Carry on Jack

Despite only having TWO (albeit the best two) regulars (Williams and Hawtrey) (Dale could not be considerd a regular at this point), this remains one of my favourites. Only Kenneth Williams could pull of the "Throw the book at him" joke. Likewise only the Carry On team could have a cow in tow on a ship without it being TOTALLY stupid. Despite lacking Sid James (possibly as the pirate?) this is very good!

I do like the Carry On films in general, and while Jack is not the best, it is still amusing. I have to admit I do prefer Cleo, Screaming and Khyber, but I do think it is better than Columbus, England and Emmanuelle, which I consider the nadirs of the series. Jack does have its problems, it does have a thin story, some of the pacing isn't as secure as it could have been and I do miss Joan Sims, Sidney James and Hattie Jaques. However, the film looks great, great costumes and sets, and while never absolutely hilarious it is amusing enough. And the acting is fairly good, Charles Hawtrey almost steals the show, Kenneth Williams isn't given as much to do but he is good, Jim Dale's is small but he is hilarious, Juliet Mills is pleasant (and has a great derriere), while Bernard Cribbins is very likable. Overall, not outstanding but worth watching. 7/10 Bethany Cox

As a fan of the entire Carry On .... series, I was always disposed to like this movie. True, it had few regulars, but the script allowed the cast to shine. Kenneth Williams gives his usual over-the-top performance as the anything-but-fearless Captain Fearless, Juliet Mills gives the most amusingly unconvincing impersonation of a man since Some Like It Hot, and Bernard Cribbins is great as the good-hearted, but woefully naive Albert Poopdecker. Charlie Hawtrey plays his usual character as well as ever, and all in all the plot once more becomes just the backdrop for all the gags, double entendre, and slapstick we all expect and love from the movies we know so well.

One of the better Carry on films, set in 1700s England and aboard a ship, there's lots of nice detail here and genuinely good characters. Captain Fearless played by Kenneth Williams is brilliant and it's great to see Bernard Cribbins leading a film, we also get Juliet Mills, Donald Houston and Percy Herbert thrown into the mix, so not a conventional casting for a Carry on film! The jokes are very witty without being crude and certainly have a quality to them.

7/10: It's good and colourful

Winsome bar wench Sally (Juliet Mills) steals the identity of bumbling midshipman Albert Poop-Decker (Bernard Cribbins), taking his place aboard frigate HMS Venus in the hope of sailing to France to find her missing sweetheart Roger. Meanwhile, the real Albert is press-ganged into service on the same ship, but no-one will believe his unlikely story.

The mere thought of the lovely Juliet Mills being able to pass for a man is, of course, utterly ridiculous (reminding me of a similarly silly episode of Blackadder), but despite this preposterous conceit, the notable absence of many of the series' major players, and a lack of any truly classic gags, I can't help but enjoy this movie. With its well-realised period setting, Miss Mills obvious charms (she looks great even posing as a man), Jim Dale's brief but hilarious turn as a money-grabbing sedan chair operative, and some of the scurviest pirates ever to set sail for the seven seas, this rousing Carry On tale is still good for a Yo Ho Ho!