Carry On Sergeant (1958)

When this film was made it is a safe bet that nobody thought it would start a long running series of films; the Carry On films may not have been the greatest ever made, in fact some were terrible, but they are certainly a British institution. Made in 1958 'Carry on Sergeant' isn't non-stop smut like some of the later films; instead it is genuinely laugh out loud funny! The film follows the training of the unfortunately named Able Platoon; a group of National Servicemen who for the most part don't seem like army material; Pvt. Strong is a hypochondriac, Pvt. Golightly is… well he is Charles Hawtrey and Pvt. Brown has failed the course several times already. They are trained by soon-to-be-retired Sergeant Grimshawe who is determined to win the award for the best platoon. As one would expect their training does not go well; bayonet training and the assault course going particularly badly… of course by the end the platoon have come together and it is just a question as to how well they can do in their final tests. Besides their training there is a sub-plot involving one of the conscripts who was called up on his wedding day and his trying to get some time with his new bride who has followed him to the camp and got a job in the Naafi.When I sat down to watch this I thought it may have dated somewhat but actually it seemed surprisingly fresh and I laughed far more than I expected; it was certainly a lot funnier than many of the later instalments to the series. The cast included several actors who would go on to become regular members of the Carry On team including the excellent Kenneth Williams who played Pvt. Bailey; probably the most competent of the platoon, Kenneth Connor who played the hypochondriac Strong and Hattie Jacques who played the camp doctor. If you have enjoyed other early Carry On films I'd recommend this as it was surprisingly good… don't be put off by later rubbish like 'Carry on England'.

I really like the Carry On movies in general. Later on, the humour did get smutty and then when regulars left or died the series went downhill faster than you could say "bob's your uncle". Carry on Sergeant holds the honour of being the first of the series, and in my mind it is one of the better ones, even with the too-short length and occasionally lacking story. I do think though it looks good, the film is very efficiently directed, the film goes at a fine pace and the music is nice and quirky. The script and cast are what make this entry work. The script is great, it is still very funny but its tone is gentler and I liked that. A lot of the early Carry Ons had this gentle humour, and it is a tone I kind of prefer actually. The cast once again give it their all, not just William Hartnell and Bob Monkhouse who are splendid, but also sterling support from regulars Kenneth Connor, Kenneth Williams(a smarmy know-it-all here), Hattie Jacques and Charles Hawtrey. Overall, a very entertaining and re-watchable entry and a solid debut. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Carry on sergeant has the fame of being the first carry on film. It was released in 1958 just before national army service ended two years later. This film is how the well known film series started so it is memorable for that. the first films were black and white where colour would be in all films from 1964. the series is special because of the comedy actors who returned to each new carry on film and played different crazy roles. all the actors were well known within British cinema and performed well. Carry on sergeant is memorable for the only appearance of comedy star bob monkhouse in the film series and the appearance of william hartnell as tough sergeant before he became the first doctor who. the comedy plot is very good about a group of no hope soldiers who turn things around. enjoyable.

Not the best of the bunch but a reasonable beginning, this first entry into the famous series is not as filled with the innuendo as are some of the later ones, in fact there are only a couple of references to one soldiers lack of a proper wedding night. Only about four of the series regulars make an appearance with Charles Hawtry playing the same character, albeit with different names, as he did in all the carry on's. Hattie Jacques plays an army doctor, a role that will become Matron in a least two other carry on movies including the next one Carry On Nurse. Kenneth Williams and Kenneth Connor are the other two regulars. Also appearing is Shirley Eaton who will also join Jacques in the next movie.