Carry On Jack

Dir: Gerald Thomas

1964

**

Carry On Jack, the eighth Carry On film in the series, was one step back following Carry On Cabby's two steps forward approach. It may have been brought to cinemas in glorious technicolour but there really isn't much else glorious about it. It's frustrating that after the woeful Carry On Cruising they decided to go back to sea and to break the previous formula that was clearly a winner as far as audiences were concerned. Mutiny On The Bounty was popular at the time and so it was fair game but it also meant that the story was rushed. Aesthetically speaking it’s a fine looking addition to the franchise but it’s all show and no jokes. Most of the regular cast were absent and after seven films this really affected the overall feel of the film. Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey kept the Carry On flame lit but only just. Jim Dale was still new to the series at this point and to be fair the great Bernard Gribbins and Juliet Mills were both good, it's just that this didn't work as part of the franchise, which was important even then, five years in. Sadly, the film's best joke is its first (the infamous last words of Admiral Horatio Nelson whereby he asks for Hardy to kiss him - altered 'Carry On' style) and it peters out from there. The problem is that there just aren't many of the great lines that the Carry On comedies are famous for. I counted about three. I love Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey and Bernard Gribbins but they weren't enough here and all three have been better. For all of the great props and visuals it just seems really rushed and not particularly thought through, like an amateur dramatics group doing a 'road to' movie.