humour here is very gentle, and on the whole a far cry from the later
innuendo-filled scripts. There are very few gags; instead Norman Hudis
creates comic situations for the characters, and allows the comedy to come
from the characters themselves. There are still, however, some very funny
lines; "You're just an 'eap of chits!" "Two of everything you should have
and you're in." The best scene is possibly where Eric Barker inspects the
troops for the first time. Extremely tightly written, with a number of comic
gems, the dialogue between Barker and Williams is very clever, as Williams
turns the entire situation on its head and comes out on top. Indeed, much of
Ken's dialogue is almost perfect, allowing for scenes as near to philosophy
as the Carry Ons came, dealing with the relationship between soldiers and
their superiors, especially when 'forced' into the army through
conscription. Ken's character almost always 'wins' in his private
intellectual battles with authority, often through good education and logic,
and perhaps was the closest he got to playing certain aspects of his own
intellectual and erudite (yet highly supercilious) character.
The Carry On films are also reliant on other mediums, such as film, TV and
radio. William Hartnell was borrowed from the radio series The Army Game,
whilst the title itself (the Carry On bit) was borrowed from a 1957 Val
Guest film Carry On Admiral; Guest has called Rogers and Thomas
'title-whippers', although Admiral itself was re-released in the wake of
Sergeant. Indeed, a number of cast from that film would appear in the Carry
On films.
The Carry Ons were off to a good start, although it would be few more years
until, arguably, they reached their artistic peak with the perfection of the
formula and cast.
By Gareth Beven