Carry On Cleo
The Funniest Film Since 54 B.C.
The 10th Carry On film, Produced by Peter Rogers and Directed by Gerald Thomas, is without doubt the most famous film of the whole series, probably for two reasons. One for the hilarious line uttered by Caesar, the reviled Roman emperor, who everyone is trying to kill, (even his own bodyguards), to which he responds with “Infamy, Infamy, they’ve all got it in for me!” In 2007, over 1,000 Industry Experts and Comedians from around the world declared this to be the funniest film line of all time in a comprehensive Sky Poll.
The other slightly less known fact is that Peter Rogers played a financial master-stroke, when he acquired most of his costumes and film sets from the mega-money burner Cleopatra which was released the previous year, starring Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. Hence why this film has some of the best art-direction and costume design of the whole series. It is great fun to watch the two films back-to-back, it gives you a whole new direction and make Carry On Cleo so much funnier. The plot follows Caesar (Kenneth Williams) and his invasion of our Isles in 55 BC, conquering Britain and returning home after three years to a less than enthusiastic Rome. This leads him to make a captured and cowardly caveman and inventor Hengist Pod, (Kenneth Connor), to be his personal body guard, whom he thinks is a noble warrior. Meanwhile his friend Marc Antony, (Sid James), sets sail for Egypt with strict instructions to depose Cleopatra, (Amanda Barrie), and to put her brother Ptolemy on the Throne. However Marc Anthony is completely smitten with Cleopatra, which changes everything.
This Carry On is extremely convoluted, there are way too many subplots for what should have been a fun spoof movie. It felt as if Rogers and Thomas were trying to squeeze three films into one. This is still a timeless comedy with superb one liners and a stellar cast that includes most of the Carry On regulars. This makes up for most of the flaws in Carry on Cleo, not that Amanda Barrie has any flaws of course!
7/10 – Calum Roberts