Carry On Constable was an important film, making something of a transition
from the first few films in terms of casting. Top of this bill is Sid James,
established on the radio and TV series Hancock, and Eric Barker, returning
to the series for the second time. Indeed, had Ted Ray not been available
for this film, it is possible that the Carry On series may not have
developed the way it did given the arrival of Sid James. James immediately
dominates the screen as the central character - he's the first character to
be seen - but as with Ted Ray his performance is understated and acts as the
base for all the chaos that ensues.
The ambience in this film is much more gentle than in previous efforts;
certainly the characters in the police station are more 'gently' realised.
Perhaps this was to show what a disruption the new recruits would be to the
gentle way of life in the station. This is in direct contrast to the
previous films where (with the exception of Teacher) it is the establishment
that acts as a disturbance to the lives of the 'guests' (the army recruits,
the patients). The film has a wonderful atmosphere, partly due to the
tranquillity, and also the fact that there's a great deal of location
shooting.
The film's plot is almost identical to Sergeant, in that it centres round a
group of new recruits and the chaos they cause. Much of the comedy comes
from the ineptitude of the new recruits. Kenneth Connor's superstition
replaces his hypochondriac character in Sergeant. Again the plot is built
around numerous comic scenes, some of which are slapstick based (such as the
banana skin gag, and Kenneth William's near miss with a car). And again the
main thrust of the plot (which is not revealed until the last ten minutes or
so) involves the group or people (inadvertently) pulling together to help an
individual (Sid James). The concluding scenes, where the new recruits
actually capture some thieves, helps to retain Sid James' position in the
police station, and get him a promotion!
There are, again, some fantastic lines;
"Everybody keeps on taking the mickey."
"Nobody will do that here Constable Constable."
"I'm very glad to hear it Sergeant Sergeant."
"It must have been under the influence of Pisces."
"Pisces yourself."
"You septic."
"Tom Potter. None hotter."
"I came out with your mother."
"I didn't know your mother had been inside."
"It was all the fault of that stupid bitch." (i.e. dog)
"You mean there was a third party involved?"
Quite a bit of the humour is pushing the boundaries of what's acceptable in
films; the bare bottoms of the male recruits, Shirley Eaton's bare back, and
another female character in her underwear. All this and a U certificate!
The main cast are continuing to develop their Carry On characters. Kenneth
Williams and Charles Hawtrey are perhaps slightly more camp than their
previous appearances, but this is the first film in which any of the male
actors dress up in drag. You can almost imagine that these two actors would
quite suit being female. Charlie in particular makes is first proper 'hello'
appearance, and minces his way through his first scene with a bunch of
flowers and a budgie. He also has the line "I haven't done this since I was
in the army at a camp concert", which not only gently mocks his Carry On
character, but also references Carry On Sergeant. Kenneth Connor for the
first time actively pursues romance, rather than becoming an accidental
victim of it. Sid James, in his first film actually puts in a performances
rather than relying on characteristic clichés as he would in later films;
there is, for example, only one famous cackle. He also has a relatively
meaningful (although contrived) relationship with Hattie Jacques, which
makes a change from his later dolly-bird-chasing antics. The film is one of
thirds; the arrival of the recruits, the recruits on patrol (and making a
cock-up of it), and the recruits trying to make amends.
Technically and artistically the film is quite a good success. There are
some wonderfully near-minute-long tracking shots of Kenneth Connor and Joan
Sims as Kenneth tries to tell Joan of his love for her. The film-makers are
also being more adventurous by going out on location for longer, although
this was probably easier when London was much quieter. The script is
polished, but the overall themes of Hudis's stories are beginning to repeat
themselves; a love of words and word play, characters in 'uniforms', and
groups of men pulling together to achieve a specific result. All in all the
film is probably as good as Teacher, but no better than any of the other
films. Sergeant still remains the best to this point because all the
elements were fresh in that film. That's not to say that there aren't some
great moments, but the film as a whole is less satisfactory.
The film is also a quite important social document, with a great number of
location shots filmed in suburban London, still showing quite a bit of
post-war urban decay, and before the real development of London to swamp the
suburbs. There are also some nice shots of inter-war semi-detached houses,
still looking brand new. These places would be difficult to find now. It's
also interesting to note that the country still relied on steam-powered
railways, and there were few cars on the roads. In fact, there were also few
cars in the drives of the semi's! There's also a battle of the sexes of
sorts, with the new women recruits (Joan Sims) firstly being in a
male-dominated workplace and secondly being better at the job than the men.
The film was set (and made) in what could be termed a pre-enlightened age of
belief in the police. Remember this was the age of Dixon of Dock Green - Z
Cars (never mind The Sweeney) had not arrived to shatter the illusions of
the police for many people. It was only in the sixties and seventies that
police corruption and brutality began to come to light, even though it had
probably long been present. A whole book could be (and many have) been
written about this area, but the presentation of the police in this film is
certainly antiquated. The police seem to have to worry about the occasional
petty crime, helping old ladies across the road, and getting cats from the
tops of trees (or bell towers). At this stage in the police's history people
(just about) had respect for the police, possibly because they were a very
visible patrolling their beat. Perhaps even then this was a stereotype, but
it was one that the public believed.
The fourth film in the series was in many ways the start of something new,
as well as being the end of a short but well defined Carry On era. Many
people see the arrival of Sid James to the series as a defining moment, and
one that potentially ensured the series' longevity. I'd like to point out
that those people who had been with the series from the beginning were by
now more than supporting players. The people who had set the style and
character of the films were soon destined to never return to the series;
people like Bill Owen, Shirley Eaton, Leslie Phillips, and Terence Longdon.
Their contribution to the series should not be underestimated, and certainly
not forgotten. The arrival of Sid James did herald something new, but from
this film it was impossible to tell what. But the backbone to the series was
now in place; Kenneth Connor, Kenneth Williams, Charlie Hawtrey, Joan Sims,
and Hattie Jacques would all remain in place for a long time to come.