Carry On Emmannuelle
Carry On Emmannuelle | |
---|---|
Directed by | Gerald Thomas |
Written by | Lance Peters |
Produced by | Peter Rogers |
Starring | Kenneth Williams Suzanne Danielle Kenneth Connor Jack Douglas Joan Sims Peter Butterworth Larry Dann Beryl Reid |
Cinematography | Alan Hume |
Edited by | Peter Boita |
Music by | Eric Rogers |
Distributed by | The Rank Organisation Hemdale |
Release date | November 1978 |
Running time | 88 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Budget | £320,000 |
Carry On Emmannuelle is the 30th in the series of Carry On films to be made, and was released in 1978. This was the last Carry On film to be made until Carry On Columbus in 1992. The film was to be the final Carry On for many regulars, including Kenneth Williams (in his 26th Carry On), Kenneth Connor (in his 17th), Joan Sims (in her 24th) and Peter Butterworth (in his 16th). Jack Douglas and Jim Dale are the only regulars from the original run of Carry On films to bridge the gap to Carry On Columbus. Beryl Reid and Suzanne Danielle make their only appearances in the series here. The film featured a change in style, becoming more openly sexual. This was highlighted by the implied behaviour of Danielle's character, though she does not bare any more flesh than any other Carry On female lead. These changes brought the film closer to the then popular series of X-rated Confessions... comedies, or indeed the official Emmanuelle films it parodies. This, and Carry On England, were the only films in the series to be certified AA by the British Board of Film Censors, which restricted audiences to those aged 14 and over.
Plot
Emmannuelle Prévert (Suzanne Danielle) relieves the boredom of a flight on Concorde by seducing timid Theodore Valentine (Larry Dann). She returns home to London to surprise her husband, the French ambassador, Émile Prevert (Kenneth Williams) but first surprises the butler, Lyons (Jack Douglas). He removes her coat, only to find that she has left her dress on the aircraft. The chauffeur, Leyland (Kenneth Connor), housekeeper, Mrs Dangle (Joan Sims), and aged boot-boy, Richmond (Peter Butterworth), sense saucy times ahead… and they are right! Émile is dedicated to his bodybuilding, leaving a sexually frustrated Emmannuelle to find pleasure with everyone from the Lord Chief Justice (Llewellyn Rees) to chat show host, Harold Hump (Henry McGee). Theodore is spurned by Emmannuelle, who has genuinely forgotten their airborne encounter, and, despite reassurances from his mother (Beryl Reid), exacts revenge by revealing Emmannuelle's antics to the press. However, after a visit to her doctor (Albert Moses), she discovers that she is pregnant and decides to settle down to a faithful marriage with Émile… and dozens of children.
Cast
- Kenneth Williams as Émile Prévert
- Suzanne Danielle as Emmannuelle Prévert
- Kenneth Connor as Leyland
- Jack Douglas as Lyons
- Joan Sims as Mrs Dangle
- Peter Butterworth as Richmond
- Larry Dann as Theodore Valentine
- Beryl Reid as Mrs Valentine
- Henry McGee as Harold Hump
- Victor Maddern as Man in launderette
- Dino Shafeek as Immigration officer
- Eric Barker as Ancient General
- Joan Benham as Cynical lady
- Albert Moses as Doctor
- Robert Dorning as Prime Minister
- Steve Plytas as Arabian official
- Michael Nightingale as Police Commissioner
- Bruce Boa as US Ambassador
- Llewellyn Rees as Lord Chief Justice
- Jack Lynn as Admiral
- Claire Davenport as Blonde in pub
- Norman Mitchell as Drunken husband
- Tricia Newby as Nurse in surgery
- James Fagan as Concorde steward
- Malcolm Johns as Sentry
- Howard Nelson as Harry Hernia
- Tim Brinton as BBC newscaster
- Corbett Woodall as ITN newscaster
- Marianne Maskell as Nurse in hospital
- Louise Burton as Girl at zoo
- David Hart as Customs officer
- Gertan Klauber as German soldier
- John Carlin as French parson
- Guy Ward as Dandy
- John Hallet as Substitute football player
- Deborah Brayshaw as French buxom blonde
- Suzanna East as Colette
- Bruce Wylie as Football referee
- Philip Clifton as Injured footballer
- Stanley McGeagh as Fleet Street journalist
- Bill Hutchinson as 1st reporter
- Neville Ware as 2nd reporter
- Jane Norman as 3rd reporter
- Nick White as Sent-off footballer
Crew
- Screenplay – Lance Peters
- Music – Eric Rogers
- Song – Kenny Lynch
- Performers – Masterplan
- Director of Photography – Alan Hume
- Editor – Peter Boita
- Art Director – Jack Sampan
- Production Manager – Roy Goddard
- Camera Operator – Godfrey Godar
- Make-up – Robin Grantham
- Production Executive for Cleves – Donald Langdon
- Assistant Director – Gregory Dark
- Sound Recordists – Danny Daniel & Otto Snel
- Continuity – Marjorie Lavelly
- Wardrobe – Margaret Lewin
- Stills Cameraman – Ken Bray
- Hairdresser – Betty Sherriff
- Costume Designer – Courtenay Elliott
- Set Dresser – John Hoesli
- Assistant Editor – Jack Gardner
- Dubbing Editor – Peter Best
- Titles & Opticals – GSE Ltd
- Processor – Technicolor Ltd
- Producer – Peter Rogers
- Director – Gerald Thomas
Filming and locations
- Filming dates – 10 April-15 May 1978
Interiors:
- Pinewood Studios, Buckinghamshire
Exteriors:
- Wembley, London
- Trafalgar Square, London
- Oxford Street, London
- London Zoo, London
Critical reception
Philip French took a very negative review of Carry On Emmannuelle: "This relentless sequence of badly-written, badly-timed dirty jokes is surely one of the most morally and aesthetically offensive pictures to emerge from a British studio."[1] Christopher Tookey considered the film to be "Embarrassingly feeble".[2]
Notes
- ^ Scott Hughes "The worst movie ever?" The Guardian, 26 April 2001. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
- ^ "Carry On Emmanuelle - Review by Chris Tookey". www.movie-film-review.com.
References
- Robert Ross The Carry On Companion, Batsford Books, 1996
- Simon Sheridan Keeping the British End Up: Four Decades of Saucy Cinema, Titan Books, 2011 (fourth edition)
Bibliography
- Davidson, Andy (2012). Carry On Confidential. London: Miwk. ISBN 978-1908630018.
- Sheridan, Simon (2011). Keeping the British End Up – Four Decades of Saucy Cinema. London: Titan Books. ISBN 978-0857682796.
- Webber, Richard (2009). 50 Years of Carry On. London: Arrow. ISBN 978-0099490074.
- Hudis, Norman (2008). No Laughing Matter. London: Apex. ISBN 978-1906358150.
- Sheridan, Simon (2011). Keeping the British End Up: Four Decades of Saucy Cinema (fourth edition). Titan Books.
- Ross, Robert (2002). The Carry On Companion. London: Batsford. ISBN 978-0713487718.
- Bright, Morris; Ross, Robert (2000). Mr Carry On – The Life & Work of Peter Rogers. London: BBC Books. ISBN 978-0563551836.
- Rigelsford, Adrian (1996). Carry On Laughing – a celebration. London: Virgin. ISBN 1-85227-554-5.
- Hibbin, Sally & Nina (1988). What a Carry On. London: Hamlyn. ISBN 978-0600558194.
- Eastaugh, Kenneth (1978). The Carry On Book. London: David & Charles. ISBN 978-0715374030.